Vatican secretary of state to inaugurate church in Azerbaijan

Published: 2008-02-26

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, will travel to Azerbaijan in March to inaugurate a Catholic church built on land given to Pope John Paul II and partially paid for with royalties from the late pope's books. The Vatican announced Feb. 26 that Cardinal Bertone, who was scheduled to finish a visit to Cuba that day, would travel to Armenia March 2-6 and go on to Azerbaijan March 6-9. In Armenia, he is scheduled to meet Catholicos Karekin II, patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church, and to deliver a personal letter to him from Pope Benedict XVI. In Azerbaijan, a predominantly Muslim country, Cardinal Bertone also is scheduled to meet with Sheik Allahshukur Pashazade, chairman of the Muslim council of the Caucasus region, and with other religious leaders "to express the will of the Catholic Church to collaborate in the common commitment on behalf of peace, agreement among peoples and the good of the human family," the Vatican said.

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