Pope preaches to 200,000 at end of pilgrimage

Looking over the shores where the Apostle Paul preached, the pope ended his odysseys through biblical lands today with an appeal to end the cycle of Middle East violence in the places he once prayed.

"Once again, today, we hear sad news from the Holy Land of terrible violence even against innocent young people," John Paul told more than 200,000 people at an outdoor Mass in Valletta, the Maltese capital.

"We must intensify our prayers for peace in the land of Jesus."

Since last year, the pope has used his biblical pilgrimages to press for peace in the turbulent region. His latest trip included a stop in Syria, where he condemned the hostilities.

The level of violence even forced the pope to break from his spiritual programme in Malta, where he elevated three Maltese religious figures to the last step before possible sainthood. He used the event to appeal for a greater commitment to religious work and efforts to promote contacts between faiths.

The 80-year-old pontiff, who has battled fatigue during the six day trip, also offered a personal note to others slowed by age and illness.

"I remember and feel very close to the elderly," he said. "To the sick I say: Have hope and be strong."

More than half of Malta’s entire population gathered in a vast square where the pope also appeared on his first tour of the Mediterranean island nation 11 years ago.

The return visit is the last stop in a voyage following the path of the Apostle Paul, who the Bible says was shipwrecked in Malta in 60 AD. The trip - which also passed through Greece and Syria - is also the final journey on the pope’s biblical travels to mark the millennium. Last year, he visited Egypt and the Holy Land.