THE MIDDLE EAST: A pilgrim in Jerusalem , Dr George Carey talks to Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent, about an interfaith initiative for peace
The situation in the Middle East cannot be allowed to get much worse, according to the Archbishop of Canterbury. "The longer this lasts, the more perilous the future becomes," Dr George Carey told The Irish Times in Jerusalem.
He travelled from London with a group. Pilgrims are a rare sight in the Holy City these days but Dr Carey has been here regularly since the latest phase in the conflict began.
"Last year, at the end of July, my wife and I felt that there was such a problem out here that we would come out to show solidarity with the local Christians."
On that occasion he met the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, and the Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat separately. He has the rare distinction of getting along with both of them.
"Following that, I got some signals via [the Israeli Foreign Minister] Shimon Peres's office that they felt the religious leaders ought to be taking much more of an interest in the peace process and had a role to play."
He received the same message subsequently from Jordan's King Abdullah, who asked for a meeting at which he told the Archbishop: "Christians ought to be taking much more of an interest in the holy places, particularly the future of Jerusalem."
Last Christmas Eve he received an "urgent" phone call from Rabbi Michael Melchior, the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister, urging him to intervene in the situation along with the Egyptian Muslim cleric, Sheikh Muhammad Sayyed Tantawi. The Rabbi felt the pair "could actually bring people together, because we were neutral".
As a result, a meeting of religious leaders was held in the Egyptian city of Alexandria - a suitably neutral venue - in late January. This remarkable gathering got surprisingly little publicity.
Rabbi Melchior was there and so, too, was a Palestinian minister of state, Sheikh Tal El Sider, along with the Latin (Roman Catholic) Patriarch of Jerusalem and other Muslim, Christian and Jewish representatives; about 15 religious leaders altogether.
"What is quite amazing for those of us in Europe is that we are talking about people who live within 10-20 miles of each other and had never met."
The Sephardic Chief Rabbi, Eliyahu Bakshi Doron had never met his opposite numbers of the Muslim faith.
He spent three hours talking with them privately and Dr Carey recalls the Rabbi telling him afterwards, "I was able to understand their fears, they were able to understand and sympathise with my fears. We have become friends."
A document was agreed, known as the First Alexandria Declaration of the Religious Leaders of the Holy Land, in which the various clerics "declare our commitment to ending the violence and bloodshed that denies the right to life and dignity".
The declaration calls for respect for the religious sites in the Holy Land, "a just, secure and durable solution" and "a religiously-sanctioned ceasefire, respected and observed on all sides".
A permanent joint committee was established to carry out the recommendations and "to engage with our respective political leaderships".
Recalling previous efforts to find a solution, Dr Carey points out that "when the political leaders met in Oslo the religious element was almost totally disregarded, which is a grave mistake because there are very, very clearly religious factors in the background."
Politically, he believes partition is the fairest and most equitable solution.
"They are both noble peoples, they deserve to live in peace together."
But what about the issue of Jerusalem?
In his personal opinion, "it's got to be open to all faiths. In any future political settlement, there must be a sharing of Jerusalem, some equitable sharing of power by Muslims and Jews. Nothing else will satisfy: the Palestinian cannot walk away from Jerusalem, but neither can the Jew."
There were "certain overlaps" with the conflict in Northern Ireland: "In both cases, religion is a very important element at two levels: first of all, the history of conflict, the misunderstanding, the burden of intolerance, but at the same time, today, the very fact that religion is inextricably woven into the fabric of the conflict."
He believes religious leaders can play a "formative role" in influencing the people responsible for violence.
US politicians flew in and out of the region but he wondered if they actually knew anything about the sorry situation of the Palestinian people.
"I doubt it very much indeed."
He comments that it was a "great mistake" when Vice-President Cheney failed to meet President Arafat on his recent trip.
"Western politicians, when they come, they really ought to spend a couple of days travelling around by car, speaking to ordinary people on both sides, who are suffering very grievously, especially Palestinians."
Dr Carey chaired another meeting of the Alexandria group in Jerusalem last week. He felt it was unfortunate that senior Palestinian clerics were delayed for two hours at a checkpoint on the way while others did not get through at all.
"You do enter into the humiliation of the Palestinian people; I'll say no more."
We are sitting in a religious house along the Via Dolorosa, Christ's path to the Crucifixion. Palestinian school children are playing noisily nearby.
"The other element that religious leaders can bring in is the theology of hope. We have really got to bring hope into the situation."
The average Palestinian boy or girl had to be given hope that they could change the future without seeking to bomb Israel out of existence.