From his frequent denunciations of anti-Semitism to his close friendship with an Argentine rabbi, Pope Francis has long been a friend of the Jews.
As some of his fans were reminded this week, he also admires the way Jews observe Shabbat, the weekly day of rest.
Footage of him praising the tradition in a 2018 “60 Minutes” interview went newly viral this week, thanks to a YouTube video shared by a Spanish Seventh Day Adventist channel.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories
Free Sign Up
“What the Jews followed, and still observe, was to consider the Sabbath as holy,” he says. “On Saturday you rest. One day of the week. That’s the least! Out of gratitude, to worship god, to spend time with the family, to play, to do all of these things. We are not machines.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2owQL8_BfFE&feature=youtu.be
The clip caught the eye of Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, a leading Israeli rabbi.
“You probably won’t believe it, but the Pope called on the inhabitants of the world to keep the Sabbath like the Jews,” he said, according to the Jewish Press. “It is unbelievable. Those who have decreed that we will not keep Shabbat now understand what the value of Shabbat is.”
I'm proud to work at The Times of Israel
I’ll tell you the truth: Life here in Israel isn’t always easy. But it's full of beauty and meaning.
I'm proud to work at The Times of Israel alongside colleagues who pour their hearts into their work day in, day out, to capture the complexity of this extraordinary place.
I believe our reporting sets an important tone of honesty and decency that's essential to understand what's really happening in Israel. It takes a lot of time, commitment and hard work from our team to get this right.
Your support, through membership in The Times of Israel Community, enables us to continue our work. Would you join our Community today?
Thank you,
Sarah Tuttle Singer, New Media Editor
Join the Times of Israel Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You’re serious. We appreciate that!
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we come to work every day - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
comments