Irish Church Leaders told to remove crucifixes

  Irish religious leaders visiting the Middle East were
 unable to visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem this
 morning after a security official at the checkpoint
ordered them to remove their crucifixes from
around their necks and leave them at the checkpoint
if they wanted to go down and pray at the Western Wall.

The local bishop accompanying the delegation,
Dr Munib Younan, told the officials the request
was a breach of a protocol agreed between the
Israeli government, the Christian leadership in
the city and the Jewish Rabbinate, and that it
would be a humiliation if the church Leaders
had to remove their crucifixes in order to go
down and pray at the wall. There was a
discussion for some time. The security official
at the checkpoint confirmed with his superiors
and returned and ordered the Church leaders
to remove their crucifixes if they were to go to
visit the Western Wall.

Dr Munib Younan, then told the Israeli soldier
that this was a humiliation for the church
leaders and we cannot undergo this humiliation
for our Bishops and Church Leaders from
Ireland to undergo this humiliation, so the
Bishops turned away bearing with them the
prayer that they had written out and which read:

" On our pilgrimage of Hope and peace, we pray for
the peace of Jerusalem" signed by, The Primate
of the Catholic Church, The Primate of the Church
of Ireland, the Moderator of the Presbyterian
Church and the President of the Methodist Church.

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