Vatican City, Dec 18, 2007 / 08:39 am
Vatican officials said Monday that a papal visit to the Holy Land would not take place due to a variety of reasons, which include conflicts with the Israeli government over policies detrimental to Christians in the region.
Vatican spokesman Frederico Lombardi, at a reporters’ briefing on Monday, said that Pope Benedict XVI had on many occasions expressed his desire to travel to the Holy Land. Lombardi said both the need for general peace in the area and relations between the Church and local authorities would need to be considered to determine if there were “positive signs” for a papal visit.
A high-ranking Vatican cleric who had participated in recent talks with the Israelis addressed the same briefing. Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, secretary of the Congregation for Oriental Churches, said that some problems with the Israeli government remained unresolved.
Archbishop Veglio said that Vatican-Israeli discussions rarely passed beyond generalities.