{UAH} Pope continues triumphantly with his pilgrimage in the Holy Land

Yesterday Sunday 25 May, 2014 was another very great day for Pope Francis. He continued to

enjoy a hero's welcome wherever he went. And he had many functions on his programme. Early

in the morning he was flown directly to West Bank in the Palestinian State where he was officially

received by President Mahmood Abbas. In answer to the President's welcome the Pope said he

needed to put special importance on siding with those suffering the most. He stopped and prayed

silently at the famous Wall of Separation....Then he went on to central Bethlehem to preside an open

air Mass attended by tens of thousands of people, including the President and all cabinet ministers.

As he was driven in the streets very dense crowds, numbering hundreds of thousands, that had lined 

for hours madly cheered him! At Mass he gave a touching homily calling for the respect of children who

have now become victims of all sorts of marginalization through exploitation and humiliation.

At the end of the service he formally and officially invited both the Palestinian and Israeli leaders to the

Vatican to pray for peace. ( The two leaders have accepted the Pope's invitation ). This positive answer is

well in line with the general thinking in the Middle East that negotiations prove to be ineffectual but the 

intervention  of Pope Francis will surely prove more fruitful!

He told the vast assembly that he would one day come back and visit Nazareth, a place which couldn't fit

in the Pope's very tight programme and yet there were millions of people over there who wanted to see

Pope Francis!

Later he visited the Grotto of the Holy Nativity and prayed there in the absence of news medias, in accordance

with his express wish. He further went on to visit a group of youths from a refugee camp. He exp^ressed happiness

in being with them and requested that God bless them and honour their prayer intentions. The children had prepared

a petition which they read before the Pope. They pointed on their happiness to be with the Pope whjom they requested to help them in their numerous problems which included their individual freedom of which they feel they are deprived.

Finally they sang in praise of the Pope to whom they also gavbe a present. Moved by thje gesture, the Pope stood up and thanked them. He further cautioned them to be careful when it comes to apply violent means to obtain something.

He observed how always peace defeats violence. And finally advised them against using the past in order to construct

the future, " Don't allow the past to construct your future!" affirmed the Pope

He later took off for Tel Aviv where on arrival he was warmly greeted by President Simon Peres and Premier Netanyau.

Answering the President's speech the Pope said he was coming to Israel as a pilgrim. He greeted all the people of

Israel. . and ensured them of his intention to encourage peace and dialogue He put particular emphasis on the dialogue  between the two states as being the most sensible measure towards mutual respect.On another note the Pope said he

would be moved by his visit today to the Yad Vashem Memorial to remember the 6 million Jews massacred during

World War II. The Pôpe also very strongly noted that there should indeed be no place for antisemitism. He also passed on  the prayer invitation to President Simon Peres who also accepted to travel to the Vatican.for this intention.

Towards the end of the day the Pope moved to Jerusalem, a place now under curfew to avoid any incidents that could

mar the success of Pope's movements! He met and signed a joint statement with the Patriarch of Constantinople in 

which the two great religious leaders called for peace particularly in the region and appealed for the rule of justice to prevail in all corners of the globe. When they arrived at the Holy Sepulchre Church, they embraced each other amidst

cheers and strong applauses. Then the religious service anticipated on the programme began with the reading of Holy

Scriptures narrating Christ's resurrection. Then each of  the two religious leaders pronounced an homily. There was much emphasis on ecumenism and how God wants all Christians  to be one.The two leaders noted the obstacles on the way but they observed they could not all the time hinder progress and the arrival to a true solution. They axed all their hopes on Christ's resurrection which defeated death and darkness, etc...  The two leaders having prayed at Christ's empty tomb moved on the upper floor of the same Church to pray at a spot believed to be the Golgotha where Christ was crucified. The ceremony ended in a very friendly atmosphere of mutual trust before hundreds of observers from very many Christian denominations. And was watched live worldwide and later as a recorded programme. A total of close to a billion televiewers also witnessed the event! 

The Holy Land feels honoured by the Pope's presence and the great man is received everywhere to a hero's welcome!

Indeed a lot of positive things will come out of this trip!

Dr G.H. Kkolokolo  ( Paris / France )