Pope Francis visits the Holy Land
A banner showing images of Pope Francis (left), Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas (center), and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I is hanged on a gate near the Church of the Nativity (believed to be the birth place of Jesus Christ), in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, May 23, 2014, two days before Pope Francis is to hold Sunday Mass in this holy town.
Pope Francis made his first visit to the Middle East - a delicate mission to push his vision of inter-religious dialogue as a vehicle for peace in the region. He visits Jordan, the Palestinian Territories and Israel during his May 24-26 trip.
Pope Francis
Pope Francis greets journalists aboard the papal flight on his way to Amman, Jordan on May 24, 2014. Pope Francis arrived in Jordan at the start of a Middle East tour aiming to boost ties with Muslims and Jews, as well as easing an age-old rift within Christianity itself.
Jerusalem
A Greek Orthodox monk pours oil into lamps at the tomb of Jesus, at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City, May 23, 2014. Israelis and Palestinians are putting the finishing touches on a flurry of festive preparations for the Pope's May 24-26 visit in Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Bethlehem
Palestinians spray graffiti (in Arabic and English) on an Israeli army watch tower, which makes up a section of the controversial Israeli-constructed barrier on May 24, 2014 in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem, where Pope Francis will celebrate a Sunday mass.
Amman
Pope Francis is welcomed by Jordan's Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad upon his arrival at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, May 24, 2014.
Amman
Pope Francis is greeted by Jordan's King Abdullah II at the Royal Palace in Amman, May 24, 2014. Pope Francis urged respect for religious freedom in the Middle East and an end to persecution of Christians, saying they were "full citizens" with a right to be in the region.
Amman
Pope Francis waves to the faithful upon his arrival to attend a mass at Amman International Stadium, May 24, 2014. Pope Francis called for urgent steps to end Syria's three-year-old civil war as he arrived in neighboring Jordan on Saturday.
Amman
Iraqi Christians greet Pope Francis before a mass at Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital on May 24, 2014. Pope Francis made an urgent plea today for peace in war-torn Syria as he kicked off a three-day pilgrimage to the Middle East.
Amman
Pope Francis waves to pilgrims upon his arrival at Amman International Stadium where he celebrated mass on May 24, 2014 in the Jordanian capital.
Amman
Pope Francis kisses a child before celebrating a mass at Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital on May 24, 2014.
Amman
Pope Francis greets the crowd before celebrating a mass at Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital on May 24, 2014.
Amman
Pope Francis kisses a boy before celebrating a mass at Amman International Stadium in the Jordanian capital on May 24, 2014. In the stadium, which can fit up to 30,000 people, thousands of blue and red chairs were laid out in front of a large altar, behind which hung photographs of John Paul II and John XXIII, who were made saints by Francis earlier this month.
Amman
Pope Francis celebrates a mass in Amman International Stadium, May 24, 2014. Pope Francis called for urgent steps to end Syria's three-year-old civil war as he arrived in neighboring Jordan on Saturday, starting a Middle East trip aimed at bringing hope to the region's dwindling Christian population.
Amman
Pope Francis leaves Amman International Stadium after celebrating a mass on May 24, 2014 in the Jordanian capital.
Tulkarm May
A Palestinian man holds a picture of Pope Francis during a demonstration calling for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and in solidarity with prisoners who have been on hunger strike for 31 days, in the West Bank town of Tulkarm, May 24, 2014.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis receives flowers after a meeting with children from nearby Palestinian refugee camps on May 25, 2014 during a visit to the Dheisheh camp, on the outskirts of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis speaks during a meeting with children from nearby Palestinian refugee camps on May 25, 2014, during a visit to the Dheisheh camp, on the outskirts of Bethlehem. Pope Francis made an impassioned plea for the protection of children at a mass in Bethlehem's Manger Square in the West Bank, where rights groups say minors are mistreated by Israel.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis touches the wall that divides Israel from the West Bank, on his way to celebrate a mass in Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank city of Bethlehem May 25, 2014.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis looks on from his pope-mobile, as he arrives at the Manger Square before presiding over an open-air mass on May 25, 2014 outside the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem
A general view taken with a fish-eye lens shows Manger Square in the West Bank biblical town of Bethlehem where Pope Francis celebrated an open-air mass next to the Church of the Nativity, believed by many to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, on May 25, 2014, with the colors of the Palestinian flag in the foreground.
Bethlehem
Palestinian presidential guards monitor the area around Manger square in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem on May 25, 2014.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis greets Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas during an open-air mass on May 25, 2014 at the Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem. Pope Francis urged an end to the "increasingly unacceptable" Israeli-Palestinian conflict, calling on leaders to show "courage" to achieve a peace based on a two-state solution.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis leads an open air mass at Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity on May 25, 2014 in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis presides over an open-air mass on May 25, 2014 at the Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis presides over an open-air mass on May 25, 2014 at the Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank Biblical town of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem
Pope Francis leads an open-air mass in the Manger Square on May 25, 2014.
Bethlehem
A worshipper listens as Pope Francis leads an open-air mass in the Manger Square on May 25, 2014.
Tel Aviv
Pope Francis disembarks his helicopter upon arriving at Ben Gurion Airport on May 25, 2014, near the Mediterranean Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv
Israeli President Shimon Peres greets Pope Francis during a welcome ceremony upon the latter's arrival at Ben Gurion Airport on May 25, 2014, near the Mediterranean Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv.
Jerusalem
Pope Francis greets Israeli children after arriving at Mount Scopus in Jerusalem on May 25, 2014. Pope Francis arrived in Israel to formally launch the final leg of his three-day Middle East tour.