Friday, January 10, 1964—THE DETROIT JEWISH NEW S-32
Pope Told Shazar He Includes in Prayers
`Sons of the People of the Covenant'
Greeted by Orderly Jewish Crowds;
Brings Interesting Gifts to Israel
Direct JTA Teletype Wire
to The Jewish News
JERUSALEM — Pope Paul
VI, the first Pontiff ever
to visit the Holy Land, told
Israeli President Zalman Shazar
Sunday that he includes in his
prayers the Jews, as "the sons
of the people of the Covenant,
whose part in the religious his-
tory of mankind can never be
forgotten."
The Pontiff's statement to
President Shazar, in response to
a greeting by Shazar at Megiddo,
was one of the highlights in a
crowded day, during which the
leader of world Catholicism was
POPE PAUL VI
hailed by hundreds of thou-
sands of Israelis—Christian, Jew-
ish and Moslem—on his historic
pilgrimage to this country. Sha-
zar had welcomed the Pope in
Hebrew. The Pope, in turn, con-
cluded his remarks by using a
Hebrew:. word twice—the word
"Shalom."
It was a bright, clear day,
as the Pope, with his entourage
of three cardinals and other
Catholic dignitaries, entered Is-
rael at the town of Ta'anach,
opposite the Jordanian border
village of Jenin. That frontier
post, usually closed to any travel
between Jordan and Israel, was
opened especially for the Pope's
visit.
Officials of the Israeli Min-
istry of Foreign Affairs
greeted the Pope at Ta'anach,
at the southern edge of the
Valley of Jezreel. (Mrs. Golda
Meir, Israel's Foreign Minis-
ter, was not present; she had
hurt a foot and was hospital-
ized in Jerusalem just prior
to the Pope's arrival.)
With Israeli outriders preced-
ing the papal convoy, and the
road guarded by scores of Is-
raeli policemen and security per-
sonnel holding back cheering
crowds behind iron barricades,
the entourage made its way up
a hill to the ancient town of
Megiddo, arriving there in 10
minutes.
An Israeli military guard of
honor snapped to attention and
presented arms as trumpets
sounded a ceremonial welcome
to the head of the Catholic
Church. Awaiting the Pope atop
the hill was the official wel
coming party, composed, in ad-
dition to President Shazar, of
Prime Minister Levi Eshkol;
Deputy Premier Abba Eban; Dr.
Zorach Warhaftig, Minister for
Religious Affairs; Chief Su-
preme Court Justice Yitzhak
Olshan; Minister of Police Be-
hor Shitreet; Speaker of the
Knesset Kadish Luz; and other
high Israeli officials. Present
also, as dean of the diplomatic
corps in Israel, was Soviet Am-
bassador Mikhail Bodrov.
A red carpet had been
spread from the Pontiff's au-
tomobile to the spot where
President Shazar awaited the
Pope. Television and other
broadcast apparatus had been
set, as Shazar stepped for-
ward and told the Pope:
"With utmost respect, and
in full awareness of the his-
toric significance of this oc-
currence, unprecedented in
the annals of the generations,
I have come in the name of
the Government of Israel, and
in my own, to bid welcome
to the supreme Pontiff, the
spiritual Father of the Cath-
olic Church throughout the
world. I have come to greet
him with the age-old bless-
ing: 'Blessed be thou in thy
coming.'
"From Jerusalem, our cap-
ital city, the City of David,
I, and the members of the
Israel government with me,
have made our way down to
Megiddo, the city that Solo-
mon built, so that we may
welcome him as soon as he
has stepped upon the soil of
our land, this Holy Land."
Noting that the Pope had de-
scribed his pilgrimage to the
Holy Land as a journey of
prayer, seeking "mercy for all
mankind," President Shazar
continued: "Surely the devas-
tation of my people during this
last generation is a bitter warn-
ing of the depth of bestiality
and the loss of the Divine im-
age to which ancient preju-
dices and racial hatreds can
drag men down, if a purifying
spirit does not come into being
while there is yet time to dam
up these dangers _forever."
The Israeli President then
voiced hope for the realization
of the call expressed by the an-
cient Hebrew prophets who
looked toward the day when
"nation shall not lift up sword
against nation." "This country-
side," said Shazar, "testifies as
living witness to the fact that
prophecies are being fulfilled—
the prophecies of the ingather-
ing of our people here from
all corners of the earth, and
the renewal of . their indepen-
dent life as in the days of old.
