ROME — When Pope Benedict XVI visited this city’s main synagogue, sparring between the pope and Jewish leaders over Pope Pius XII’s role in the Holocaust grabbed headlines.

But the emotion-charged visit Sunday, Jan. 17, held broader significance, as Jewish leaders and the German-born pontiff sought to mend strained relations and reaffirm a commitment to Christian-Jewish dialogue.

“Despite a dramatic history, the unresolved problems and the misunderstandings, it is our shared visions and common goals that should be given pride of place,” said Rome’s chief rabbi, Riccardo Di Segni, speaking to a packed sanctuary from in front of the ornate ark.

NEW YORK — The text messages started coming in to Shachar Zahavi’s cell phone in the middle of the night: “What are we going to do about Haiti?”

Zahavi, chairman of IsraAid, a coordinating organization for 17 Israeli and Jewish humanitarian groups, hadn’t even heard yet about the earthquake that had rocked Port-au-Prince, leaving untold thousands dead.

By morning, preparations already were underway to dispatch an Israeli relief team to the devastated Caribbean nation.

Consisting of doctors, nurses, paramedics and logistics experts, the 15-person group arrived Saturday, Jan. 16, in Port-au-Prince and immediately set to work treating wounded Haitians at the site of a collapsed hospital near the city center.