Pope Bringing Baggage to the Holy Land
Pope Benedict XVI is heading for Jerusalem soon as part of his tour of the Holy Land, and although he occupies the same vaunted position as his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict's own history, along with that of the church, carries a charge that could present challenges during his visit.
Pope Benedict XVI is heading for Jerusalem soon as part of his tour of the Holy Land, and although he occupies the same vaunted position as his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict’s own history, along with that of the church, carries a charge that could present challenges during his visit.
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The Vatican’s representative to the Holy Land on Monday played down the controversies that could mar next week’s visit by Pope Benedict XVI: the conduct of a wartime predecessor and the church’s perceived lenience toward a Holocaust-denying priest.
Benedict’s remarks about Muslims have stirred anger in the Arab world, as well.
But Monsignor Antonio Franco, the Apostolic Nuncio to Israel, stressed that a papal visit to the Holy Land is not the time to “quarrel for this or that.”
The pope will visit Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories during his eight-day Holy Land tour that begins Friday. It’s only the second official papal visit to the Jewish state and comes nine years after a groundbreaking trip by Pope John Paul II, who moved many by worshipping at the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray.
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The "Saturday Night Live" Weekend Update correspondent made an appearance on KPFK radio's "Pocho Hour of Power" to comment on popes past and present.
Pope Benedict's resignation shouldn't have surprised us as much as it did. As an institutionalist who believes in the Roman Catholic Church as the carrier of truth in a sinful world, he would worry a great deal about the impact of his own infirmities on the institution's capacity to thrive.
Whatever messages Pope Benedict tried to convey during his tenure were "drowned out" by the child abuse scandal and other controversies that rocked the Vatican during his reign, John Hooper writes at The Guardian.
Pope Benedict XVI may have prayed for change in the Cuban political system during his stopover on the island nation on Tuesday, but he won't see any tangible results anytime soon, according to one high-profile member of President Raul Castro's administration.
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