"Here, from Megiddo,
stretches before us the Valley
of Jezreel, whose fields are
fruitful once again, whose land-
scape is enhanced by scores of
new settlements based upon
foundations of labor, equality,
justice. And in every village
and town of our land, there is
being built the fulfillment of
the promise of new life." The
President concluded: "Blessed
be our illustrious guest upon
his arrival amongst us."
Speaking in French, in
reply to President Shazar's He-
brew greeting, Pope Paul ex-
pressed his emotions at "see-
ing with our own eyes, and
treading with our own feet,
this land where the . patri-
archs once lived—this land
where down through the cen-
furies there resounded the
voices of the prophets speak-
ing in the Name of God, in
the names of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob, and hallowed for-
ever for all Christians by
the presence of Jesus."
Addressing President Shazar
directly, the Pontiff continued:
"Your Excellency knows, and
God is our witness, that we are
not inspired during this visit
by any other motives than purely
spiritual ones. We come as a
pilgrim to venerate the Holy
Places. We come to pray. From
this land, our humble supplica-
tion is raised toward God for
all men, believers and non-be-
lievers, and we happily include
the sons of the people of the
Covenant whose part in the re-
ligious history of mankind can
never be forgotten. Shalom!
Shalom!"
President Shazar then pre-
sented the Pope with a specially
minted gold medallion. In turn,
the Pontiff gave Shazar and to
the members of Israel's Cabinet
participating in the ceremonies
a medallion minted at the Vati-
can, marking the Pope's Holy
Land pilgrimage. Pope Paul also
gave Shazar two large, silver
candelabra, an autographed pho-
tograph of himself, and an elec-
trocardiograph. He asked Presi-
dent Shazar to present that
scientific instrument to an Is-
raeli hospital.
From Megiddo, the Pope
and his party were driven to
Nazareth, the city with a pre-
dominantly Arab population.
Many thousands again shouted
welcome to the Pope as the
convoy drove to Nazareth.
Newsmen who had been with
the Pope's party in Jordan
remarked that the Israeli
crowds and security arrange-
ments were very orderly, com-
pared with the chaos that pre-
vailed on the Pontiff's first
day in the Holy Land, in Jor-
dan. The Israeli crowds had
waited for hours to greet the
Pope. The papal convoy had
been held up for an hour be-
yond schedule by disorderly
crowds jamming the roads
from Jordanian Old Jerusa-
lem to Jenin.
More than 100,000 persons
crowded Nazareth as the Pope
arrived there, but again strict
order prevailed in spite of the
vast enthusiasm with which he
was received. As he entered the
Basilica of the Church of the
Annunciation — considered t h e
spot where the Mother of Jesus
was told she would give birth
to Christ—the Pope shook
hands with another, larger, of-
ficial welcoming party. This
group was headed by Deputy
Premier Eban, who had come
ahead of the convoy from Me-
giddo, and included Archbishop
George Hakim, of Galilee; Naz-
areth's Arab Mayor Zouaby; and
about 100 members of the diplo-
matic corps.
The Pope went to the Church
Pope's Message of Thanks to
Shazar Addressed to Tel Av iv
Direct JTA Teletype Wire to The Jewish News
JERUSALEM—Pope Paul VI expressed his appreciation for
his welcome in Israel in a cable sent to President Zalman Shazar
after his departure from Jordan en route back to Rome.
The cable was addressed to "His Excellency the President
of Israel. Zalman Shazar, Tel Aviv."
The choice of Tel Aviv as the address was assumed to
reflect the Vatican's support of the 1948 United Nations
resolution for the internationalization of Jerusalem.
"At the moment when our pilgrimage to the Holy Land, rich
for us with moving and unforgettable remembrances, is completed,
we wish to renew to your excellency an expression of our grati-
tude," the Pope said in his message.
"We have appreciated the facilities which we have been given
for our visit to the holy places, and we have been touched by the
welcome we received on the part of the various authorities."
LES.
SYRIA
SEA
I°
•
IS
•••■ ••••• ■•••■ •••WW.,-/"....^.....W...,
01
GALILEE
FCAPERNAUM
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
•
ITABGHAI
•
H a if a
NAZARETH!
0 11
1 1141 %1/4.
