Pope to pray in mosque

The Pope is continuing his trip to the Holy Land

BBC News - Monday, 5 March, 2001 John Paul II is to become the first leader of the Catholic Church to set foot in a mosque when he visits Syria in May, a church official said on Monday.

The Pope is hoping that by entering the Umayyed mosque in Damascus - the site of the tomb of John the Baptist - he will underline his attempts to bring Christianity and Islam closer together.

Umayyed mosque Built in eighth century AD The site previously held pagan temples and a Christian church It contains the tomb of John the Baptist It is the oldest stone mosque in the Muslim world

The Umayyad mosque: Site of the tomb of John the Baptist

Officials organising the Pope's itinerary, said it would be the first time that Christians and Muslims would pray together in an organised way.

The Pope, 80, would lead the Christian side of the prayer and Syria's mufti, Sheikh Ahmed Kataro, the Muslim side.

Footsteps of Paul

In 1986, Pope John Paul was the first Pontiff to enter a synagogue after he visited one in Rome.

The mosque visit is scheduled for 6 May in the middle of the pope's three-day pilgrimage to the Holy Lands, which has already taken him to Egypt, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Besides Syria, Pope John Paul wants to visit Greece and Malta to follow in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul, who was known as Saul of Tarsus before he was converted on the road to Damascus.

The mosque, known as the Great Mosque of Damascus and one of Islam's most celebrated shrines was once the site of an Aramaic temple.

Then, in the first century AD, a Roman temple dedicated to Jupiter was built on the site, before being converted into a church dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.

Saint John is also venerated by Muslims as the prophet Yahya.

Next pope could come from Latin America: new German cardinal

VATICAN CITY, Feb 21 (AFP) -
Cardinals who elect the next pope after the resignation or death of John Paul II may plump for a prelate from Latin America, new German Cardinal Karl Lehmann, a liberal close to the Latin American reform movement, said Wednesday. "For the Holy Father and his aides the Latin American continent has a lot of weight; after all 500 million Catholics live there," he said. Pope John Paul II on Wednesday inducted 11 new cardinals from Latin America, raising the number of so-called princes of the church from that world region to 27...

Speaking at a hotel after meeting well-wishers at the Apostolic palace next to Saint Peter's Cathedral along with the other newcomers, Lehmann stressed the large variety of cultural influences in Latin America and warned against seeing it as a bloc. He added that national divisions in the college of cardinals, whose members under the age of 80 elect the pope, are not what they used to be. Before a future vote, cardinals could therefore form alliances according to other criteria.

Lehmann, who will be 65 in May, was passed over in three previous consistories -- or induction ceremonies -- supposedly for his marked liberal stance on abortion counseling in Germany and other issues. He was a surprise nominee last month when John Paul II announced the names of seven ecclesiastics a week after the initial nomination of 37 cardinals.

"I didn't expect it at all," said Lehmann after the swearing-in ceremony overseen by John Paul II which took place in Saint Peter's Square Wednesday morning. As the 80-year-old pontiff added a record 44 new cardinals to the body which will one day elect his successor, millions throughout the world were watching the ceremony closely for any hints, however unlikely, as to who might be his possible successor. [BBC London]

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