Cardinal Kasper visits Jerusalem, AsiaNews.it, 24 May, 2004, Vatican City

The cardinal is scheduled to discuss the issue of visas for religious and the emigration of Christians from the Holy Land.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) – Meetings with political and religious leaders, from Israeli president Moshe Katzav to the Jewish community's chief rabbis and heads of Christian Churches, are all scheduled to take place on Cardinal Walter Kasper’s trip to Jerusalem.

Cardinal Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity and the Commission for Relations with Jews, will begin his trip to Jerusalem in the Holy Land, today and will conclude his stay this May 28.

The Vatican prelate will take up discussion on various delicate matters such as the issue of entry visas for the Church’s religious personnel and the status of its property and institutions in the Holy Land.

The cardinal will also speak with political and religious authorities about the growing exodus of Catholic communities out of the region in the face of great difficulties.

Before departing for the Holy Land, Cardinal Kasper said during an interview on Vatican Radio that his visit must first of all encourage inter-religious relations: “We have a good commission made up of a mix of Jews and Catholics in Israeli,” he said.

Kasper added later in the interview, “There are political problems concerning visas and Christian properties (there)."

Regarding the emigration problem he said,"Young Christians still do not have much hope, and this leads to a major exodus from the region. This has caused great harm (to the community), since the Christian Church has had a strong presence for centuries in the Holy Land. If we go (there) we don’t want to be considered mere lifeless rocks, but living ones. All this must be faced and discussed.”

The cardinal will also meet with Church leaders, particularly with the patriarch of the Orthodox Church and the ecumenical patriarch “since it is necessary that (all the Christian) Churches work together in these difficult times for the peace and common good not just of the Jewish people but of the Palestinian population as well.”

“They are suffering greatly and we stand united behind them,” Kasper said.

The cardinal ended by promising, “Certainly, I will meet also with members of the Catholic community who find themselves in a difficult situation (too) and are in need of much encouragement and words of hope.”

Cardinal Kasper visits Jerusalem , CathNews.com, VATICAN CITY, MAY 25, 2004

The Vatican's Cardinal Walter Kasper is in Jerusalem to discuss the increasingly pressing issues of visas for religious and the emigration of Christians from the Holy Land.

He has secured meetings with political and religious leaders, from Israeli president Moshe Katzav to the Jewish community's chief rabbis and heads of Christian Churches.

Cardinal Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity and the Commission for Relations with Jews, began his four day visit yesterday.

The agenda includes a number of sensitive matters including the issue of entry visas for the Church’s religious personnel and the status of its property and institutions in the Holy Land.

The cardinal will also speak with political and religious authorities about the growing exodus of Catholic communities out of the region in the face of great difficulties.

Before departing for the Holy Land, Cardinal Kasper said during an interview on Vatican Radio that his visit must first of all encourage inter-religious relations: “We have a good commission made up of a mix of Jews and Catholics in Israeli,” he said.

He added later in the interview, “There are political problems concerning visas and Christian properties (there)."

With regard to the problem of emigration, he said: "Young Christians still do not have much hope, and this leads to a major exodus from the region."

SOURCE Cardinal Kasper visits Jerusalem (AsiaNews.it 24/5/04)

LINKS Cardinal Kasper travels to Jerusalem (Vatican Information Service 24/5/04)

CARDINAL KASPER IN JERUSALEM TO ADDRESS PROBLEMS OF CATHOLICS, To Broach the Topic of Visas for Religious, Zenit.org, VATICAN CITY, MAY 24, 2004

JERUSALEM, MAY 24, 2004 (Zenit.org).- A Vatican official arrived here to promote relations and resolve problems between Christians and Jews in the Holy Land.

Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, plans to meet with Catholic communities and representatives of Judaism and the Israeli government during his visit.

The cardinal will ask about the Israeli authorities' non-issuance of visas to Catholic religious, Vatican Radio reported.

"There are political problems, which affect visas and Christian properties," he said before leaving Rome today for Jerusalem.

"Christian young people do not yet have great hope, as for many centuries a great community of Christians has been present in the Holy Land and, if we go to the Holy Land, we do not want to be considered only as dead stones but as living stones," the cardinal said. "This must all be addressed and discussed."

