Vatican City, Mar 28, 2010 / 18:30 pm
Expressing his sorrow for the current situation in the Holy Land, Pope Benedict XVI hoped and prayed for peace in the region on Palm Sunday. He provided words of encouragement for Christians in the area and reflected on the nature of the pilgrim as a "messenger of peace."
In his Italian-language greeting after the Angelus, the Pope drew attention to Jerusalem, Jesus' destination in Sunday's Liturgy. He said he is "profoundly pained" by the recent conflicts and tensions in the city, which he called "the spiritual homeland of Christians, Jews and Muslims."
This city is the "prophecy and promise of that universal reconciliation that God desires for the entire human family," noted the Pope.
"Peace," he continued, "is a gift that God entrusts to human responsibility, so that it is cultivated through dialogue and respect for the rights of all, reconciliation and forgiveness.