Historic visit: Rabbi Marvin Hier leads SWC delegation in private audience with Pope Francis

Rabbi Hier to Pope Francis: 'Peace is one of Judaism's Greatest Virtues' — But ‘Evil is Real and Must be Confronted’ ‘The world must not forget to act when dealing with terrorists and rogue nations’

October 28, 2013 Vatican City A sixty-member Simon Wiesenthal Center delegation that included Holocaust survivors, Christians and a prominent Muslim met with Pope Francis at a private audience in the Vatican. In his speech, Rabbi Marvin Hier (pictured left), Dean and Founder of the Jewish human rights NGO, raised the continuing threats from terrorists and rogue nations, like Iran. In his remarks, Pope Francis reaffirmed his condemnation of “all forms of anti-Semitism,” adding, “The problem of intolerance must be confronted in all its forms… [including] the marginalization and the very real persecutions which not a few Christians are undergoing in various countries.” Simon Wiesenthal Center Chairman, Larry Mizel (pictured right)  presented the Pope with a specially-commissioned Jerusalem Stone menorah with a quote from Psalms reflecting the new Pontiff’s emphasis on values of kindness and good deeds - “Righteousness and Justice are His Throne’s Foundation".