Cardinal Kasper said that he will meet with the heads of the other Churches and Christian confessions, in particular with the Greek-Orthodox patriarch and with the Armenian patriarch.

"In this difficult situation it is necessary that the Churches collaborate for peace and the good of the Jewish people, as well as the Palestinian people," he said. "They suffer a lot and we are in solidarity with them."

"I will also meet, of course, with the Catholic community, which finds itself in a difficult situation and needs encouragement and a message of hope," the Vatican official said.

During his stay in Jerusalem, he will meet with the Latin-rite patriarch of Jerusalem, Catholic bishops, the Custodian of the Holy Land, and superiors and members of religious institutes and congregations.

The Ecumenical Institute of Advanced Theological Studies, of Tantur, invited the cardinal to participate in a colloquium, organized by that institution with the University of Notre Dame. Cardinal Kasper will deliver a talk entitled "Forgiveness and Purification of the Memory." The cardinal's visit ends Friday.

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Tensions mark Israel, Vatican relations , Catholic News 10 MAY, 2004

As they approach the 10th anniversary of their formal diplomatic relations next month, diplomatic tensions between the Holy See and Israel are mounting.

Under the terms of the Fundamental Accord, an economic accord was to have been signed by the end of 1995. But the two sides have not yet reached an agreement on the terms of that accord, which could be critical to the survival of the Christian communities in the Holy Land. The accord involves tax-exempt status for Christian congregations and mission facilities.

In July 2003, Israeli foreign-affairs minister Silvan Shalom announced that the economic pact would be concluded within a few months. But one month after that public announcement, Israeli representatives withdrew from active negotiations.

In April of this year, the Israeli ambassador to the Holy See, Oded Ben-Hur, signaled a desire to renew those negotiations in June, with an eye to finalising the pact by the end of 2005 - a full decade later than foreseen in the Fundamental Accord.

Last Tuesday, Ambassador Ben-Hur visited Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, the Secretary for Relations with States, to make a formal announcement of his government's hopes to conclude the economic pact on the 10th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

At the Vatican, informed officials are viewing the Israeli declaration with caution. "It's a promise-- one more promise," said one official. "We're happy with the promise, but we'll be watching carefully to see if it's followed by action."

A major point of contention between the two sides is Israel's decision to stop renewing the visas of Catholic missionaries in the Holy Land. Hundreds of missionaries are now facing possible expulsion because of the policy, which Church officials see as violating the Israeli promise to cooperate with Church missionary activities.

SOURCE Tensions mark relations between Vatican, Israel (Catholic World News 7/5/04)

REOPENING OF ISRAELI-VATICAN TALKS IS POSSIBLE, Zenit.org, JERUSALEM, MAY 7, 2004

JERUSALEM, MAY 7, 2004 (Zenit.org).- The superior of the Custody of the Holy Land says that the reopening of talks between Israel and the Holy See would encourage pilgrimages and improve the situation of Christians.

Franciscan Father Giovanni Battistelli was reacting to Israeli press reports that said talks are under way on such issues as the granting of visas to priests and religious, and the restitution of the Cenacle.

"If the news published by Israeli newspapers is confirmed, of the opening of negotiations between Israel and the Holy See, it would certainly help the renewal of pilgrimages in the Holy Land and improve the conditions of Christians," Father Battistelli said.

In statements published by the Italian bishops' news agency SIR, the custodian said: "I hope the negotiations can begin again as soon as possible."

He also hopes that the "room of the Cenacle," located on Mount Zion in Jerusalem and surrounded by rabbinical seminaries, will be restored to the Catholic Church.

The Tel Aviv newspaper Maariv quoted a source at the Foreign Affairs Ministry who said the government might start on a new path with the Holy See.

According to the newspaper, U.S. President George W. Bush, who faces an election this year, asked Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon last month "to accelerate the transactions."

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Tensions mark relations between Vatican, Israel , CWNews.com, 7 May 2004

Vatican, May. 07 (CWNews.com) - Diplomatic tensions between the Holy See and Israel are mounting, even as they approach the 10th anniversary of their formal diplomatic relations.

