While outright war conditions pertain in Gaza and along its border in southern Israel, in the north, in Jerusalem and the West Bank, conditions are also fraught. Violence between Palestinians and Israeli settlers has broken out sporadically.
Israel Palestine
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
How Catholics can support our Jewish neighbors after the massacre in Israel
Let me help you, Jews and gentiles alike, bridge the gap that’s keeping us from really being there for each other.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
As war begins again in Holy Land, Jesuit David Neuhaus hopes Christians can be instruments of peace
Father Neuhaus: The current military confrontations in the Holy Land are accompanied by a war to control public opinion at home and abroad. The rhetoric used on both sides basically denies the other side’s humanity.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis calls for ‘the immediate release’ of all hostages taken by Hamas, expresses concern for Gaza civilians
Pope Francis today called for “the immediate release” of the more than 100 Israeli hostages taken by Hamas into Gaza and, at the same time, expressed his deep concern at the “total siege” imposed by Israel on Gaza.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Israel condemns Jerusalem Christian churches over ‘immoral linguistic ambiguity’ in statement on Hamas attack
Israel’s Embassy to the Holy See underlined the need for the church to condemn “the hideous crime,” name the perpetrators and acknowledge “Israel’s basic right to defend itself against the atrocity.”
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis calls for end to conflict in Israel and Gaza: ‘Every war is a defeat’
As the death toll rises in Israel, Pope Francis prayer for the families of the victims and “for all those who are living through hours of terror and anxiety.”
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
In Jerusalem Cardinal Pizzaballa calls for international help to de-escalate after Hamas shock attack on Israel
“The operation launched from Gaza and the reaction of the Israeli Army are bringing us back to the worst period of our recent history,” the patriarchate, led by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, said in a statement.
Posted inDispatches, Faith
With a new cardinal, Jerusalem (finally) finds its place at the heart of the Catholic Church
In his first Mass as cardinal, he acknowledged the flood of congratulations he had received from all quarters and all sects of his diocese. “Cardinals in our time are no longer the princes of the church,” Cardinal Pizzaballa said, “but its servants and those of the people of God.”
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Interview: Get to know Jerusalem’s first cardinal
Energetic, resolutely modern, as comfortable with technology as with theology, and deeply cosmopolitan, Patriarch Pizzaballa shares Pope Francis’ intention to restore Jerusalem to its former glory.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Anti-Christian incidents are on the rise in Jerusalem’s Old City
A journalist in Israel, dressed as a priest, was spat on by ultra-orthodox Jewish extremists. Attacks against Christian groups in the region are increasing over recent years.