The Pope has urged all sides in the Middle East conflict to get back on the road to peace.
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Pope John Paul II |
The Pope told the faithful at his New Year's Day mass in St Peter's Square his envoy in the Holy Land had given Israeli and Palestinian authorities a copy of his message for today's World Day of Peace.
"On this special day we must think of the Holy Land, where 2,000 years ago the angels proclaimed 'Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth'," the Pope said at the end of the mass.
Dialogue between cultures was the theme of his 21-page World Day of Peace message, which was issued on December 12th and sent to heads of state and government and to international organisations.
The Pope said he had asked his envoy to give authorities the message with an invitation to continue along the path of dialogue to reach a much-desired peace, which is "the essential foundation for fruitful co-existence among all people on earth."
Reuters