Catholic Spain turned out en masse to greet the Pope

The visit of Pope John Paul to Spain has brought to the fore a number of tensions, which have been reflected in the media.

Among issues which have sparked controversy are the Iraq war, the role of the Basque church in the national arena and the killing of Catholic priests during the Spanish Civil War.

Many Spaniards came out against the Iraq war and against the ruling Popular Party's backing for Washington and London.

The leading daily El Mundo says there is little doubt that the Pope had come to expound his anti-war message.

Peace campaigner

"The pastoral visits of John Paul almost always extend beyond the formalities, however important they may be."

The Pope is seeking to mobilize opinion against war and in favour of peace El Mundo

Especially in his meeting with the country's youth, the Pope "is seeking to mobilize opinion against war and in favour of peace".

Stressing that his appeal at the time of the war had contributed to "putting the government in a jam", El Mundo concludes that the current visit is "inextricably linked to the rejection of violence in the face of those who consider war a valid method of resolving conflicts".

In the Basque Country, the Bilbao-based paper Deia quotes a leader of the Basque Nationalist Party of expressing regret the Pope has not been given the full facts about the region's vexed relationship with Madrid.

Inaki Anasagasti says he feels the Pope "has a fence around him" which prevents him from speaking "with fuller knowledge of the facts" after the pontiff called for Spain to celebrate "a coexistence in unity within the marvellous and varied diversity of its peoples and places".

They are words which serve to make many reflect, especially the church in the Basque country ABC

Mr Anasagasti says he thinks the Pope would not have made his plea had he received a manifesto drawn up by 530 Basque priests appealing for him to back dialogue in the Basque Country.

The priests had expressed their support for "the exercising of the free decision" of the Basque people "without antidemocratic restrictions or impositions".

But the leading Madrid daily ABC suggests the Pope fully understood the ramifications of his message.

"They are words which serve to make many reflect, especially the church in the Basque country, one of the collateral targets of the Pope, who has shown himself to be perfectly attuned to Spanish reality."

Change of emphasis

The issue of clergy killed by the republicans in the Spanish Civil War has also generated comment.

The Church has claimed nearly 4,200 members of the clergy were killed during the war by the government side, which accused the Church of backing General Franco. One of the priests chosen for canonisation, Pedro Poveda, was murdered in 1936 during the opening days of the Spanish Civil War.

Past canonisations have had a political dimension, but on this occasion, the Pope has sought to emphasize the apostolic qualities and dedication El Pais

Yet on this occasion, the issue is being played down.

One Spanish state broadcaster noted that the Church was emphasising the charitable works done by the saints rather than the deaths of priests at the hands of republican forces.

The point is taken up by another leading daily, EL Pais.

"In the Spanish context, past canonisations have had a political dimension, especially during socialist governments, when Pope John Paul created new saints and martyrs from those who perished through religious persecution during the civil war."

"But on this occasion, the Pope has sought to emphasize the apostolic qualities and dedication of the five who lived in an epoch marked by poverty and poor education."

El Pais notes that he failed to single out the death of Padre Poveda, killed at the start of the war because he was well known, "unlike he would have done on previous occasions".

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.