On the Pope's visit to Damascus
Syria-Vatican, Politics, 4/2/2001

The deputy Patriarch of the Greek-Catholic Church in Damascus Azeidour Pateikha has announced the official program for the visit to be held by Pope John Paul II to Syria which will start on May 5th.

The BBC correspondent in Damascus said on Saturday that the Pope will meet during his visit to Damascus great welcome at the people and official levels and President Bashar al-Assad will receive him at the airport. She added that the Pope will be also be welcomed by high ranking Syria Christian and Muslim men of religion and Syrian high ranking officials.

Bishop Batteikha has not ruled out the Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Nasrullah Butrous Sfeir to be attending beside the Middle East Patriarchy staff who were invited by the Catholic ( Greek) patriarch Gregorious III to welcome the Pope and meet with him.

Batteikha added that Syria welcomes Sfeir's visit to Damascus and that there are no obstacles before his coming. Batteikha, who, on the other hand described the Pope's visit as very important denied the Lebanese file to be on the agenda of the Pope's talks with President Bashar al-Assad. He explained that the visit is a religious one and not a political visit " it will only deal with the Pope's stances towards just peace and the need to achieve it in the region. "

He added that the Pope will come to Syria as a pilgrimage to follow the step of Saint Paul, the prophet, the Jew who embraced Christianity on his way to Damascus and he ( Saint Paul) was considered the disseminator of Christianity in the world through the tours he held to Asia Minor, Macedonia and Greece. The Pope's visit to Damascus will prove that Syria is a holy land and that its was the cradle of Christianity.

Patriarch Batteikha added that the Pope's visit to Syria will be characterized by the meeting at the Greek- Orthodox patriarch and the large mass he will hold in Damascus, meeting with the Christian men of religion at the Patriarchy of the Assyrian- Orthodox, visiting the Ummayad's mosque and the tomb of Saint John Paul the Baptist, where he will meet with Muslim men of religion, seeking to bring together Christianity and Islam.

Patriarch Batteikha denied what has been said on holding a joint Christian- Muslim prayer as the Umayyad's mosque or the Pope to visit the tomb of Salah eddine al-Ayouni to give an apology to Muslims for the catastrophe of the Crusaders wars and described what was said in this regard as mere rumors.

However, the issue of holding a joint prayer at the Umayad's mosque provoked Muslims in Syria of fears to be an unprecedented event for the Israelis in encouraging them to perform their prayers at al-Aqsa Mosque under the pretext of what they call " the Wailing wall."

Moreover, the visit of the Pope ( 80 year old) includes the Christian monuments starting from Hanania church, Bab Sharqi, Bab Keisan; and Maloula and Sednaya convents and then the Pope will visit the liberated city of Quneitra in the Golan to perform there the prayer of peace and implant the olive tree in it. In the fourth day of the visit the Pope will leave for Rome via Malta.

Previous Stories:
  On the Pope's visit to Damascus; common prayer   (3/29/2001)
  The Pope to visit Syria   (3/27/2001)
  No join prayers during the Pope's visit to the Umayyad's mosque   (3/16/2001)

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