Tag Archives: benedict

When Benedict Meets Barack

When Pope Benedict XVI greets U.S. President Barack Obama at the Vatican on July 10, the symbolism and sheer star power of the encounter will keep the pundits chattering away. The photo op alone is worth a thousand words: The 82-year-old man in white, the world’s most recognizable religious leader and head of its largest single denomination comes face-to-face with the charismatic first black President of the world’s last superpower

Pope celebrates Mass for 40,000 near Nazareth

Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass for about 40,000 parishioners Thursday at the Mount of the Transfiguration, outside the city of Nazareth. Nearing the end of his eight-day tour of the Middle East, the pope also attended a reception given by the mayor of Nazareth — the city described in the Bible as the boyhood home of Jesus — and was to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Pope calls for reconciliation in Middle East

Pope Benedict XVI called on Israelis and Palestinian to put aside their "grievances and divisions" and work toward reconciliation in the Middle East during a speech in the West Bank. “Just and peaceful coexistence among the peoples of the Middle East can only be achieved through a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect, in which the rights and dignity of all are acknowledged and upheld,” the pontiff said Wednesday at a speech attended by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem.

At Israel’s Holocaust Memorial, Many Find the Pope’s Silence Deafening

Few question Pope Benedict XVI’s good will, nor the eloquence of his prose. But for the second time in three years, the Pope has delivered a highly anticipated discourse on the Holocaust that was moving but, by its silence on specific subjects, missed an opportunity of historic proportions. Welcomed at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial early Monday evening, Benedict spoke powerfully of the victims, and called on humanity never to forget the attempt to exterminate the Jews as a way “to ensure that hatred will never reign in the hearts of men again.” But, in a highly unusual criticism of an honored guest’s remarks, Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, chairman of the Yad Vashem council, told Israeli television that though the speech was moving, “Something was missing.

Analysis: Pope’s visit to Israel puts focus on Catholic-Jewish ties

As he arrives in Israel, the focus for Pope Benedict XVI shifts from Catholic/Muslim ties, which were at the heart of his three-day visit to Jordan, to relations with Judaism. TEL AVIV, Israel (CNN) — As he arrives in Israel, the focus for Pope Benedict XVI shifts from Catholic/Muslim ties, which were at the heart of his three-day visit to Jordan, to relations with Judaism. The pope comes to the Jewish state at a moment when Catholic/Jewish ties stand at a crossroads, in part related to broad historical and demographic trends, in part to the image of this particular pontiff.