Vatican official calls Holy Land pilgrimages 'acts of courage' NEWS BRIEFS, Feb-26-2004, By Catholic News Service

JERUSALEM (CNS) -- A Vatican official said pilgrimages to the Holy Land were "acts of courage and solidarity" that helped bring peace to the region. Msgr. Liberio Andreatta, director-general of Opera Romana Pellegrinaggi, the Vatican's pilgrimage office, said pilgrims "can be protagonists for a common project of peace." He made his remarks during a plenary session of the Third Prime Minister's Conference for Tourism to Israel, held in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv Feb. 22-24. Pilgrims of all faiths with roots in the Holy Land should be free to visit their holy sites, Msgr. Andreatta said. "This is a land that belongs to God ... here every believer finds his culture and religion. Pilgrimage to the Holy Land is a duty and a right," he said. Despite the political conflicts, Msgr. Andreatta said pilgrims can travel to the Holy Land, but should coordinate their trips with Israeli and Palestinian authorities. Those pilgrims who have "overcome the threshold of initial fear" have had very meaningful and safe experiences in the Holy Land, he said.

Pope condemns Palestinian suicide bombing on Jerusalem bus Feb-23-2004, Catholic News Service, NEWS BRIEFS

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II condemned a Palestinian suicide bombing that killed eight passengers on a Jerusalem bus and injured 60 others. A telegram sent in the pope's name urged a rejection of the "absurd dynamic" of terrorist violence. The papal telegram was made public Feb. 22, a few hours after the Sunday-morning blast. "The Holy Father expresses his firm condemnation of the new, brutal attack carried out in Jerusalem," it said. "In assuring his spiritual closeness to the victims and relatives, he urges the authorities and citizens not to allow themselves to be dragged into the absurd dynamic of violence, but to intensify their efforts to hasten the arrival of much-desired peace," it said.

Pope meets Qorei, raps Israeli security wall Vatican, Feb. 12 (CWNews.com)

Vatican, Feb. 12 (CWNews.com) - Pope John Paul II (bio - news) met with Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei on February 12, and renewed his criticism of the Israeli security wall running through Palestinian territory.

The continuing violence in the Holy Land is "a source of profound suffering for all," the Pope told the Palestinian leader. He went on: "It is reconciliation that the Holy land needs: forgiveness, not revenge; bridges, not walls."

The Pope's words were a repetition of remarks that he had made last November, shortly after Israeli began construction of the security wall. In public remarks shortly before a meeting with Israeli's Prime Minister Sharon, the Pontiff had said: "Really, the Holy Land needs bridges, not walls."

After a private, 10-minute talk with Qorei, the Pope send his public greetings and blessings to the Palestinian people, and recalled his emotional trip to the Holy Land in March 2000.

The Palestinian leader met the Pope during a trip to Europe, which he explained as an effort to "ask everyone to be involved" in the search for peace in the Middle East. He said that he had asked the world's leading powers to help renew active talks between Palestine and Israel.

Qorei told reporters in Italy that he has been working "for months, 24 hours a day" to stop terrorist bombings. But he charged that Israeli policies-- in particular, the construction of the wall and the military incursions into Palestinian villages-- were making it more difficult to control extremists.

Pope meets top Palestinian official, urges 'forgiveness not revenge' Feb-12-2004, Catholic News Service, NEWS BRIEFS

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In his first meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, Pope John Paul II said the Holy Land needs "forgiveness not revenge, bridges not walls." After private talks Feb. 12 lasting five minutes, the pope gave a short speech to Qureia and seven of his aides. He said that although Israeli-Palestinian peace prospects look dim, no one should give up hope and turn to retaliatory violence. "No one must yield to the temptation of discouragement, let alone to hatred or retaliation. It is reconciliation that the Holy Land needs: forgiveness not revenge, bridges not walls," the pope said. "This demands that all leaders of the region follow, with the help of the international community, the path of dialogue and negotiation which leads to lasting peace," he said. The pope said that while signs of hope have not been completely absent, the "sad situation in the Holy Land is a cause of suffering for all." He read his English-language speech seated in a chair next to Qureia, who thanked the pontiff for his message. The prime minister presented the pope with a mother-of-pearl Nativity scene made by a Christian artisan near Bethlehem, West Bank. Qureia, also known as Abu Ala, was in Europe to rally opposition against a security barrier -- part fence and part wall -- being built by Israel. When completed, it will separate Israel from Palestinian territories and enclose the vast majority of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Papal anniversary collection brings $1.27 million for Holy Land Feb-10-2004, Catholic News Service, NEWS BRIEFS

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world's cardinals gave Pope John Paul II 1 million euros (US$1.27 million) for his 25th anniversary, and the pope has designated the funds for projects to assist Catholics in the Holy Land. A Vatican official confirmed the sum Feb. 10 and said the results of the collection had been reported to the world's 192 cardinals. Members of the College of Cardinals had been asked to contribute to the collection out of their personal resources. During the October celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the pope's election, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, dean of the College of Cardinals, had announced that 750,000 euros (US$957,000) had been collected at that point. Pope John Paul has begun distributing the money, giving 100,000 euros (US$127,000) to the Pontifical Mission for Palestine.