Statement of Their Beatitudes the Patriarchs and Heads of the Christian Communities in Jerusalem dated 30 September 2000
" With a resolute Christian faith that is predicated upon the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and which calls for love, forgiveness and fellowship, We express our deep sorrow at the painful events that occurred at the Haram al-Sharif on midday, 29 September 2000. We offer our sincerest condolences to the whole Palestinian people in general and tothe bereaved families in particular, and denounce the aggression of the sanctuary of a holy place in Jerusalem. We consider that such a violation is tantamount to a violation on any and all Christian and Muslim holy sites, and affirm our solidarity with the Palstinian people, Muslims and Christians alike, in defending their fundamental rights of worship and prayer in Jerusalem. In so doing, We also reject any provocation against the feelings of the faithful irrespective of its nature, shape or presence.
We re-affirm hereby our Christian position, as we have done time and again in our previous statements, of the need to ensure the freedom of movement, access, worship and prayer, as much as the need to put an end to violations against all holy places in Jerusalem. We call for the implementation of all relevant and binding resolutions that reflect the principles of international legitimacy, and particularly those related to Jerusalem, in order to secure a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for the peoples of all the three monotheistic religions in the Holy Land.
'How wonderful it is, how pleasant, for God's people to live together in harmony!' Ps 133:1 "
KI - Katolsk Informasjonstjeneste (Oslo)