_WORLD WATCH______________________________
____________________ Holy Land ________________

Pope hears Arafat’s pledge of peace
Condemns all terrorism
Pope John Paul II met briefly with Palestinian President Yasser Arafat at the Vatican on October 30.

The brief conversation between the Pope and the Palestinian leader centered on the “worrisome situation in the Palestinian territories,” the Vatican later announced. The statement issued by the Vatican press office also mentioned “the recent tragic events concerning the Christian holy sites” in Palestinian towns such as Bethlehem.

Arafat told the Holy Father that the Palestinian Authority condemns all forms of terrorism, and is searching for a just and durable peace. He also said that his government would protect the rights of Christian Palestinians.

Pope John Paul renewed his appeal for an end to “the endless spiral of violence,” and a renewal of negotiations. He also repeated the position often stated by the Holy See: that there should be international guarantees to ensure the security of the region and free access to the holy places for all religious believers.

Arafat arrived at the Vatican in a convoy of vehicles with dark tinted windows, with an Italian military helicopter above to ensure the safety of the procession. After leaving the Vatican, the Palestinian leader proceeded to a luncheon date with Italian President Silvio Berlusconi. His schedule called for a visit to Oslo, Norway, later in the day, and a return to Jerusalem—where Arafat met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair the next day.

Orthodox patriarch plans legal challenges
Would contest transfer of church property
The new Greek Orthodox leader in the Holy Land has announced that he will seek to recover land formerly owned by the Church, including land on which the Israeli parliament building now stands.

Patriarch Eireneos I, who was elected by the Greek Orthodox synod this summer, has not yet formally assumed his new office. Under the terms of a 1,500-year-old agreement, he cannot take office until he is approved by the local governments. He was quickly approved by Jordan and the Palestinian Authority—the other two political entities within his ecclesiastical jurisdiction —but the Israeli government has not yet acted. Prior to the election of the new patriarch, the Israeli government had refused to approve several different candidates for the office—Eireneos among them—because of complaints that they were biased toward the Palestinian cause.

If he eventually wins Israeli approval, and follows through on his promise to seek recovery of Orthodox Church real-estate holdings, Patriarch Eireneos would immediately become embroiled in a controversy involving what was once St. John’s Hospice in Jerusalem. That facility was seized by Israeli investors in 1990, in a bitterly contested court battle. The building, located in a predominantly Palestinian section of the ancient old city of Jerusalem, is now housing a group of Jewish families.

Palestinian plight unchanged
Vatican spokesman sees no progress
During a UN discussion of the international agencies set up to help Palestinian refugees, a Vatican spokesman observed with regret that the plight of the Palestinians has not substantially improved in 50 years.

Archbishop Renato Martino, the Vatican’s permanent observer at the United Nations, took note of the fact that the United Nations Relief and Workers Agency for Palestine was designed as a “temporary” organization. The Palestinian people still have few opportunities to build a normal life, he said; “The security of everyone is threatened.” The situation is particularly dangerous today, he said, with Palestinian villages occupied by Israeli forces.

“Each year, I am sad to say, our observations are the same,” the archbishop said. “Violence in Israel and the occupied territories continues to claim innocent lives.”

Back to Catholic World Report December 2001 Table of Contents