Pope Benedict XVI celebrates mass Thursday in the Church of the Annunciation in the northern Israeli city of Nazareth. The church, built over the remains of Byzantine and Crusader churches in the town where Jesus grew up, contains a grotto in which, tradition says, the Virgin Mary was told by the angel Gabriel that she would give birth to the Son of God.
Christian nuns and pilgrims attend a mass led by the pope at the Church of the Annunciation.
Christian pilgrims and worshippers attend a mass led by Pope Benedict at the Church of the Annunciation.
Worshippers sing songs and dance before a mass on Mount Precipice led by the pope in the northern Israeli town of Nazareth.
A Christian pilgrim poses for a picture on the pope's chair after the pointiff's mass on Mount Precipice.
Catholic nuns greet Pope Benedict as he arrives at the Holy Mass on Mount Precipice. The pontiff is nearing the end of his eight-day pilgrimage to the Holy sites in Jordan, Israel and the West Bank.
The pope arrives for a mass on Mount Precipice, where the Bible says a mob tried to hurl Jesus off a cliff. Tens of thousands of the faithful turned out in the town of Jesus's boyhood to see the pope in the heartland of Israel's minority Arab population.
Pope Benedict XVI waves to the faithful from his Popemobile as he arrives at Mount Precipice.
Youths rest during a mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI.
Tens of thousands of pilgrims gather for mass by Pope Benedict on Mount Precipice, just outside the city of Nazareth. With flags and banners unfurled, pilgrims thronged to the beat of drums and tambourines to witness the pope celebrate his largest Holy Land mass.
Pope Benedict XVI waves to Palestinians after a ceremony at the Aida Refugee Camp, backdropped by the separation barrier in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Wednesday
Palestinian children peer through a fence as they try and catch a glimpse of Pope Benedict XVI during a visit to Aida Refugee Camp in the city of Jesus' birth.
Nuns wait for the upcoming Holy Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in Manger Square.
Worshippers attend mass celebrated in Manger Square by the pope on Wednesday in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Thousands of pilgrims packed Bethlehem's Manger Square beneath fluttering Palestinian flags .
A poster depicting Pope Benedict XVI and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hangs on a building as a member of the Palestinian security forces stands guard atop a roof overlooking Manger Square in the West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Pope Benedict XVI blesses Catholic nuns during mass in Manger Square in the West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Pope Benedict XVI waves to worshippers as he leaves a mass, in Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity.
A picture of Pope Benedict XVI is seen reflected on his Popemobile during his visit to the West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Pope Benedict XVI reviews a Palestinian honour guard accompanied by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on his arrival to Bethlehem, West Bank.
Pope Benedict XVI walks in front of the Dome of the Rock, on the compound known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary) and to Jews as Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City.
Pope Benedict XVI visits the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site, in Jerusalem's old city. The pope waded into the heart of the Middle East conflict, calling for the faithful to overcome past discord and reiterating the Church's commitment to reconciliation with Jews.
Nuns walk past an Israeli policeman after taking part in prayers with Pope Benedict at the Latin Patriarch Church in Jerusalem's Old City.
Pope Benedict XVI is surrounded by security as he leaves the Latin Patriarch Church. The German-born Pontiff visited holy sites in Jerusalem at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Tuesday as part of a pilgrimage marred by Jewish disappointment over his remarks on the Holocaust.
A priest photographs Pope Benedict XVI as he blesses Christians at the Latin Patriarch Church in Jerusalem's Old City.
Pope Benedict XVI gestures as he prepares to sit with Chief Tel Aviv Rabbi and Holocaust survivor Yisrael Meir Lau, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, Israeli President Shimon Peres and Avner Shalev, the Director of Yad Vashem, during a ceremony at Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem.
Pope Benedict XVI lays a wreath in memory of the six million Jews who perished at the hands of the Nazis at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial's Hall of Remembrances.
Pope Benedict XVI hugs Israeli President Shimon Peres during a reception at the President's residency in Jerusalem
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomes Pope Benedict XVI upon the Pontiff's arrival at Ben Gurion airport . Pope Benedict XVI began the second leg of a pilgrimage to Middle East holy sites in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
King Abdullah II of Jordan, right, prepares to bid Pope Benedict XVI farewell at Queen Alia airport as the Pope departs after a 4-day visit to Jordan, on Monday.
A Palestinian boy paints graffiti on a section of Israel's separation barrier in Aida refugee camp, ahead of Pope Benedict's visit, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Sunday, May 10. Pope Benedict XVI urged Middle East Christians to persevere in their faith despite hardships threatening the existence of their ancient communities.
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates Sunday Mass at a stadium in Amman, Jordan. On the final day of his visit to Jordan, the pontiff urged Christians to be faithful to their roots.
Pope Benedict XVI arrives at the open-air football stadium in Amman.
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates a mass in a stadium. Pope Benedict XVI is on his first trip to the Middle East and his final day in Jordan before moving on to visit the Palestinian territories and Israel.
Pope Benedict XVI gives a Jordanian woman Holy Communion as he celebrates Sunday Mass.
Pope Benedict XVI rides in a vehicle as he arrives at Bethany Beyond the Jordan on the east bank of the Jordan River on Sunday. Pope Benedict visited the site believed to be where Jesus was baptized.
Christian worshippers pray inside the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Sunday.
Pope Benedict XVI, right, and Jose Rodriguez Carballo stand beside "The Staff of Moses" during the Pope's visit to Mountain Nebo on Saturday, May 9, near Amman, Jordan. The pope called for reconciliation between Christians and Jews during his visit to Jordan, where in the biblical tradition God showed Moses the Promised Land. Pope Benedict XVI is on his first trip to the Middle East, which will also include the West Bank and Israel.
Pope Benedict XVI waves at the crowd from inside his popemobile as he tours the southern Jordanian town of Madaba on Saturday. The pope was driven past churches in Madaba, including an Orthodox church famous for its sixth century mosaic map of biblical Palestine. Hundreds of people waving Jordanian and Vatican flags had gathered to greet the 82-year-old German pontiff.
Pope Benedict XVI and Jordan's Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad bin Talal sit surrounded by security personnel during the Pope's visit to King Hussein Bin Talal mosque in Amman on Saturday.
Tourists touch a poster welcoming Pope Benedict XVI to the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Saturday. Bethlehem is one of the locations Pope Benedict is expected to visit during his tour of Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Vatican flags decorate a street in the old city of Jerusalem on Friday ahead of the pontiff's visit on May 11.
Palestinian scouts at a refugee camp near Bethlehem hold a dress rehearsal Friday for a performance next week in front of Pope Benedict. Behind them is a section of Israel's separation barrier.
The pope's entourage exits the plane in Amman, Jordan, on Friday.
Pope Benedict XVI greets Jordan's King Abdullah, his wife Queen Rania and their children at the royal palace in Amman on Friday.
Pope Benedict XVI arrives at the Lady of Peace Church in Amman.
Pope Benedict XVI briefs reporters on his plane en route to Jordan on Friday. He later arrived in Jordan on his first visit as pontiff to an Arab state, kicking off an eight-day Holy Land pilgrimage.
