This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pope-francis-balances-time-with-israelis-and-palestinians-during-visit-to-holy-land/2014/05/26/c39b126c-e4d5-11e3-afc6-a1dd9407abcf_story.html?wprss=rss_world
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Pope Francis balances time with Israelis and Palestinians during visit to Holy Land | Pope Francis balances time with Israelis and Palestinians during visit to Holy Land |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| JERUSALEM — Proving himself to be a nimble diplomat, Pope Francis on Monday met with Muslim sheiks and Jewish rabbis. He visited a Holocaust memorial and kissed the hands of elderly survivors. He prayed at the holiest, most iconic religious sites in Jerusalem — and placed a wreath at the grave of the founder of Zionism. | JERUSALEM — Proving himself to be a nimble diplomat, Pope Francis on Monday met with Muslim sheiks and Jewish rabbis. He visited a Holocaust memorial and kissed the hands of elderly survivors. He prayed at the holiest, most iconic religious sites in Jerusalem — and placed a wreath at the grave of the founder of Zionism. |
| And at the invitation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the pontiff added an unplanned stop at an Israeli monument to commemorate the civilian and military victims of terror attacks. | And at the invitation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the pontiff added an unplanned stop at an Israeli monument to commemorate the civilian and military victims of terror attacks. |
| The pope’s unscheduled trip to the terror victims memorial was added by the Vatican after Israeli authorities privately complained about the pontiff’s photo-op Sunday at the wall in Bethlehem separating Israel and the West Bank, according to an account from a western diplomat in Jerusalem. | |
| A Vatican spokesman conceded that some “had difficulty understanding his act at the wall yesterday.” | |
| The pontiff prayed Sunday at a section of the high cement wall that had recently been spray-painted with graffiti reading “Free Palestine” and another comparing Bethlehem, surrounded by the wall and fence on three sides in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, to the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw during the reign of the Nazis. | The pontiff prayed Sunday at a section of the high cement wall that had recently been spray-painted with graffiti reading “Free Palestine” and another comparing Bethlehem, surrounded by the wall and fence on three sides in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, to the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw during the reign of the Nazis. |
| The photograph of the pope at the wall was one of the most prominently displayed in news reports and social media. | |
| According to the prime minister’s office, Netanyahu said: “I explained to the pope that building the security fence prevented many more victims [of] Palestinian terror, which continues today.” Netanyahu told the pope that the memorial includes the names of 85 people killed in a 1994 bombing at a Buenos Aires Jewish center. | According to the prime minister’s office, Netanyahu said: “I explained to the pope that building the security fence prevented many more victims [of] Palestinian terror, which continues today.” Netanyahu told the pope that the memorial includes the names of 85 people killed in a 1994 bombing at a Buenos Aires Jewish center. |
| The two trips — one to the wall and one to the terror victims memorial — show a pope willing to acknowledge the narratives of suffering embraced by Israelis and Palestinians. | |
| Or as Matthew Kalman, a commentator for the Haaretz newspaper, put it pointedly in a tweet: “Papal propaganda poker: I’ll see your grave and raise you a wall.” | Or as Matthew Kalman, a commentator for the Haaretz newspaper, put it pointedly in a tweet: “Papal propaganda poker: I’ll see your grave and raise you a wall.” |
| Pope Francis on Monday also made history as the first pope to visit the tomb of Theodor Herzl, one of the founders of Zionism and a leading advocate for the creation of the state of Israel. | Pope Francis on Monday also made history as the first pope to visit the tomb of Theodor Herzl, one of the founders of Zionism and a leading advocate for the creation of the state of Israel. |
| Francis visited with the grand mufti of Jerusalem, the caretaker of Islam’s holy places here, and a guardian of the Al-Aska mosque and the Dome of the Rock, believed by Jews to be the place where Abraham’s hand was stopped by God as he was about to sacrifice his son Isaac and by Muslims as the place where the prophet Muhammad began his night journey to heaven. | Francis visited with the grand mufti of Jerusalem, the caretaker of Islam’s holy places here, and a guardian of the Al-Aska mosque and the Dome of the Rock, believed by Jews to be the place where Abraham’s hand was stopped by God as he was about to sacrifice his son Isaac and by Muslims as the place where the prophet Muhammad began his night journey to heaven. |
| The pope took off his shoes and entered the dome. | The pope took off his shoes and entered the dome. |
| The pontiff also visited the Western Wall, part of a retaining wall around the courtyard of the ancient Jewish temple and considered the holiest site according to Jews. Pope Francis prayed and left a note in one of the crevices between the ancient stones. | |
| Francis was embraced at the Western Wall by two old friends from Buenos Aires, one a rabbi and the other a leader of Argentina’s small Muslim community. | Francis was embraced at the Western Wall by two old friends from Buenos Aires, one a rabbi and the other a leader of Argentina’s small Muslim community. |
| “What was new and was impacting this morning was the embrace of three people before the wall. The pope, the rabbi and the Muslim representative. They are all friends and that is not difficult for them to embrace. They have given us a sign in a significant and holy place. This is an important message, that they can embrace together,” said Rev. Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See press office. | “What was new and was impacting this morning was the embrace of three people before the wall. The pope, the rabbi and the Muslim representative. They are all friends and that is not difficult for them to embrace. They have given us a sign in a significant and holy place. This is an important message, that they can embrace together,” said Rev. Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See press office. |
| During his 45 minutes at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, the pope laid a wreath in the Hall of Remembrance to the 6 million Jews who were killed and met with six Holocaust survivors who shared with him their stories of survival. One by one, the pope bent and kissed their hands. | During his 45 minutes at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, the pope laid a wreath in the Hall of Remembrance to the 6 million Jews who were killed and met with six Holocaust survivors who shared with him their stories of survival. One by one, the pope bent and kissed their hands. |
| He also wrote in the guest book: “With shame for what man, who was created in the image of God, was able to do; with shame for the fact that man made himself the owner of evil; with shame that man made himself into God and sacrificed his brothers.” And he signed his note: “Never again!! Never again!! Francis.” | He also wrote in the guest book: “With shame for what man, who was created in the image of God, was able to do; with shame for the fact that man made himself the owner of evil; with shame that man made himself into God and sacrificed his brothers.” And he signed his note: “Never again!! Never again!! Francis.” |
| The Pope on Sunday secured a promise from Israel’s President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to come to the Vatican next month to pray together and talk peace. | The Pope on Sunday secured a promise from Israel’s President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to come to the Vatican next month to pray together and talk peace. |
| Asked what the three men might discuss, a Vatican spokesman said: “The pope does not have a political agenda and does not have a proposal for diplomatic dialogue. This is not his mission. This is not what he desires.” | Asked what the three men might discuss, a Vatican spokesman said: “The pope does not have a political agenda and does not have a proposal for diplomatic dialogue. This is not his mission. This is not what he desires.” |
| On his three-day marathon to Jordan, the West Bank and Israel, the pope has consistently called for leaders of both sides to have the courage to seek peace and create two states for two peoples. | On his three-day marathon to Jordan, the West Bank and Israel, the pope has consistently called for leaders of both sides to have the courage to seek peace and create two states for two peoples. |
| Francis returns to Rome Monday night. | Francis returns to Rome Monday night. |