|PIC1|Pope Benedict XVI gave encouragement to Christians living in the Holy Land at an open-air Mass on Sunday attended by some 50,000 people.

Speaking inside the largest football stadium in Amman, Jordan, the Pope called on believers to “be faithful to your roots”, but also to work with people from other religions and to oppose violent ideologies.

He said, “The Catholic community here is deeply touched by the difficulties and uncertainties which affect all the people of the Middle East.

“Fidelity to your Christian roots, fidelity to the Church’s mission in the Holy Land, demands of each of you a particular kind of courage — the courage of conviction, born of personal faith, not mere social convention or family tradition.”

Iraqis, Syrians, Jordanians and Lebanese people all gathered for the Mass. During the Mass the Pope blessed around 1,200 boys and girls, including 40 refugees from Iraq.

The Pope was welcomed by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Archbishop Fouad Twal who spoke of the “difficulties and obstacles” faced by Catholics in the area, such as the “immigration of Iraqis” who have fled to Jordan to escape war and persecution since the invasion in 2003.

Since the beginning of the Iraq war over one million Iraqis have come to Jordan. Of these 40,000 are Christians fleeing from persecution.

Pope Benedict is due to arrive in Israel today for the second stop on his first Middle Eastern tour as pope.