Pope John Paul's love for the Holy Land

Peace in the Holy Land was always an aspiration very dear to Pope John Paul II who was particularly concerned about the continuous drain of the indigenous Christian community from the land of Christ’s birth. Violence and economic difficulties have forced tens of thousands of them to flee abroad. Arab Christians now account for less than 2% of the population – where once they were a significant minority.

Few will forget Pope John Paul’s phrase “What the Holy Land needs is not walls but bridges” that
captured the hearts and minds of people in almost every country where people are divided by conflict or hatreds. And in the very land where Christ walked, it was painful for Pope John Paul to see the physical wall of division being erected over the last years of his life.

In the Jubilee year 2000, Pope John Paul’s finally fulfilled one of his greatest dreams: to walk the path of Jesus in the Holy Land. His apostolic pilgrimage to Bethlehem and Jerusalem was covered by the international media and seen by millions the world over, bringing a powerful message of solidarity with the local Christian community, but also one of dialogue and reconciliation between Christians, Muslims and Jews.

In this program, Tracey McClure looks back at that historic journey and remembers the Pope's powerful words for justice, forgiveness and peace...