Pope Benedict XVI: "human dignity must be preserved", criticizing body scanners which Rabbis say violate Jewish women's rights

"Every action, it is above all essential to protect and value the human person in their integrity". "For you this reality represents an ever more task of complex organization and it is a labour that if often discreet and barely known, not always noted but which does not escape the eyes of God, who sees all of Man's works even those that are hidden."

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Pope Benedict XVI criticises airport body scanners. Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out against the use of body scanners at airports insisting that "human dignity must be preserved".

The Pope made his comments during an audience with airport workers held at the Vatican. Although the Pontiff did not mention the words body scanner it was clear what he meant as he told the 1,200 strong crowd: "Every action, it is above all essential to protect and value the human person in their integrity.

"Respecting these principles can seem particularly complex and difficult in the present context.

"The economic crisis has had problematic effects on the civil aviation sector, the international terrorist threat which, precisely, has in its line of fire airports and aircraft to realise its destructive schemes.

"Even in this situation, one must never forget that respecting the primacy of the human person and attention to his or her needs does not make the service less efficient nor penalise economic management."

The use of scanners at airports to fight terrorism has caused controversy because the high tech equipment makes people who pass through it appear naked. As a result there are concerns that scanners break discrimination law and breach privacy – with Italy's society of plastic surgeons claiming that the scanners will reveal if a woman has had breast enhancement surgery.

Scanners have been introduced at Heathrow and in Manchester and they will also be phased in gradually at Rome and Milan airports in Italy. The introduction of full body scanners at Heathrow and Manchester airports has outraged civil liberty campaigners who say that they are an invasion of privacy and they will no doubt pick up on the Pope's objections.

In his speech Pope Benedict, who travels exclusively on Italian carrier Alitalia using a special plane dubbed Shepherd One, added: "The skies represent a motorway of modern travel and as a consequence airports have become crossroads of a global village.

"For you this reality represents an ever more task of complex organization and it is a labour that if often discreet and barely known, not always noted but which does not escape the eyes of God, who sees all of Man's works even those that are hidden."

How Modern Airport Security May Run Afoul of Jewish Law. The scanners have raised concerns outside the American Jewish community, as well. In early January, a group of European rabbis issued a press release voicing distress over the scanners. And in the United States, American Muslim groups have said that the scans may violate their religion’s standards of modesty.

Observant Jews are voicing concerns over modesty. Leaders in both Conservative and Orthodox communities are debating how scanners with the ability to see through clothing intersect with Jewish laws of tzniut, or modesty, which are observed differently among denominations but generally require Jews to cover their bodies.

“It creates a tension between the Jewish value of protecting lives, which is very strong, and the Jewish value of modesty for women and for men,” said David Rosenn, a Conservative rabbi and the executive director of Avodah, a Jewish service program.

There are currently 74 full-body scanning machines in operation at American airports. The TSA, which oversees airport security throughout the country, recently announced that 150 more backscatter X-rays will be put to use early this year.

Conservative and Orthodox rabbis have voiced concern over the scanners, and in some cases they’ve requested compromises to ensure that their modesty concerns are met. Last June, the Washington office of Agudath Israel, which represents traditional American Orthodox communities, sent a letter to a Senate subcommittee reviewing a TSA-related bill, promoting an amendment to the House version of the bill that limited the use of the full-body scanners to situations in which passengers had already failed a metal detector test, and which would require that those passengers be offered the option of a pat-down search.

“As an organization that represents observant Jews, Agudath Israel finds [full-body imaging] to be offensive, demeaning, and far short of acceptable norms of modesty under the laws and practices of Judaism and many faith communities,” the letter read.

Abba Cohen, the rabbi who directs Agudath Israel’s Washington office, said in an interview that it is important that the full-body scans be adopted with care, if they are adopted at all. “In the rush to move to full-body scans, there hasn’t been any kind of process of determining under what circumstances these scans could and should be used,” Cohen said.

The scanners have raised concerns outside the American Jewish community, as well. In early January, a group of European rabbis issued a press release voicing distress over the scanners. And in the United States, American Muslim groups have said that the scans may violate their religion’s standards of modesty. “The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said every faith has an intrinsic character, and the intrinsic character of Islam is modesty,” said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which is a Washington-based civil rights and advocacy group. “We have specific requirements for what can be exposed of the body, both for men and women, and needless to say, having a nude image displayed on a screen is not something we appreciate in religious terms.”

Rabbis: Full-body scanners compromise modesty. Rabbinical Centre of Europe says new system installed in continent's airports violates Jewish women's rights

The Rabbinical Center of Europe (RCE) is concerned about full-body scanners in European airports compromising Jewish women's modesty. According to RCE, "In line with child protection agencies in America we feel the implementation of full body scans violates the rights of religious women whose modesty would be compromised.

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Photos courtesy of ABC News, Roman Catholic Blog, Linda Davidson / The Washington Post, and AP