Pope faces pain of Ukraine's past

The pontiff attended a meeting of Ukrainian religious leaders

KIEV, Ukraine -- The Pope is to make a pilgrimage to the scene of a Nazis mass execution which he described as "one of the most atrocious of the many crimes" of the 20th century.

Pope John Paul II will visit the Babi Yar ravine on Monday, during the latest stage of his controversial visit to the Ukraine.

Between 100,000 and 200,000 people, mostly Jews, are believed to have been executed by the Nazis at the Babi Yar.

On Sunday, the Pope touched on some painful episodes in Ukraine's past.

As well as paying tribute to the Jews killed during World War II, he spoke also of the Ukrainian Christians persecuted during the "dark times of the communist terror."

Later, he visited a forest where up to 200,000 Ukrainians killed in Soviet jails in Kiev between 1929 and 1941 are buried in mass graves.

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He prayed silently before a six-metre (20-foot) bronze cross and placed a yellow and white wreath on the memorial.

"Land of Ukraine, drenched with the blood of martyrs, thank you for the example of fidelity to the Gospel, which you have given to Christians the world over," John Paul said during his first Mass on Ukrainian soil.

Earlier estimates of crowds of up to 350,000 people proved wide of the mark with organisers putting the numbers at between 20,000 and 30,000.

But the Vatican expressed delight that a number of Orthodox faithful attended the Mass on the second day of his visit on an airfield outside the capital.

During the ceremony, the Pope urged people to beware of a "deceptive mirage of an easy happiness," warning against western, consumerist lifestyles.

His visit has been opposed by the dominant Orthodox Church, which is tightly linked to Moscow and has accused the Roman Catholic Church of stealing converts and land.

The leader of Ukraine's largest Orthodox church boycotted a meeting between the Pope and representatives of other religious groups in Ukraine on Sunday.

The Vatican said it was not offended by the non-attendance of Volodymyr -- the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Moscow Patriarchate.

"It will be very difficult for the proper representative of the patriarch of Moscow to explain to their followers ... the absence at this meeting because the people of the country -- the absolute majority of the people of the country -- are absolutely happy with the Pope being here, both Catholics or Orthodox," said Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls.

The leader of a splinter Orthodox Church with two million followers, Metropolitan Filaret, did attend saying he was seeking dialogue.

"We hope your visit will contribute to the development of the Orthodox-Catholic dialogue and not a deepening of the rift, as Moscow thinks," the Associated Press reported Filaret saying. "We pray for the unification of God's holy churches."

But the patriarch of the Orthodox church, Alexiy II, visiting nearby Belarus sent a veiled warning.

"We hope the papal trip will not stop the improvement of our relationship ... but it could happen," he said.

Monday's visit to Babi Yar will be closely watched by Jewish leaders around the world who have previously voiced dissatisfaction with the Vatican for failing to more strongly condemn the Roman Catholic Church's passive role during the Holocaust.

In 1998, the Vatican issued a document asking forgiveness for the cowardice of some Catholic nations and individuals during the Holocaust and condemning anti-Semitism down the centuries.

But many Jewish leaders said the document failed to apologise unequivocally for the Roman Catholic Church's role, and it defended Pope Pius XII, who kept silent in the face of reports of Nazi atrocities.