VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXIV - # 96   
   DATE 24-05-2014   
      
   Summary:   
   - POPE FRANCIS' PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND BEGINS IN JORDAN   
   - OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS   
      
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    POPE FRANCIS' PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND BEGINS IN JORDAN   
    Vatican City, 24 May 2014 (VIS) - Today the Pope began his pilgrimage to the   
   Holy Land, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the encounter between Pope   
   Paul VI and the Patriarch Athenagoras in Jerusalem. The aeroplane carrying the   
   Holy Father departed at 8.15 from Rome's Fiumicino airport and landed at 1   
   p.m. local time, midday in Rome, in the "Queen Alia" airport of Amman, Jordan.   
    The Pope was welcomed upon arrival by the representative of King Abdullah II,   
   Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad, along with the Patriarch of Jerusalem of the   
   Latins, His Beatitude Fouad Twali and the Custodian of the Holy Land, Fr.   
   Pierbattista Pizzaballa, O.F.M. A child offered him a black orchid, the flower   
   that symbolises the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Following a brief   
   conversation with the representative of the monarch in the Royal Pavilion, the   
   Pope transferred by car to the Al-Husseini Royal Palace of Amman, where King   
   Abdullah II and Queen Rania awaited him.   
    During Paul VI's visit to the Holy Land in 1964, King Hussein, father of the   
   current monarch, accompanied the Pope to the doors of Jerusalem. Abdullah II   
   welcomed St. John Paul to the Holy Land in 2000, and Pope Benedict XVI in   
   2009; in return, he has been received twice by Pope Francis, first in 2013 and   
   again in April this year.   
    Following a short private meeting with the king and his family, Francis   
   entered the palace hall where he was awaited by around three hundred people,   
   including the kingdom's highest authorities, representatives of the diplomatic   
   corps and the main leaders of other religions, and he gave his first address   
   in the Holy Land. He remarked first that Jordan is a land "rich in history and   
   with great religious significance for Judaism, Christianity and Islam".   
    He continued, "Jordan has offered a generous welcome to great numbers of   
   Palestinian and Iraqi refugees, as well as to other refugees from troubled   
   areas, particularly neighbouring Syria, ravaged by a conflict which has lasted   
   all too long. Such generosity merits the appreciation and support of the   
   international community. The Catholic Church, to the extent of its abilities,   
   has sought to provide assistance to refugees and those in need, especially   
   through Caritas Jordan. While acknowledging with deep regret the continuing   
   grave tensions in the Middle East, I thank the authorities of the Kingdom for   
   all that they are doing and I encourage them to persevere in their efforts to   
   seek lasting peace for the entire region. This great goal urgently requires   
   that a peaceful solution be found to the crisis in Syria, as well as a just   
   solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.   
    The Holy Father took the opportunity to reiterate his "profound respect and   
   esteem for the Muslim community and my appreciation for the leadership of His   
   Majesty the King in promoting a better understanding of the virtues taught by   
   Islam and a climate of serene coexistence between the faithful of the   
   different religions", adding, "You are known as a man of peace and a   
   peacemaker. I am grateful that Jordan has supported a number of important   
   initiatives aimed at advancing interreligious dialogue and understanding   
   between Jews, Christians and Muslims. I think in particular of the Amman   
   Message and the support given within the United Nations Organisation to the   
   annual celebration of World Interfaith Harmony Week".   
    He addressed an affectionate greeting to the Christian communities "present   
   in Jordan since apostolic times, contributing to the common good of the   
   society of which they are fully a part. Although Christians today are   
   numerically a minority, theirs is a significant and valued presence in the   
   fields of education and health care, thanks to their schools and hospitals.   
   They are able to profess their faith peaceably, in a climate of respect for   
   religious freedom. Religious freedom is in fact a fundamental human right and   
   I cannot fail to express my hope that it will be upheld throughout the Middle   
   East and the entire world. The right to religious freedom 'includes on the   
   individual and collective levels the freedom to follow one's conscience in   
   religious matters and, at the same time, freedom of worship... the freedom to   
   choose the religion which one judges to be true and to manifest one's beliefs   
   in public'. Christians consider themselves, and indeed are, full citizens, and   
   as such they seek, together with their Muslim fellow citizens, to make their   
   own particular contribution to the society in which they live".   
    He concluded his discourse by invoking "peace and prosperity upon the Kingdom   
   of Jordan and its people. I pray that my visit will help to advance and   
   strengthen good and cordial relations between Christians and Muslims", and,   
   citing the King's discourse, he prayed that God might free all from fear of   
   change. He thanked the King and Queen for their courteous welcome and   
   concluded, "May the Almighty and Merciful God grant happiness and long life to   
   Your Majesties, and may he bless Jordan abundantly. Salaam!"   
      
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    OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS   
    Vatican City, 24 May 2014 (VIS) - The Holy Father has- appointed Msgr. Franco   
   Maria Giuseppe Agnesi, Fr. Paolo Martinelli, O.F.M. Cap., and Msgr.   
   Pierantonio Tremolada as auxiliaries of the archdiocese of Milan (area 4,208,   
   population 5,451,090, Catholics 4,970,975, priests 2,783, permanent deacons   
   131, religious 7,318), Italy.   
    - Msgr. Franco Maria Giuseppe Agnesi was born in Milan, Italy in 1950 and was   
   ordained a priest in 1974. He has served in a number of pastoral and   
   administrative roles, including vice-rector of the seminary of Saronno,   
   diocesan assistant for the youth sector of Catholic Action, general diocesan   
   assistant for Catholic Action and head of youth pastoral, head of the   
   Federation of Milanese Oratories, pro vicar general and moderator of the Curia   
   for the archdiocese of Milan, president of the Council of Economic Affairs,   
   and president of Caritas Ambrosiana, priest of the parish of San Giovanni   
   Battista in Cesano Boscone and dean of the deanery of Cesano Boscone, provost   
   of Busto Arsizio and dean of the deanery of Busto Arsizio. He is currently   
   episcopal vicar of Zone II (Varese) and member of the Milan Episcopal Council.   
   In 1995 he was named Prelate of Honour of His Holiness.   
    - Fr. Paolo Martinelli, O.F.M. Cap., was born in Milan, Italy in 1958 and was   
   ordained a priest in 1985. He holds a doctorate in theology from the   
   Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, and has served in a number of academic   
   and administrative roles, including: extraordinary professor and subsequently   
   president of the Franciscan Institute of Spirituality at the "Antonianum"   
   Pontifical Athenaeum in Rome" University, consultor of the Congregation for   
   the Doctrine of the Faith, and consultor for the General Secretariat of the   
   Synod of Bishops.   
    - Msgr.Pierantonio Tremolada was born in Lissone, Italy in 1956 and was   
   ordained a priest in 1981. He holds a degree in sacred scriptures from the   
   Pontifical Biblical Institute, and has served in the following academic and   
   pastoral roles: lecturer in theology and the archiepiscopal seminary of   
   Venegono Inferiore, rector responsible for the formation of permanent deacons,   
   and collaborator for the continuing formation of the clergy (young clergy). He   
   is currently episcopal vicar for evangelisation and the sacraments. He was   
   named Prelate of Honour of His Holiness in 2012.   
      
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