VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Among his first messages, Pope Leo XIV expressed his intention to strengthen the Catholic Church’s ties with the Jewish community. Promulgated 60 years ago, “Nostra Aetate” affirmed the Catholic Church’s spiritual kinship with the Jewish people and condemned all forms of anti-Semitism. The pope’s message signed May 8 — the day of his election — was posted on the AJC’s X account May 13. Although Pope Leo did not address the Israel-Hamas war explicitly after praying the “Regina Coeli” with pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square May 11, he called for an “immediate ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. “Let humanitarian aid be provided to the stricken civil population, and let all the hostages be freed,” he said.