Pope: my Beirut trip is Mideast peace pilgrimage

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy - The Associated Press

Pope Benedict XVI. AP Photo

Pope Benedict XVI is calling his trip to Lebanon this week a peace pilgrimage.
 
Benedict told pilgrims Sunday at his summer residence outside Rome that while finding solutions for the Middle East’s diverse problems seems difficult, people "shouldn’t resign themselves to violence or worsening tensions."
 
He urged the international community to support efforts at dialogue and reconciliation, and he stressed "the importance for the whole world" of stable, lasting peace for the region.
 
He said his Sept. 14-16 pilgrimage to Beirut, Lebanon’s capital, comes "under the sign of peace" for the entire Mideast.
 
He spoke of the "dramatic situation" endured by people in the region, "for too long torn by incessant conflicts."