The Latin patriarch of Jerusalem said he hopes Pope Benedict XVI's May pilgrimage to the Holy Land will encourage Christians to remain in the region."We know he is coming at a very delicate moment to a very delicate region," Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem has said, mentioning the recent war in the Gaza Strip.
He said Holy Land Christians need more trust in God, in man and in the future, and Catholic officials trust the pope's May 8-15 visit will provide that.
He said he also hoped that the pope will speak to the need for more security and peace.
Patriarch Twal emphasized the pastoral aspect of the visit but said the pope is certain to mention the Vatican's position of justice for both Israelis and Palestinians.
"He is coming to the local church before he comes to the local authorities," said Patriarch Twal, who will accompany the pope throughout his pilgrimage.
"We hope his visit will help us to stay in our land in our pastoral work and to encourage us to avoid emigration. We hope it will encourage us toward more dialogue, more justice and more peace."
The pope's tentative itinerary for Jordan includes a visit to the new King Hussein Mosque in Amman, a Mass for Catholics in a soccer stadium, a stop at Jesus' baptismal site at the Jordan River and a pilgrimage to Mount Nebo, where Moses once looked out at the Promised Land.
His three days in Jerusalem will include a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and the Western Wall, sacred to Jews. He is tentatively scheduled to spend one day in Bethlehem, West Bank, and a day in Nazareth, Israel.
Though the pope will not be visiting the Gaza Strip, church officials hope to be able to bring some members of the Gaza Christian community to worship with the pope in Bethlehem, said Patriarch Twal.
"If we can't go to Gaza, we will bring Gaza to him," he told CNS March 4.
"Here in Jerusalem we started preparations one month ago," said the patriarch. "In Jordan they started earlier. They don't have all the divisions and (political) distractions (as we do here)."
He said the patriarchate has set up several commissions to arrange issues concerning papal liturgies, technical matters, invitations and financial questions.
"We have to prepare," he said. "We have to decide on the language of the Masses, what to sing, which prayers to use."
Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian authorities are cooperating in making the necessary infrastructure provisions and organizational arrangements, he said.
"We have the help of the Jordanian government and I am sure the Israeli government will prepare the stadium in Nazareth," he said. "Members of the Palestinian Authority have come to the patriarchate and are ready to (assist)."
The patriarch, who met Pope Benedict several times before he became pope in 2005, said he was "happy" at the chance to host the pontiff and welcomed his prayers of solidarity with the local church.
Church officials also were looking forward to the side effects of the pope's visit, which include encouraging tourists and pilgrims to come to the Holy Land, he said.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Disclaimer
No responsibility or liability shall attach itself to either myself or to the blogspot ‘Clerical Whispers’ for any or all of the articles placed here.
The placing of an article hereupon does not necessarily imply that I agree or accept the contents of the article as being necessarily factual in theology, dogma or otherwise.
Sotto Voce
(Source: CNS)