The Holy Father receives a delegation from the American Jewish Committee

On Thursday, 22 October 2026, the Holy Father received in private audience a delegation of 40 leaders from the American Jewish Committee (AJC), led by Chief Executive Officer Ted Deutch, President Robert Lapin, and Rabbis Noam Marans and Allyson Zacharoff.

In his address, the Holy Father emphasised that Jewish-Christian friendship “[…] calls us to uphold human dignity, to serve the poor, to safeguard religious freedom, and to promote justice and peace. Essential to this commitment is the rejection of every form of religious and ethnic hatred and discrimination”, noting in particular that “the Church does not tolerate antisemitism and combats it, on the basis of the Gospel itself”.

The delegation also met with representatives of the Holy See, including Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State; Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organisations; and Archbishop Flavio Pace, Vice-President of the Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews.

_{Photos © Vatican Media}