VATICAN, Sep. 18, 00 (CWNews.com) - As he accepted the diplomatic credentials of a new ambassador from Israel, Pope John Paul II took the opportunity to press his concerns regarding the status of Jerusalem.
Speaking to Yosef Neville Lamdan, the Pope said: "The Holy See is particularly concerned about preserving of the unique religious character of the Holy City through a special statue, guaranteed by international authority."
The Holy Father went on to explain that "the historical and current realities, and the inter-religious relations in the Holy Land, are such that one cannot envisage a just and lasting peace without some form of participation by the international community."
The religious and cultural heritage of Jerusalem, the Pope said, belongs to "the Jews, Christians, and Muslims throughout the world, and to the entire international community." That is why, he added, it should be the international community that preserves the special status of the city, ensuring free access to the sacred sites of Jerusalem for all believers.
The Pontiff went on to say that his own pilgrimage to the Holy Land in March of this year had been a special witness that he hoped would influence younger people to "build a new era of relations between Christians and Jews." The treasures of the Judeo-Christian heritage should be shared and spread, he said, in order to help overcome "the loss of faith and the growth of an egotistical and materialist perspective bereft of true principles."
Catholic World News Service - Vatican Update