Very pleased Saudi King visits Pope in Vatican

Here are his comments the evening before meeting the Pope, at an Italian state dinner given in his honor. Source is the Saudi Press Agency.

King Abdullah said:

Allah Almighty has bestowed on us the bounty of mentality so as to keep away from atheism, and urged us to believe in him. At the same time Allah Almighty has enabled us to differentiate between good and evil, and undoubtedlyall heavenly religions advocate to treat others in a good manner. If the people adhere to the principles of their religions and become obedient to the orders of Allah Almighty, then the world will be free from disputes and subsequently peace and stability will prevail in the entire world.

In each civilization there are bright sides, and if its sons adhere to these bright sides, then there will be no probability for conflict against other civilizations.It is high time to start a civilization dialogue that eradicates the evil ideas and restores to the mankind hope for a bright future.

King Abdullah added:

Since the establishment of the modern Saudi state, relations between Saudi Arabia and Italy have been characterized by friendly attitudes and cooperation.I hope my current visit will give an impetus to these relations in all fields.We do appreciate the stand of Italy vis-à-vis the Middle East crisis, and we do feel happy when we work together for reaching a fair settlement that preserves to all Arab and Israeli parties their just rights in line with the resolutions of their international legitimacy.

And here is the Saudi press release after the King's visit with the Pope.


http://www.spa.gov.sa/English/cdetails.php?id=497320&catid=9

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques visits Vatican's Pope

Rome, November 6, SPA--The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud paid a visit to Vatican's Pope Benedictus XVI at the papal headquarters in Rome today within the framework of the Monarch's current visit to Italy. The King and the Pope held a bilateral meeting during which they emphasized the importance of dialogue between religions and civilizations to promote tolerance on which all religions urge, to renounce violence and to achieve security, peace and stability for all peoples of the world.The King stressed that peoples are combined by common values and the best expression of these shared values came in religions. The Monarch affirmed that turning back to these values is a solution to the suffering of peoples of the plights of differences and conflicts and that adherence to these values embodies the good, tranquility and social harmony for the human being, his family, society and relation with others. The two sides also stressed that violence and terrorism have nothing to do with a religion or a homeland and that all nations and peoples should work together in confronting and eliminating this phenomenon.Then the King and the Pope exchanged memorial gifts on this occasion. Later, the King accompanied by Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister paid a visit to Vatican's Secretary (Premier) Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. --SPA