The Pope in the Holy Land
March 2000

In 1964, Pope Paul VI became the first pope to visit the Holy Land. During his brief stay on January 6 and 7, Pope Paul visited all the holy places: the Via Dolorosa, The Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Church of the Dormition in Jerusalem, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Nazareth, the Jordan River, the Mount of Beatitudes, Mount Tabor, and Bethany. This year, 36 years later, Pope John Paul II will again visit the Holy Land in a heavily loaded political atmosphere. His visit in the year 2000 to the country where Jesus Christ was born and lived is a very important religious occasion that is expected to attract many pilgrims from all over the world. The Pope's itinerary starts in Bethlehem on March 22nd where a Holy Mass will be held on Manger Square, a meeting with the Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, and a visit to Dheisheh refugee camp are scheduled. On the 23rd he is scheduled to visit Jerusalem, on the 24th Corazim, the 25th Nazareth, and back to Jerusalem on the 26th of March.