On June 15, the Vatican and Israel will mark the 10th anniversary of their establishment of full diplomatic relations. But an accompanying economic pact-- which was foreseen in by the historic "Fundamental Accord" signed by the two parties in December 1993, paving the way for diplomatic relations-- remains unsigned.

Under the terms of the Fundamental Accord, an economic accord was to have been signed by the end of 1995. But the two sides have not yet reached an agreement on the terms of that accord, which could be critical to the survival of the Christian communities in the Holy Land. The accord involves tax-exempt status for Christian congregations and mission facilities.

In July 2003, Israeli foreign-affairs minister Silvan Shalom announced that the economic pact would be concluded within a few months. But one month after that public announcement, Israeli representatives withdrew from active negotiations. In April of this year, the Israeli ambassador to the Holy See, Oded Ben-Hur, signaled a desire to renew those negotiations in June, with an eye to finalizing the pact by the end of 2005-- a full decade later than foreseen in the Fundamental Accord. Ambassador Ben-Hur visited on May 4 with Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, the Secretary for Relations with States, to make a formal announcement of his government's hopes to conclude the economic pact on the 10th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

At the Vatican, informed officials are viewing the Israeli declaration with caution. "It's a promise-- one more promise," said one official. "We're happy with the promise, but we'll be watching carefully to see if it's followed by action."

The Vatican's relations with Israel have been marked by difficult negotiations in the past. On November 10, 1997, the two parties signed another long-awaited agreement, regarding the legal status of Christian institutions in the Holy Land. When that pact was signed, Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls lamented "the interruption of negotiations on other points"-- apparently referring to the economic agreement.

Another point of contention between the two sides is the Israel decision to stop renewing the visas of Catholic missionaries in the Holy Land. Hundreds of missionaries are now facing possible expulsion because of this policy-- which, in the eyes of Church officials, clearly violates the Israeli promise to cooperate with Church missionary activities.

On this issue, too, the Israeli government has recently promised corrective action. After a public protest to the daily newspaper Ha'aretz by Father David Jaeger, a spokesman for the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, prime minister Ariel Sharon announced that he would create a new commission to resolve the visa problems. In Rome, Ambassador Ben-Hur said his government was taking "a new attitude, a real change of direction." But again, the Vatican is still waiting for the promise to be fulfilled by effective action.

The visa problem stems from the desire of Israeli leaders to exclude visitors-- including Catholic missionaries-- who come from countries that are regarded as "enemies" of the Israeli state, such as Syria and Lebanon. Vatican officials strongly argue that this Israeli policy should not prevent the issuance of visas for missionaries, for several reasons. Most of the missionaries caught up in the dispute do not come from the "enemy" countries. Representatives of the Holy See quickly concede that Israel has the right to maintain a list of countries whose residents cannot stay in Israel-- provided that (as one Vatican official put it) "they don't put Catholics on their list of enemies." Furthermore, Church leaders point out that when a missionary enters the Holy Land, both his religious superior and the papal nuncio in Jerusalem sign a pledge assuming responsibility for his conduct. Yet another cause of tensions between the Vatican and Israel is the "security wall" through Palestinian territory, which one official characterized as "a problem for everyone." Religious congregations have complained about the difficulties caused by the wall, which cuts off communities and makes traffic across Palestinian territory difficult and sometimes impossible. But the same Church spokesmen also point out that in this respect, missionaries are only suffering the same severe inconveniences as the entire Palestinian population.

On another level, however, the "security wall" can be seen as a fresh violation of the Fundamental Accord. In Article 4 of that agreement, the Israeli government pledged to "continue to respect and protect the character of the Catholic holy places," including churches, monasteries, convents, and cemeteries, and to allow free access to them. The security wall impedes access to many shrines, and Church officials point out that the construction of "a military structure" like the wall changes the character of the religious sites nearby. Furthermore, some religious congregations were forced to move in order to make room for the construction of the wall, others have seen their lands split by the wall, and still others have been cut off from the people they served. The tense relations between the Vatican and the Israeli government are important for Christians outside the Catholic faith. Since the Holy See has sovereign international status-- unlike any other Christian religious entity-- the Catholic Church often serves as a sort of spokesman for the aspirations of all Christians regarding the Holy Land.