Pope Francis told an Israeli musician to “never react” when provoked by religious divisions. Photo: Casa Rosada via Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Pope Francis on Monday told an Israeli musician to “never react” when provoked by religious divisions.

During a meeting at the Vatican with several active YouTube creators from various countries, the pope made the remark in response to Israeli musician Ofir Jacob’s question about how to make religious divisions “disappear.”

“You as a Jew can remember the first pages of the Bible. After the creation, immediately one brother kills his brothers,” Pope Francis said, referencing Cain’s murder of Abel and calling that act a crime of “jealousy and envy, the trend to divide.”

“So when provoked, you should never react. Is better to look as a fool than react when you are provoked,” said the pontiff.

Jacob is a member of the Anna RF, an Israeli electro-ethnic-reggae band. The meeting with Pope Francis was organized by the Argentina-based church foundation Scholas Occurentes and Google, which owns YouTube.