VATICAN CITY, MAR 17, 2000 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls held a briefing this morning on Pope John Pauls's trip to the Holy Land, which starts on Monday, March 20. He listed a few changes and additions to the Pope's itinerary, highlighted the elements needed to understand this 91st foreign trip of the Holy Father's pontificate, and answered questions posed by journalists.
One addition to the Pope's itinerary, said Navarro-Valls, occurs in Jordan where he will make a brief personal visit to Al-Maghtas (immersion, or pool) in the Jordan Valley near Jericho. Nearby there is a Greek Orthodox monastery where, since the fourth century, the Baptism of Jesus has been commemorated.
On Thursday, March 23, the Holy Father will concelebrate mass with 12 bishops and the cardinals of the papal party in the Chapel of the Cenacle in Jerusalem, after which he will sign this year's Holy Thursday Letter to Priests.
Navarro-Valls also indicated that on March 23, the diplomatic corps and at least half of the Israeli Knesset or parliament will be present during the meeting between the Pope and the president of Israel. Afterwards, when the Pope goes to the Hall of Remembrance of Yad Vashem, there will be two rabbis present and about 20 Polish Holocaust survivors from the Pope's home town of Wadowice. Inside there will be a brief ceremony, following which the parties will go outside where the Pope will give a speech.
He pointed out that on March 24, while the Holy Father is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, one of the cardinals in the papal entourage will accompany a government official to a wooded area which will be named for John Paul II.
On Saturday, March 25, the day of the papal Mass in Nazareth, the Holy Father, in his popemobile, will go through a Muslim neighborhood in Nazareth, according to the press office director.
He underscored the importance of using the term "pilgrimage" to describe this trip to the Holy Land, as well as last month's papal trip to Egypt and Mount Sinai. This term, he stated, defines the very nature of the trip.
Navarro-Valls then listed four aspects which must be born in mind to understand the meaning of this trip. He said that the Pope wishes this to be a pilgrimage to Biblical sites linked with the life of Jesus and a return, in a way, "to the roots of our faith," a continuation of the paths he has undertaken in the search for Christian unity and for interreligious dialogue, and lastly, a step forward in the search for peace in the Middle East.
The fact that this is a pilgrimage, said the director, explains the great number of personal and private visits which the Holy Father will make during his stay. "He wishes to pray in these places and to bring the Church with him into the Third Millennium, following in the steps of Jesus." This was what was stressed to all the officials with whom we dealt in preparing for the pilgrimage, said Navarro-Valls.
Saying that the Pope "is going to Israel as a friend of the Jewish people," he pointed to the friendly relations which Pope John Paul has with the Jews and underscored how, throughout his life and pontificate, "the Pope has told Catholics that anti-semitism and any form of racism is a sin." It was during John Paul II's pontificate that the Holy See and Israel established diplomatic relations.
"The Pope is also going to the territories of the Palestinian National Authority as a friend of the Palestinian people," Navarro-Valls added. "He is going as the Pope who more than once has spoken of the right of Palestinians to a 'homeland'. In his homily the first Christmas that he was Pope, the Christmas of 1978, the Pope had already spoken of his desire to go to Bethlehem."
Turning to the ecumenical dimension of the Holy Father's trip, he noted that, while the Church was founded here, the complete unity that Christ intended for His followers does not exist yet. The Pope, he said, hopes to pursue the path of ecumenical talks, in particular during his meeting in the Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem, and with the religious leaders of all the Christian Churches. On Sunday, March 26, the Pope will visit the Armenian Patriarch.
Navarro-Valls then pointed to the inter-religious aspect of this trip, highlighting that Jerusalem is a sacred city for followers of the three monotheistic religions; Jews, Christians and Muslims. "The Pope thinks," he said, "that religions must play a more determining role in the efforts made to establish a just and lasting peace" in the region.
Quoting what he termed "a serious and well done Gallup poll" on the Pope's visit to the Holy Land, Navarro-Valls said that most Israelis believe that John Paul II is coming to either influence the Middle East peace process or spread a message of peace and dialogue.
Calling it "an exceptional fact," Navarro-Valls affirmed that the Pope's trip will include an inter-religious encounter. A rabbi and a Muslim religious leader will attend.
What cannot be overlooked, said the director, is that this pilgrimage also includes a visit to the local Church. He underlined the Mass on the Mount of Beatitudes as a singularly important event for Catholics.
OP;PILGRIMAGE HOLY LAND;...;NAVARRO-VALLS;VIS;20000317;Word: 890;
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment