Pope's call on troubled Christian communities

The Pope appealed at the weekend for support for embattled Christian communities in the Middle East, calling them a vital force for peace in the region.

He also met a Turkish Cypriot Muslim leader, part of careful diplomacy reaching out to both sides in the decades-old conflict between ethnic Greeks and Turks on the divided island.

Benedict XVI's three-day pilgrimage to Cyprus is part of preparations for a crisis summit of Middle East bishops in Rome in October. Many bishops from the region have travelled to Cyprus to see Benedict and receive a working paper for the summit.

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War and harsh economic conditions have led to the exodus of thousands of Christians from the Holy Land, Iraq and elsewhere in recent years.

At an afternoon Mass, the Pope lamented that priests have joined the emigration of Christians from the region. He said that as families leave because of conflicts and tensions, "it can be tempting for their pastors to do likewise".

Meeting Orthodox Christian Archbishop Chrysostomos II, Benedict said the continuing conflict in the Middle East "must be a source of concern to all of Christ's followers".

"No one can remain indifferent to the need to support in every way possible the Christians of that troubled region, so that its ancient churches can live in peace and flourish," the Pope said.

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