Jerusalem ? Israel’s chief rabbinate severed ties with the Vatican on Wednesday to protest a papal decision to reinstate a bishop who publicly denied 6 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.

The Jewish state’s highest religious authority sent a letter to the Holy See expressing “sorrow and pain” at the papal decision. “It will be very difficult for the chief rabbinate of Israel to continue its dialogue with the Vatican as before,” the letter said. Chief rabbis of both the Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews were parties to the letter.

The rabbinate and the state of Israel have separate ties with the Vatican, and Wednesday’s move does not affect state relations.

Pope Benedict XVI said Wednesday he feels “full and indisputable solidarity” with Jews and warned against any denial of the full horror of the Nazi genocide.