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Papal visit sparks Greek protests

ATHENS, Greece - A frail-looking Pope John Paul II has arrived in Greece at the start of one of his most controversial tours.

Following the footsteps of the Apostle Paul, the Pontiff is making a six-day pilgrimage to Greece, Syria and Malta during which Vatican officials say he will be seeking to improve relations with Orthodox Christians and Muslims.

But hundreds of conservative Greek Orthodox believers have joined protests against the visit, with banners calling the Pope the "anti-Christ" and "persona non grata."

During his 24-hour stay in Greece they plan to drape monasteries in black, ring church bells in mourning and there have been threats to block the papal motorcade from reaching Areopagus hill, where Paul made his sermons in 51 A.D.

The Pope, who is turning 81 this month, descended the steps of his plane slowly but unaided to be greeted by a Greek Air Force honour guard.

No senior members of the Greek Orthodox Church turned out to welcome him.

John Paul II is the first Roman Catholic leader to visit the country -- where more than 95 percent of the population are baptized in the Orthodox Church -- since the Great Schism of 1054 divided Christianity into Eastern and Western branches.

Since then the relationship between the traditions has been characterised by suspicion, occasionally spilling into open hostility.

AUDIO Anthee Carassavas, Journalist: Visit begrudgingly accepted 240K/60 sec. AIFF or WAV sound CNN's Jim Bitterman: Pope's visit tries to heal rift 940K/87 sec. AIFF or WAV sound     GALLERY Pope John Paul II's visit to Greece   COUNTRY PROFILE At a glance: Greece Provided by CountryWatch.com     ALSO Pilgrimage and politics Pope's tour evokes old conflicts Highlights of the Pope's visit to Syria

Greek Orthodox leader Archbishop Christodoulos is expected to make a public statement during the visit demanding a formal papal apology for the Crusades, the Inquisition and other perceived misdeeds.

But it is unclear how far the pope was willing to go with Vatican concessions already including moving a Mass on Saturday from the 80,000-seat Olympic Stadium to a small indoor arena.

The Vatican has also spoken about alleged discrimination against Greece's 50,000 native-born Roman Catholics. There are also about 150,000 Catholic immigrants.

Greek Orthodox Church leaders did however denounce the demonstrators as members of fringe religious groups.

"These people ... have no official relation with the church of Greece," said Haris Konidaris, a spokesman for Greek Orthodox leader Archbishop Christodoulos. "Acts of fanaticism and zealots are very few."

These sentiments were echoed by the Greek Foreign Ministry, whose spokesman said: "Incidents and gatherings by various fringe religious groups do not represent the vast majority of the Greek people and the country's policy toward the head of the Roman Catholic Church."

A massive security operation in Athens will see more than 5,000 police patrolling the city and many main roads blocked to traffic.

John Paul II has worked hard at dialogue with the Orthodox church in the last decade with visits to Orthodox countries including Romania and Georgia.

But the backlash is more intense in Greece, where the Orthodox clerics portray themselves as guardians of both the nation's ethnic identity and the heartland of the world's more than 200 million Orthodox faithful.

Later in his tour in Syria, where Saint Paul converted to Christianity on the road to Damascus, the Pope will become the first Catholic leader to enter a mosque when he visits the tomb of John the Baptist.

He will also issue a peace appeal for the region, having visited Israel and all border nations that have been at war with it.

After four days there, the Pope ends his trip in predominantly Catholic Malta, presiding at a beatification ceremony for two Maltese priests and a nun.

Greeks protest over Pope's visit
May 2, 2001

Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Vatican
Greek Orthodox Church
Roman Catholic Church in Greece

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