Pope Benedict XVI begins 'Pilgrimage of Peace' in Middle East

by Blaine Metzgar | May 8, 2009 at 10:36 am

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Pope Benedict XVI begins his week long tour in the Middle East this Friday, May 8. Described as a "pilgrim of peace," the Pope hopes this visit will "strengthen frayed ties with Muslims and Jews and give support to his beleaguered Christian flock in the region."

The archetype of Pope Benedict's tour is Pope John Paul II's historic journey to Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories in 2000. John Paul's visit also included stops in locations noted in Biblical events and Jesus' life.

The conditions of Pope Benedict's pilgrimage differ greatly from his predecessor's in that the Benedict ignited controversy with both Muslims and Jews when he presented a speech relating the prophet Muhammad with violence as well as lifting the excommunication of a holocaust-denying bishop.

A peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians that seemed so near at the time of John Paul's visit has proven elusive. Benedict's trip was put in doubt by Israeli anger after a Vatican cardinal said earlier this year that the Gaza Strip during an Israeli military offensive resembled a "big concentration camp."

Pope Benedict's first stop is in Jordan, this marks the Pope's first visit to an Arab country.

Addressing himself to Jordanians, Israelis and Palestinians during his general audience Wednesday, Benedict said he shared their "aspirations and hopes as well as your pain and struggles. I will be coming among you as a pilgrim of peace."

While officials in Jordan and Israel are seeking to play down any controversy, differences remain.

Jordan's King Abdullah II, who is scheduled to greet Benedict upon arrival, said in an Italian newspaper interview Tuesday that he expected Benedict to be a force for peace.

But the country's powerful Muslim Brotherhood has demanded that Benedict apologize for his September 2006 speech in which he quoted a Medieval text that characterized some of the teachings of Muhammad as "evil and inhuman," particularly "his command to spread by the sword the faith."

The pope has already said he was "deeply sorry" over the reaction to his speech and that the passage he quoted did not reflect his own opinion.

While in Jordan, for 3 days, the Pope is scheduled to meet with Muslim religious leaders at Amman's largest mosque.

From Jordan, Pope Benedict will make his way to Israel where he will face a whole new set of issues, mostly stemming from his German upbringing. Benedict has a long history of controversy pertaining to his past being raised in Germany during World War II. In his youth Benedict XVI served in Hitler Youth corps and then in the army before he abandoned his position towards the end of the war.

Another sore point is the figure of World War II Pope Pius XII, whom Benedict has called a "great churchman." Jews and others say he failed to do all he could to stop the extermination of European Jews.

Benedict will meet with a group of Holocaust survivors at Jerusalem's Yad Vashem memorial, though he will skip its museum, which houses a picture of Pius that has been criticized by the Vatican. The photo's caption says Pius did not protest the Nazi genocide of Jews and maintained a largely "neutral position."

But even with his controversial past, Benedict has proven to be tenacious and effective in his fight against anti-Semitism.

Rabbi David Rosen, one of Israel's leading voices in interfaith relations, portrayed Benedict as a good friend of the Jews and described differences with him as "an issue of style rather than an issue of substance."

Pope Benedict XVI concludes his travels on May 15 at the Church of Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The believed site of Jesus' crucifixion and burial, it is considered Christianity's holiest site.

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