IMT.TABORL
JMEGI D
I
IJANIN1
Ifi
••••■•••■■ •••• ■ •• ■ ..".J.j.........../W
4
cs
ae
4
PI 0 R DAN
I
0
I
I
ARRIVES
FROM ROME
JAN.4
I
Tel A v i v
AMMAN
.i
I.T
. ERIJ
SALEA
I
••vv ■ M
•10
ISRAEL
c
■-
.°°,■-
.4c•-17 ,...
ossolV!!- 1
_Ai 0
‘l
RETURNS
Jan.&
MT.ZIONI
!BETHLEHEM'
Ad°
DEAD'
SEA
1
Arrows Trace Pope Paul's Holy Land Pilgrimage
of St. Joseph, then to the shores
of Lake Tiberias, the site where
the Christians believe Jesus per-
formed His first miracle, turning
water into wine. The party vis-
ited the ancient Synagogue of
Capernaum, believed to be the
oldest synagogue in existence,
thence to the Basilica of Trans-
figuration atop Mt. Tabor.
Through the Valley of Jezreel
the convoy headed for Israel's
Jerusalem, through the hills of
Judea, taking the road traveled
by King David when he went to
Jerusalem to head the Jewish
n a t io n . Welcoming, cheering
crowds flanked the entire road
on the way to Jerusalem. At
the entrance to Jerusalem, the
Pope was greeted by the city's
Mayor, Mordechai Ish-Shalom.
In Jerusalem, the Pope as-
cended to Mount Zion—where
Israel had prepared a specially
improved road for his conve-
nience—and visited the room
where Jesus was reported in
the New Testament to have had
his Last Supper, and the Church
of the Dormition, which honors
the end
the life of Mary,
Mother of Jesus. One of the
cardinals accompanying the Pope
visited the chamber on the
mountain honoring the Jews
martyred in World War II and
there lighted six candles in mem-
ory of the 6,000,000 Jews anni-
hilated by the Nazis during
World War II.
Finally, the Pontiff re-
turned to Jo r d a n, via the
Mandelbaum Gate. There,
President Shazar saw the
Pontiff for the second time
Sunday, bidding farewell to
the Catholic leader.
It was revealed that 16 Jor-
danian Arabs were drivers of
automobiles in the Papal convoy
throughout its 12-hour trip on
Israel soil. A high-ranking Cath-
olic prelate said here that the
unprecedented arrangement was
made with the agreement of the
Israeli authorities.
It was believed that the Jor-
danian drivers were used on the
Israeli trip because the cars
were scheduled to return to Jor-
dan and the Arabs feared that
bombs timed to explode after
the return might be planted in
the cars unless the Arab drivers
of
,
were in control of the vehicles.
Israelis were highly pleased
to learn that Pope Paul pub-
licly declared that the day he
spent yesterday in Israel had
been "an unforgettable day."
His visit to Israel was marked
not only by warmth and by
hearty greetings from all
here—Jews, Christians and
Moslems—but also by order
and careful organization which
contrasted sharply with the
near chaotic conditions that
prevailed throughout Jordan
on the Pope's visit there.
During his long, drama-filled
day in Israel, Pope Paul had
been greeted by Jewish religi-
ous leaders, although Chief
Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim kept care-
fully away from the ceremonies.
However, Dr. Zorach Warhaftig,
Minister for Religious Affairs,
was present at the two formal
state ceremonies, both at Me-
giddo and at the farewell at
the Mandelbaum Gate.
When the Pope arrived in
Jerusalem, he was greeted not
only by Mayor Mordechai Ish-
Shalom—who presented the Pon-
tiff with the traditional salt and
bread, indicating hospitality—
but also by Jerusalem's Chief
Rabbi Pardess. Earlier, at Naza-
reth, one member of the large,
official welcoming party was
Rabbi Pincus Miller. The latter
is the spiritual leader of Upper
Nazareth, a relatively new com-
munity numbering about 7,000
Jews. Rabbi Miller had been
formally invited to the Naza-
reth ceremonies by Archbishop
George Hakim, head of the Gali-
lean diocese. Rabbi Miller, how-
ever, did. not enter the church
at Nazareth, explaining that his
religious tenets forbade him to
enter a Christian house of wor-
ship.
Pope Paul defended the
late Pope Pius X.11 against
charges that have been made
that the wartime Pontiff had
failed to speak out against
Hitler's persecutions of the
Jews. The defense, alluding
to the play, "The Deputy," by
Rolf Hochhuth, a West Ger-
man playwright, which makes
those accusations against Pius,
(Continued on Page 34)