Proposals were made so that there would be no misunderstanding from the fellow Orthodox Church,'' said Rev. Petros Roussos, a representative of Greece's small Roman Catholic community. Roman Catholic organizers in Athens said Wednesday that the pope would only receive olive branches and flowers at Athens airport to begin his six-day journey to retrace the steps of the Apostle Paul. Since beginning his global travels in 1979, John Paul kissed the ground upon arriving in a country for the first time. For the past decade, the frail pontiff has been offered a vessel holding soil to kiss. Hundreds of Greek Orthodox protesters have denounced the papal visit to the ''sacred soil'' of Greece, and have even described the pope as the anti-Christ during demonstrations over the past weeks.
Monasteries plan to ring their bells in mourning during the visit.
Many believe the Vatican is hostile to Orthodox Christians and blame it for the fall of the Greek Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Christianity split into the Orthodox and Roman Catholic branches nearly 1,000 years ago over the issue of papal authority. Many Greek Orthodox clerics consider themselves caretakers of the ''true Christian faith'' and view the pope as a heretical leader. The pope hopes the visit may promote a dialogue on improving relations between the two churches. But more attention was on protection than reconciliation.