Pope Benedict's personal preacher has apologised to Jews after he compared attacks on the Church and the Pope over a sexual abuse scandal to collective violence against Jews throughout history
Father Raniero Cantalamessa said if he had hurt the sensitivities of Jews and victims of paedophilia, he was truly sorry and asked for forgiveness.
He had said that Jews throughout history had been the victims of collective violence and drew comparisons between Jewish suffering and attacks on the Church.
He said the pope was not aware of his remarks and that the pontiff heard them for the first time along with everyone else in St. Peter's Basilica on Good Friday.
Jewish groups around the world have reacted with shock to the comments, using words like repugnant, obscene, and offensive to describe the sermon.
