History And Healing In Pope's Journey

As the Jewish state welcomes the head of the Catholic Church, attention is focusing on the little things—gestures and symbols—in the very delicate mix of diplomacy and history that the Pope's milestone trip has become.

CBS News Anchor Dan Rather reports that of all John Paul's 91 trips outside Italy, this "spiritual pilgrimage" to the places where Jesus lived and died, may be the most challenging.

Should he have kissed the earth in Palestine? Should he wear a cross to the Wailing Wall? Can ambulances in his entourage show the Star of David ? Why was it necessary to bulldoze a whole hillside for his Galilee Mass? These and other vexing questions of tone and timing were raised prior to the pope's arrival.

Even after he got here, a group of ultra-right wing Jews gathered at their holiest site, the Wailing Wall, to protest and say prayers against the Pope.

Bob Kunst, an American Jew who flew to Israel strictly to protest the Popes trip, said, This is an absolute outrage, an insult and a slap in the face, and were not putting up with this.

Meanwhile, CBS News Correspondent Allen Pizzey reports Palestinians are welcoming the Pope as their champion, a role he doesnt want, though he does plan to visit the Palestinian's Bethlehem Refugee camp.

"The visit of the pope is important because it puts international emphasis and recognition on Palestinian legitimate rights," said Palestinian leader George Sahhar.

And Muslims are waiting to see what he does to avoid offending the followers of Islam, when he takes Mass in Nazareth, Saturday.

Opposite the Basilica of the Annunciation there is a makeshift Mosque, recently established and offensive to the dwindling population of Christians here. It's not on his itinerary but the Muslims have asked John Paul to "drop in"—another difficult equation.

But while Middle East politics complicate the pontiff's travels in Israel, he will also be confronted with Israelis upset over his own writings and proclamations, as well as the long history of hostility of the Catholic Church toward Jews.

For one, a joint Vatican-Palestine Liberation Organization document signed last month irked Israeli leaders.

The paper called on Israel to refrain from unilateral steps to reclaim Jerusalem as its capital.

And while the Pope's landmark apology for past sins by Catholics against Jews and other groups made mention of the Holocaust and Inquisition, the pontiff's rmarks did not convey an actual apology on behalf of the Church itself, but rather an expression of regret over the past actions of church members.

That irked some Jewish leaders.

"He says that a human being has no power to forgive, has no authority to forgive," said Chief Rabbi Ysrael Meir Lau. "We have no mandate to forgive for 6 million victims. we cannot forget and we are not authorized to forgive."

Most recently, Jewish leaders were alarmed to learn that Father Peter Gumpel, the priest who advises John Paul on candidates for sainthood, uses language long-forbidden by the church to describe Jews, including blaming them for the death of Christ.

The revelations about Gumpel reopened old wounds. For almost 2,000 years, official Church doctrine held Jews responsible for the death of Jesus and that Jewish suffering was punishment for that crime.

The Spanish Inquisition targeted, tortured and murdered Jews who converted to the Christian faith but were suspected of heresy.

And the conduct of the Vatican during the Holocaust, especially the silence of then-Pope Pius XII, has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years, with critics accusing Rome of ignoring the slaughter of Jews or even condoning it.

The Vatican's continued efforts to canonize Pius XII, or make him a saint, anger many Jewish leaders.

The tide in Jewish-Catholic relations began to turn in 1965, when the Vatican issued "In Our Age," a new theological approach to Judaism that rejected anti-Semitism.

When John Paul II was elected Pope in 1979, he showed an interest in repairing centuries of damage between the church and the children of Israel. His visit to Auschwitz concentration camp in 1979 and the Great Synagogue of Rome in 1986 were important steps.

In 1993, an accord between the Holy See, the Vatican's political entity, and Israel formalized relations between the two countries, the first official recognition by the Vatican of the Jewish state.

Jewish proponents of inter-faith dialogue are hoping his trip will serve as an educational opportunity for Israelis.

Rabbi David Rosen, the Anti-Defamation League's representative to the Vatican, said, This pope is a genuine friend of the Jewish people, as no other pope in history, and perhaps not as all of them all together.

And a local poll found six out of 10 Israelis are happy about the pope's visit, even though only 44 percent were aware the Vatican openly opposes anti-Semitism.