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Benedict warns of anti-SemitismPope visits synagogue of Germany's oldest Jewish community
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YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS(CNN) -- Pope Benedict XVI, visiting a synagogue in Germany, has warned of a rising wave of anti-Semitism. "Today, sadly, we are witnessing the rise of new signs of anti-Semitism and various forms of a general hostility toward foreigners," the pope told members of Germany's oldest Jewish community Friday. In his remarks at Roonstrasse Synagogue, Benedict said he would seek to foster relations with the Jewish world, continuing strides made by his predecessor Pope John Paul II. Benedict, a German native who is on a four-day visit to Cologne, is the second pope to visit a synagogue. In 1986, John Paul visited Rome's main synagogue. At the synagogue, Benedict stopped to pray before a memorial to the Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed by the Nazi German regime before and during World War II. Benedict said the killings were spurred by a "crazy, insane racial ideology which set out for the systematic destruction of European Jewry, including Jews from Cologne in "what is now know as the Shoah." The "terrible events," he said, must be remembered on what is now the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, the gas chambers and the crematoriums, in an era when such hatred is visible. He said people "must without fail and without ceasing awaken our conscience." The visit to Germany by Benedict, 78, has added significance because of his own experiences growing up in the country. He was enrolled in the Hitler Youth and, at 18, was drafted into the German army. He underwent basic training, then risked execution by deserting and returning home a few days before the war ended. On Friday, the pope told congregants that he feels "totally at home" in Cologne, and stressed the common roots and spiritual inheritance of Jews and Christians. There have been periods of good relations between Jews and Christians in Germany, although the ties have been "complex and often painful," he said. He said the Catholic Church stands for the values of tolerance, respect, and peace and Jews and Christians should work together to defend, promote and uphold human rights. As for relations between Jews and Christians, "we have to do a lot more and we have to know each other a lot better and a lot more deeply," he said, adding there needs to be a "trusting dialogue" between Judaism and Christendom. Differences that separate the religions must be mutually respected, he said. Benedict received a standing ovation after his remarks. Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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