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Pope Prays For Peace, But No Apology For Crusades
CAIRO, May 7 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Pope John Paul II prayed Monday for "peace in the Holy Land and in the world" in a ruined church in a ghost town on the Syrian Golan Heights, but refused to visit the tomb of a medieval Muslim leader who fought off Christian Crusaders.
"From this place, so disfigured by war, I wish to raise my heart and voice in prayer for peace in the Holy Land," he said in the Greek Orthodox Church in Quneitra, a village ravaged by withdrawing Israeli troops and a symbol of the Middle East conflict.
Although Syrian officials have often taken official visitors and dignitaries to the ruined village as a protest against Israeli aggression against Muslim countries, the Pope did not take sides, nor did he mention Israel by name in his speech.
The pope diverted from a prepared text as he prayed in the remains of the Church of St. George in Quneitra, responding to the latest news of violence in the Gaza Strip, and the death of a four-month-old Palestinian baby girl by Israeli tank fire.
The pope's prepared prayer centered on the need for peace and forgiveness, with much of it directly focused on the region.
His "Prayer for Peace" contained no fewer than 12 uses of the word "peace" in English and Arabic.
"True peace is a gift from God."
"We pray to you for the peoples of the Middle East. Help them to tear down the walls of hostility and division, and to build together a world of justice and solidarity.
"We pray for the civil leaders of this region that they may strive to satisfy their peoples' rightful aspirations and educate the young in the ways of justice and peace.
"We pray for the followers of all religions," he said, calling for them "to grow in friendship and to live together in harmony."
After the prayer, the pope left the church, blessing and watering a potted olive tree, symbol of peace, and touching the cheeks of a baby.
He then greeted representatives of the United Nations observer force on the Golan, telling them "your presence is a sign of the international community's determination to be of assistance in bringing closer the day of harmony between the peoples, the cultures and religions of the area."
Thousands of local people, many of them displaced from their original homes by the Israeli occupation, from the strategic heights, most of which is still held by Israel, welcomed the pope as he arrived in blustery weather in a black Mercedes.
While they sang songs of peace, accompanied by hand clapping, others held olive branches as some gathered in front of the gutted church, one of the few buildings still standing in the town.
Fourth century icons were taken and the iconostasis wall that held them was destroyed when the Israelis sacked the church, removing even the flooring, Greek Orthodox authorities said.
Next to the church are the remains of an elementary school, now no more than a pile of rubble.
Leaning on a cane, the pope, 81 this month, shuffled across a wooden walkway to the door of the church. The pope prayed in the church before a simple cross of two pieces of wood nailed together.
His historic trip to Syria has been marked with repeated calls for better relations among all the major faiths.
On Saturday, the pontiff called for the unity of all Oriental churches, during a meeting at the Greek Orthodox patriarchate in Damascus, while his Orthodox counterpart called for "a theology of reconciliation" among them.
And on Sunday, he hammered home his message of inter-religious harmony, calling for understanding, respect and peace among Christians, Muslims and Jews in the Middle East.
"In this holy land, Christians, Muslims and Jews are called to work together, with confidence and boldness, and to work to bring about without delay the day when the legitimate rights of all peoples are respected and they can live in peace and mutual understanding," he said in his sermon at an open-air high mass at the Abbassyin stadium.
The Pope had created an uproar earlier in some conservative Muslim and Arab circles for his refusal to include a visit to the tomb of Saladin in his program. Saladin was a medieval Muslim leader who rebutted Christian Crusades and recaptured Jerusalem.
Christian defenders of the Pope's visit said that the Pope needn't apologize for the Crusades as "Muslims and Christians were already past this stage." Others said that his visit was in effect tantamount to an apology.
By going to the ravaged town, Syrian officials said they were drawing attention to Israeli atrocities in the region. The church is located at the entry to Quneitra, and from the courtyard in front can be seen Israeli radar antennae on the hills overlooking the town. Greek Orthodox officials in Syria say the Israelis pillaged the church there before they laid waste to the town when pulling out in 1974.
The Israelis destroyed Quneitra with dynamite and bulldozers before they pulled out of the town in 1974, following a disengagement agreement at the end of the 1973 Middle East war.
Syria has left the town in the state it was as testimony to the Israeli action.
Israel still holds most of the Golan Heights captured in the 1967 Middle East war and later annexed by the Jewish state. Peace talks with Syria aimed at securing their recovery have broken down.
Israel also reacted angrily to comments by Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in welcoming the pope on Saturday. Senior Israeli officials Sunday blasted what one called "ignoble remarks" on Israel and the Jews by the Syrian President in welcoming the pope to Damascus and called for the pope to address the comments.
Assad accused Israel of wanting to "kill religions in the same way that [the Jews] betrayed Jesus Christ and tried to kill the Prophet Mohamed [SAW]".
John Paul has also heard calls from the local clergy here for more support for the Palestinians in their uprising against Israeli occupation.
Having already become the first pope to visit a synagogue back in 1986, the pope again made history Sunday, becoming the first head of the Roman Catholic Church to enter a Muslim place of worship.
He was greeted there by Muslim clergy, including the Syrian mufti, Sheikh Ahmed Kuftaro, who told the pope ahead of the trip around the mosque: "Holy father, you cannot imagine how happy I am today."
The pope told clergy from both faiths at the mosque: "For all the times that Muslims and Christians have offended one another, we need to seek forgiveness from the Almighty and to offer each other forgiveness."
He ends his visit to Syria Tuesday.
He then flies to Malta on third and final leg of his three-nation mission in the footsteps of Saint Paul. His last public event in Syria will be meeting local young people at the Greek Catholic patriarchate.
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