The Permanent Mission of the German Bishops' Conference to the Holy Land arrives Monday for a seven-day pilgrimage that includes visits to Bethlehem, Nazareth, Jerusalem, Lake Kinneret and Ramallah.

The bishops and diocese administrators from all 27 German bishoprics will hold mass at sacred local Christian pilgrimage sites, as well as talks with a number of politicians, including Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

The pilgrimage is intended to show a clear sign of solidarity with Christians in the Holy Land, who comprise some 2 percent of the population.

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The group plans to meet with the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Archbishop Michel Sabbah, and the bishops of churches linked to Rome. Members of the mission also plan to meet the German ambassador to Israel, Dr. Harald Kindermann, and the head of the German Permanent Representative Office in Ramallah, Joerg Ranau.