The journalist who covered John Paul II’s visit to Palestine for The Tablet saw the green shoots of peace wither in the harsh climate of discord. Here he wonders if this time realism might prevail Wherever I went in Jerusalem and Bethlehem before Pope John Paul’s arrival in 2000, Palestinian Muslims as well as Christians told me that “something wonderful will happen when the Pope comes”. They wistfully recalled the part his journeys to Poland had played in bringing down the Communist empire, and referred to his many other visits, not least the one to Cuba. Two elderly Muslim women, trapped in Ramallah because their identity cards no longer allowed them access to their home in Jerusalem, assured me over tea and cakes that the Pope’s arrival would be a “