Next Wednesday John Paul II Will Meditate on Abraham's Journey
VATICAN CITY, FEB 16 (ZENIT).- John Paul II will go to Iraq. Although because of the difficult situation this country is experiencing, the Holy Father is unable to go in person to Ur of the Chaldeans, the birthplace of Abraham, father of all believers, during today's general audience the Pontiff announced that in any event, he will undertake a "spiritual" pilgrimage to that land.
The Meaning of Pilgrimage The Holy Father referred to his Letter published last June in which he expressed his desire to undertake a journey to "the lands that are marked in a special way by God's interventions in the history of salvation." In this context. John Paul II wished to travel to present day Tal al Muqayyar, in southern Iraq, Abraham's place of origin. Karol Wojtyla hoped " 'to follow Abraham's footsteps,' to rediscover the tracks of God's loving presence alongside humanity, and to relive the faith experience of the one St. Paul will describe as father of all those who believe, circumcised or not".
"With his faith translated into concrete and at times even dramatic choices, such as abandoning the security of his own land or sacrificing his only son Isaac, Abraham obtained that righteousness which made him a friend of God, fully accepting the divine plan for himself and for his descendants and becoming the founder of a multitude of believers," the Pope said. "In Abraham's Footsteps" "Walking 'in Abraham's footsteps,' we learn to value concretely the demands of an authentically faithful attitude, and we hope in the dynamism of the divine initiative, which has its final end in Christ," explained the Holy Father. "Aware of their own inseparable ties with the ancient people of the Covenant, Christians recognize Abraham as 'Father in Faith' par excellence, and they are happy to imitate his example by walking 'in his footsteps.' "
These were the reasons that led the Pope to express his desire to undertake this pilgrimage to Iraq. The reasons have nothing to do with the political claims attributed by British and American diplomats to the pontifical decision. Representatives from these two countries exerted pressure on the Vatican in an attempt to convince the Holy Father to abandon the whole idea. However, in the end, it was Saddam Hussein himself who announced officially the impossibility of the papal visit. The aerial restrictions imposed by the international community, which do not allow Iraq's authorities to guarantee the Pope's security, an official statement from Baghdad stated.
The Pontiff's trip to Ur was initially scheduled for last December, and later postponed until the end of January. Before it was cancelled, Iraqi intellectuals expressed their opposition to the Pontiff's pilgrimage, in spite of the fact that papal envoys had traveled to Baghdad, under difficult circumstances, to begin studying the logistics of the pilgrimage. Faced with this complex situation, John Paul II decided to undertake a spiritual pilgrimage to Abraham's land. During today's general audience, he invited Christians to accompany him in this "special celebration dedicated to Abraham, Father of all believers." Two days later, the Holy Father will travel to Egypt to continue this adventure of the spirit by visiting Mount Sinai.
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