Three Men and a Prayer
Three goals and an atmosphere
JERUSALEM: 29 May 2014 -- Pope
Francis indicated the reason and purpose of his visit to the
Holy land from the outset. It was to show that he was close to
the peoples of the region and he wanted to give a renewed
impulse to Christian unity, inter-religious dialogue and the
quest for peace. He had asked everyone to support him in
prayer before, during - and most importantly too, now
afterwards.
The three days of the visit were so filled with events and had
drawn such wide appeal that it would really be difficult to
sum it up adequately, including for someone who was involved
non-stop at the press office. So here one can only expect a
tentative appraisal.
1) Unity amongst Christian
Churches: "Ut unum sint". Pope Francis wanted to
remind Religious and clergy in particular (who came together
in the Basilica at Gethsemane) and Catholic Bishops (who
concelebrated with him in the Upper Room) that we need to grow
in our basic attitude: fraternal love amongst ourselves and
towards members of our sister Churches. The culminating
moments and most significant gestures here were: the common
declaration signed at the Apostolic delegation where 50 years
back an embrace took place between Athenagoras and Paul VI.
Those present this time around witnessed a very warm
atmosphere of profound friendship between Francis and
Bartholomew to the point where the encounter went for an hour
longer than planned. It was a followed by prayer together in
the Holy Sepulchre/Anastasi ('the Resurrection' Basilica for
Easter Christians) Basilica, and involved Armenian, Syriac,
Coptic, Ethiopian Eastern Churches and Lutherans and
Anglicans. Since 1054 that
place had never witnessed the Our Father prayed by these
groups in common - on this occasion firstly by Bartholomew
and Francis in Italian, then in each of the languages
together of those present. In their addresses,
the two highest representatives of Catholicism and Orthodoxy
solemnly repeated their commitment to do everything possible
to overcome the obstacles which still prevent us being
together around the Eucharistic table. Most significant of all
was the moment when Francis, taking up John Paul II's words,
asked everyone to "look for the best ways together for the
Bishop of Rome to exercise his ministry."
2) Inter-religious dialogue
between Jews and Muslims. This dimension had been
emphasised by King Abdullah of Jordan and the Pope when they
recalled the joint initiatives at a world and bilateral level
(such as "the annual week of interreligious harmony" promoted
by the UN). Powerful moments here were the Pope's visit to the
Dome of the Rock, followed by his meeting with the Grand Mufti
and then, respectively, the visit to the two Great Rabbis of
Israel in Solomon's Palace where the Vatican and Israeli
delegations have been continuing their bilateral dialogue at a
religious level. Joking, Pope Francis observed that this
dialogue had already reach it's 'bar mitzvah' age and hoped
that it would now come fully of age. The symbolic dimension of the entire trip in
which Pope Francis was accompanied by a Rabbi and an Imam,
his old Argentinian friends, was clear. The
most stunning icon here was the photo of the three of them in
a warm embrace before the Wailing Wall, indicating that
Jerusalem can and must be the place of encounter for these
three great religions, not a place of division.
3) Progress to a just and
lasting peace. The urgent need to establish a just
and lasting peace in the region (with explicit reference to
Syria) and in the Holy Land was repeated many times, in the
latter case, following the setting up of "two States for the
Jewish and Palestinian Peoples" (the formula used by Shimon
Perez). Here Pope Francis encouraged political leaders to dare
more, be more courageous and creative and at the same time
abstain from unilateral actions which could negatively affect
mutual trust and create new obstacles. He also clearly
denounced terrorism. violence and the arms trade; at this
point he raised his voice and spoke strongly, first before
Iraqi and Syrian refugees in the church in Jordan then in his
homily at Mass in Bethlehem. Significant actions on his part
were his two unscheduled stops, one at the 'wall' separating
Bethlehem from Israel and the other at the wall erected to
victims of terrorism on Mount Herzel. On both occasions the
Pope appeared very thoughtful, disturbed even; his feelings
were those of compassion for all victims, and a prayer that
walls of this kind should no longer exist in a reconciled
world. And finally,
the most important fact that Pope Francis stressed
throughout was that the small Christian minority is an
integral part by right of the civil, national and religious
fabric of the three nations: Jordan, Palestine, Israel.
Well aware of the problems they must tackle, the Pope
encouraged Christians to strengthen their active involvement
in inter-religious dialogue and in building a better future.
4) The power of prayer when
backed by faith and open to hope. Pope Francis entire
visit to the Holy land was clothed in an atmosphere of prayer
which he sought and himself helped to create. There was prayer
before he set out, it marked each stage, and it was his final
recommendation before boarding his flight home. But here was the great surprise
for everyone - that this prayer is to continue, involving
Presidents Perez and Abbas who accepted the invitation to
pray together "at home with me". This is a world
first! There was a precedent when Pope Francis succeeded in
bringing hundreds of thousands of people of good will together
(in St Peter's Square and beyond) to pray that there would be
no military assault on Syria, which at the time seemed
inevitable. Pope Francis is certainly moved by the "certainty
of faith": where mere human efforts are inadequate, prayer to
God our common Father can open new avenues and bring down
walls, especially in hearts and therefore also in ecumenical
and diplomatic rapport. It is the challenge that lies before
us all if we want this journey to be more than just another
news item, but an event capable of making history.
