Pope Francis' historic trip to the Holy Land sparked hopes that he could help bring about peace in the Middle East, as he met and prayed with Jewish, Christian, and Muslim leaders. His busy schedule was full of planned meetings, but some of the most moving moments were the unexpected and spontaneous ones, in which the pope's forthright nature shone through.
Here are some of the most iconic photos from Pope Francis' trip:
Osservatore Romano / Handout / AP
Pope Francis touches the wall that divides Israel from the West Bank, on his way to celebrate a mass in Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity, believed by many to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Sunday, May 25, 2014.
Lior Mizrahi / Getty Images
Pope Francis takes part in a Mass held at the Church of Nativity on May 25, 2014, in Bethlehem, West Bank. Pope Francis addressed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as "unacceptable" and urged both sides to find courage in seeking a peaceful solution.
L'Osservatore Romano / Handout / AP
In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis blesses Palestinian reporter Imad Freij aboard the papal flight to Amman, Jordan, Saturday, May 24, 2014. At right is Vatican spokesperson Rev. Federico Lombardi.
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Vincenzo Pinto / AP
Pope Francis prays at the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews can pray, as an unidentified Rabbi looks at him, in the old city of Jerusalem, Israel, Monday, May 26, 2014.
Andrew Medichini / AP
Pope Francis places an envelope in on of the cracks between the stones of the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews can pray, in the old city of Jerusalem, Israel, Monday, May 26, 2014.
Andrew Medichini / AP
Pope Francis prays in front of the river Jordan in Bethany beyond the Jordan river, the site of Christ's baptism, west of Amman, Jordan, Saturday, May 24, 2014. The pontiff is in Jordan on the first of a three day trip to the Middle East that will also take him to the West Bank and Israel.
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Amos Ben Gershom / Israeli GPO / Getty Images
Pope Francis (L) and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I (R) pray at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem on May 25, 2014. In his first Middle East tour since his anointment in 2013, Pope Francis held a historic prayer service with the Ecumenical Patriarch in Jerusalem on Sunday. This was the first reunion between the two Christian sects in fifty years.
Gali Tibbon / AFP / Getty Images
Pope Francis (C-L) shakes the hand of holocaust survivor Eliezer Grynfeld (C-R) during his visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial museum in Jerusalem commemorating the six million Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II. Pope Francis denounced the "abyss" of the Nazi genocide which claimed the lives of six million Jews as he visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum in Jerusalem.
Thomas Coex / AFP / Getty Images
Pope Francis hugs two close Jewish and Muslim friends traveling with him at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City on May 26, 2014. Pope Francis faces a diplomatic high-wire act as he visits sacred Muslim and Jewish sites in Jerusalem on the final day of his Middle East tour.
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