First it was a group of Austrian bishops led by the Archbishop of Vienna that were prohibited from visiting the famed Wailing Wall of Jerusalem because they refused to remove (or hide under their clothing) their crosses. That was in November of 2007. Then in May of last year, a group of Irish clergy representing both Catholic and Protestant churches were barred from visiting the Wall for the same reason.And now, the fellow responsible for those two affairs, Shmuel Rabinovitch, rabbi of the Western Wall, has warned the Vatican that even Pope Benedict XVI should be prepared to remove the cross he always wears in public if he wants to visit the Wall during his visit to Israel next month.
The rabbi apparently believes the Wall is something exclusive to Judaism. That's very unfortunate. For what the Western Wall (the only extent structure from ancient Jerusalem) should also represent is the link between Christianity and its Jewish roots.
Christianity embraces the Old Testament with its revelation of God's Law, His gracious treatment of Israel, His purpose that Israel serve as His megaphone to all nations, and His eternal plan to bring forth from the seed of Adam and Eve (through King David) a Messiah/Savior Whose sacrifice on the cross would be to atone for the sins of all people -- Jew and Gentile, male and female, slave and free.
It is sadly ironic. For the cross that so offends rabbi Rabinovitch is not only the most precious symbol of Christianity; it is also the Hope of Israel.
