Holy See marks 10th anniversary of "fundamental accord" with Israel Vatican, Dec. 31, 2003 (CWNews.com)

Vatican, Dec. 31, 2003 (CWNews.com) - The Vatican today marked the 10th anniversary of their "fundamental accord," which one Vatican official termed "a milestone in the history of relations between the Holy See and Israel."

The fundamental accord, signed December 30 of 1993, was the first juridical agreement between Israel and the Holy See. It paved the way for the establishment of full diplomatic relations several months later, on June 15, 1994.

Writing in L'Osservatore Romano, Archbishop Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo-- the first apostolic nuncio in Israel-- remarked that despite the "numerous difficulties" of political and diplomatic life in the Holy Land, the provisions of the "fundamental accord" have withstood the test of time.

The Italian prelate, who served in Israel from 1994 through 1998, distinguished between the provisions of the fundamental accord-- which have always been respected, he said-- and the often frustrating diplomatic work involved in the peace process in the Holy Land. He observed that while many difficulties have arisen in other areas, the government of Israel has upheld its pledge to respect the integrity of the Catholic Church, and to preserve access to the shrines of the Holy Land.

The former nuncio added that in signing the accord, the Holy See had not abandoned its insistence that the city of Jerusalem should be government by a special statute, with international guarantees to ensure free access to believers of all religions.

Father David Jaeger, the spokesman for the Fransican Custody of the Holy Land, took a somewhat different perspective in an interview with Vatican Radio. Father Jaeger observed that the Israeli government has not yet settled claims regarding the economic rights of Catholic institutions in the Holy Land. In some cases, these institutions claim time-honored privileges, conceded by previous regimes, and confirmed by a UN resolution in 1947. "The state of Israel has to recognize, in a new agreement, the rights acquired by the Church in Israel and in the Holy Land over the course of centuries," the Franciscan spokesman argued.

Letter from Jerusalem. Fear Not: may peace be with you! by Mons. Pietro Sambi, Delegato Apostolico di Gerusalemme 23 December, 2003 ISRAEL - PALESTINE - VATICAN Jerusalem (AsiaNews)

Jerusalem (AsiaNews) - Early this morning about 40 Israeli tanks and armoured vehicles entered the Rafah refugee camp, near the Gaza Strip, killing 3 and leaving 20 persons wounded. The Israeli army specified that the raid is part of the military operation to search out and destroy the tunnel from Egypt to Gaza used to funnel in weapons. Yesterday, during a clash in Gaza, a grenade exploded on a group of Israel soldiers, killing 2 of them. Meanwhile Egypt’s minister of foreign affairs, Ahmed Maher, recently back in Cairo after being wounded in an attack at the Al Aqsa mosque, said the incident: “will have no impact on the essence of Egyptian policy … We are working to make sure Palestinians earn their rights back.” Upon exiting the mosque yesterday, Maher was attacked by demonstrators belonging to the radical Islamic group, Islamic Liberation Front.

News of these events pays testimony to the desire for peace that exists in the Holy Land. In a survey published in yesterday’s Jerusalem Post, Palestinian support of violence used against soldiers and settlers in the occupied territory is 87%. But even if there is large support for violence, around 83% are in favor of a mutual cease to violence and 73% believe that continued violence only hinders a return to peace negotiations.

Confusion abounds even in the Israeli camp. Yesterday Tsahal soldiers (the Israeli army) were condemned in Haifa for refusing to fight against Palestinians. Desertion and refusal to fight have become ever more commonplace among soldiers and military officers, despite being considered “patriots” and lovers of Israel.

Given the entangled web of sentiments and choices and bitter stagnation enveloping the region, we asked Msgr. Pietro Sambi, Apostolic Delegate to Jerusalem and Palestine, to offer some clues on how to build peace and hope in the Holy Land.

Christmas in the Holy Land is a continuously new experience: each year we are pushed to deepen our faith and put it into practice. To kneel down at the site of the Nativity is always a new experience. Here, God came down to be near to man in an act of love, a saving kind of love.

At Christmas God’s love stimulates us toward love of our fellow men, just as God became man because he loves us.

Christmas brings out the contrast between divine reason and that of man, especially when man causes others like him to suffer, be humiliated, and lose their lives. Christmas, on the other hand, is a celebration of life.

But it is useless to lose ourselves in complaining about and reporting such contradictions. One must put into effect, with greater effort and conviction, the 4 pillars of peace, as suggested by John XXIII in Pacem in Terris:

- truth: every war, every battle is prepared and based on lies ;

- justice: the sacrosanct right to defend one’s rights goes hand in hand with accepting and recognizing the rights of others;

- love: love is a word absent in the language of diplomacy and politics; if every conflict is based on mutual hatred, love is a necessary path to restore peace;

- liberty: an oppressed individual or nation is filled with such thirst for revenge that peace is made difficult for generations to come.

To become peacemakers is not as simple as stating the above words. You have to live, breathe and preach these 4 pillars.

Christmas also gives us a sense of certainty from on high: love is stronger that hatred, truth stronger than lies, justice stronger than violence and freedom more powerful than oppression. All this must be lived out and deeply believed and lovingly communicated by our words and actions.

In seeking peace for Jerusalem, I would like to recall what John Paul II cried forth during his Holy Land pilgrimage to Bethlehem in 2000:

“Today, right from Manger Square, we loudly proclaim for all times, all places and all persons: “Fear not: may peace be with you!”

Pope meets Israeli foreign minister 13 Dec 2004, CathNews

Pope John Paul II called for "concrete acts" from Israel and the Palestinians to break the current impasse in the peace process, during a meeting yesterday with Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.

