Palm Sunday in Jerusalem

(March 29, 2010) Hundreds of Christians from around the world took part in the traditional procession from the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem to mark Palm Sunday, retracing the steps of Jesus 2,000 years ago in the land where He lived and died. The procession, consisting of Scouts, Palestinian faithful, pilgrims and representatives of various religious orders of Jerusalem, marched in a peaceful atmosphere from the Palestinian village of Beit Fajeh to the Old City of Jerusalem, waving palms and olive branches. Police said some 1,500 people attended the procession which also marked the Catholic Church’s 25th World Youth Day this year. Before the blessing of the palms, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Archbishop Fouad Twal, recalled that Jesus had taken the same route to enter the Holy City "without escort, without soldiers and without separation wall ", referring to the security fence Israel erected in the occupied West Bank. "May the Passion of Christ save us from our passions," the Catholic head of the Holy Land said, referring to the political-religious tensions related to the Holy City. In past weeks, Palestinian demonstrations followed disclosure of Israeli plans to build apartments in east Jerusalem, as well as rededication of an ancient synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City. Most West Bank Palestinians were banned from Jerusalem Sunday in keeping with standing Israeli regulations.