Pope’s gift for new pastoral centre in Nazareth
Vatican City (AsiaNews) – The sum of one million euros collected from members of the dioceses of Munich, Regensburg and Passau during the visit of Benedict XVI in September, will be donated in the pope’s name to the Custodian of the Holy Land for the construction of a new pastoral centre measuring 30 square metres in Nazareth, near the Basilica of the Annunciation. This was revealed in a statement by the Pontifical Council “Cor Unum” that was issued today by the Holy See press office.
The statement said the President of the Council, Mgr Josef Cordes, is currently in the
The building will be situated in an area measuring more than 30 square metres and will include areas for youth and for families apart from accommodation, meeting rooms, rooms for catechism, classrooms and a sports ground. The statement said: “It will truly be a centre of life and activity for Christians and a point of reference for pilgrims.”
Through Mgr Cordes, the pope expressed to Christians in
During his stay, Mgr Cordes will meet the Benedictine Fathers of Dormition Abbey, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Michel Sabbah, and the Apostolic Nuncio, Mgr Antonio Franco. In
The day before his departure, the president of “Cor Unum” will meet the Greek-Melkite Archbishop, Mgr Elias Chacour, to whom he will deliver a gift of 50,000 dollars for the construction of a school in Mughar village, the fruit of a collection undertaken recently at the
The planned school will be special because – apart from being situated in places where the parents of Jesus lived – it will see Christian, Druze and Muslim children sharing desks in the classrooms.
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