The pope "insisted on the necessity to emerge from the current situation, as well as on the need for concrete acts for reconciliation by all," Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro Valls said.

Shalom also met Vatican Secretary of State Angelo Sodano and the Vatican's new foreign minister Giovanni Lajolo.

The meeting followed months of tense exchanges over Israel's construction of a security barrier in the West Bank.

"Both parties expressed their points of view on the road to follow to obtain peace in the Holy Land," during Thursday's talks, Navarro Valls said.

Israel reacted angrily last month when the pope called the barrier "a new obstacle to peace" and declared that the Middle East "does not need walls but bridges".

In Thursday's talks with Shalom, Vatican officials also discussed bilateral relations with the Jewish State, which began when the Holy See recognized Israel in 1993 and opened diplomatic ties the year after.

Israeli foreign minister meets Pontiff Vatican, Dec. 11, 2003 (CWNews.com)

HOLY LAND: CURRENT SITUTATION MUST BE RESOLVED 11-December-2003 -- Vatican Information Service VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2003 (VIS)

VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2003 (VIS) – Joaquin Navarro-Valls, director of the Holy See Press Office, released the following statement this afternoon:

“Today, December 11, 2003, the Holy Father John Paul II received in audience Silvan Shalom, minister of Foreign Affairs for the State of Israel. Afterward Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of State, accompanied by Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, secretary of the Section for Relations with States, met with Mr. Shalom.

“In the course of their conversations, the parties expressed their point of view on the path to follow in order to obtain peace in the Holy Land.

“In particular, the need to find a solution to the current situation was insisted upon, as well as the need for concrete acts of reconciliation on both sides.

“During the encounter, bilateral issues that concern the life of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land were examined in light of the commitments undertaken with the Fundamental Agreement of 1993.”

Pope, Israeli foreign minister meet, discuss Middle East tensions Dec-11-2004, Catholic News Service, NEWS BRIEFS

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II and Israel's foreign minister, Silvan Shalom, met privately at the Vatican Dec. 11 to discuss the ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Shalom also met with Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican secretary of state, the Vatican said in a statement. "In the course of the meetings, both sides expressed their points of view on the path to follow in order to obtain peace in the Holy Land," the Vatican said. The pope, the cardinal and the foreign minister agreed that a "way out of the current situation" must be found, and "concrete acts of reconciliation" by both Israelis and Palestinians are necessary, the Vatican statement said. Israel's foreign ministry said Shalom told the pope, "We all hope that peace will happen next year." The foreign minister said Israel is committed to reaching a peace agreement through direct negotiations with the Palestinians.

Israeli foreign minister meets with pope, assures pilgrims will have access to holy sites VICTOR L. SIMPSON, Associated Press Writer Thursday, December 11, 2003 (12-11) 07:39 PST VATICAN CITY (AP)

Israel's foreign minister told Pope John Paul II on Thursday that his government will do all it can to ensure that pilgrims have free access to holy sites during the Christmas season, the Israeli foreign ministry said.

The meeting between the pope and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom was the first high-level encounter between the two sides since John Paul criticized Israel's planned security barrier last month.

A Vatican statement said that in talks with the pope and a successive meeting with top Vatican officials, the two sides expressed their views on reaching peace in the Holy Land, particularly the need to get the stalled peace process moving.

Last Christmas, the Vatican complained to Israel about access to Manger Square in Bethlehem, the town where tradition holds Christ was born, because it was then under Israeli military occupation.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Jonathan Peled said in Jerusalem that "every effort will be made to facilitate and ease the arrival of pilgrims to Bethlehem."

Israel maintains a checkpoint just south of Jerusalem along the road to Bethlehem. Peled said manpower would be increased to allow tourists to pass quickly through the checkpoint, which controls traffic between Jerusalem and the West Bank.

"It's a goodwill gesture on the part of Israel. We appreciate and respect the wishes of all those who want to celebrate Christmas here. We think it's an interest we share with the Palestinians," Peled said.

About 110,000 tourists are expected to visit Israel this month, said Ami Etgar, general manager of the Israeli Incoming Tour Operator Association, a trade group representing local travel agents. The figure is up from 92,000 last year, he said, but well below the 180,000 visitors who came to Israel in December 1999, before the latest wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence.

"We all hope that peace will happen next year," the Foreign Ministry quoted Shalom as telling the pope, reiterating Israel's commitment to reaching an agreement with the Palestinians through direct negotiations.

Holy See, Grand Rabbinate join in condemnation of violence Jerusalem, Dec. 04, 2003 (CWNews.com)

Jerusalem, Dec. 04, 2003 (CWNews.com) - Catholic and Jewish leaders have joined in a statement condemning terrorist acts that target religious worshippers, and calling for an end to violence, particularly in the Holy Land.

Representatives of the Holy See joined with the Grand Rabbinate of Israel in the statement in a 10-point statement, calling upon all religious leaders to educate their followers in pursuit of peace. In a point clearly intended for the Islamic world, the statement "asked in particular for all the sons of Abraham, and all believers, to lay down the weapons of war and destruction."

Jewish officials indicated their satisfaction with recent statements in which Vatican officials firmly condemned terrorist activities. Cardinal Jorge Mejia, who headed the Holy See's delegation to this week's meeting in Jerusalem, wrote: "To attack people at their house of worship is not only cruel but also ignoble and incompatible with acceptable norms of human behavior." Pope John Paul recently repeated his condemnation of any effort to use religious faith as an incitement to violence.

The statement was the product of the 3rd meeting in a series of exchanges between the Holy See and the Grand Rabbinate. The discussions are designed to focus on the Scriptures, and this year's topic was "the central role of Sacred Scripture for contemporary society."