The visit to the green hills of the Galilee - the heartland of Christ's life and teachings, where the Gospels tell of him performing miracles, preaching to the multitudes and gathering his disciples to him - stands in sharp contrast to the tumult of the pope's past two days in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Since John Paul's arrival Tuesday evening from Jordan, where he began his weeklong Holy Land pilgrimage, stop after stop on his itinerary has cast a harsh spotlight on the Middle East's present-day political convulsions and its peoples' deep historical wounds.

On Thursday, in the shadowed halls of Israel's Holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem, the pope expressed sorrow at Jews' suffering at the hands of Christians. A day earlier, he visited a gritty, violence-plagued West Bank refugee camp and offered an unusually candid papal acknowledgment of Palestinian independence aspirations.

But in the Galilee - whose evocative landscape is in many places little changed from biblical times - the emphasis was shifting to the intimate sense of spiritual connection the aging pontiff has said he hopes to achieve by walking in Christ's footsteps.

As throughout the papal visit, security in this northern region was heavy, with traffic restricted for miles around the sites the pope was to visit. But the main threat appeared to be bad weather.

Authorities said Thursday night a forecast of heavy rain and high winds could cause delays or even a
cancellation of the day's centerpiece event, a Mass at a sprawling open-air site newly carved into a hillside overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

There, Jesus is said to have preached the Sermon on the Mount, described in one of the best-loved passages of the New Testament.

In bell-like cadences, the book of Matthew recounts Christ's teachings on that day, beginning with the famous incantation: "Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted..."

Hours before the Mass was to begin, people were already trekking along rain-soaked roads closed to nearly all traffic, hoping to secure choice spots near the stage. A blustery wind tore at plastic tents set up for pilgrims on the lakeshore nearby.

On a thistle-strewn slope near the Mass site, pilgrims sang and played guitars, ignoring the chilly rain. Some, gazing out at the wind-whipped Sea of Galilee, found inspiration in the inclement weather.

"It reminds me of when Jesus calmed the waters," said Leonardo di Mauro, a Roman Catholic priest originally from Rome, who now works with a Roman Catholic youth group in India.

Although attended by all ages, the Mass is aimed particularly at youth, with whom the pope, who turns 80 in May, has sought to forge a special bond in the course of his 22-year papacy.

A babel of languages arose as Croatian, Indian, Italian and Polish groups prepared to make their predawn journey, at least part of it by foot, to the Mass site. Some unfurled big umbrellas in the Vatican colors, yellow and white.

"I am so excited," said Celine Fernandez, a 47-year-old pilgrim of Portuguese ancestry from Bangalore, India. "I feel the need to be close to these places from the Bible."

After the Mass, a relatively small entourage was to accompany the pope on visits to two small churches and a shrine nestled along the lake's rocky shores.

One commemorates the biblical story of Christ feeding more than 5,000 people with only five fishes and two loaves of bread, the others recall Jesus' admonition to the Apostle Peter to "feed my lambs" - to care for the Christian flock.

Three Israeli teen-agers from a kibbutz near the Mass site, selling papal souvenirs on commission, were the only ones who appeared glum amid the festivities. "Buttons? Calendars? Key chains?" they called out plaintively as pilgrims streamed past.

"It's nice that everyone's so happy," said 15-year-old Tamar Teretz. "But no one's buying anything."

Mitch Battros
Producer - Earth Changes TV
http://www.earthchangesTV.com