The war between Israel and Hamas may finally force a diplomatic solution to the long intractable tensions between the Israelis and the Palestinians in the Holy Land, said the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem. Cardinal Pierbattista.
Pizzaballa, 58, who has served as patriarch of Jerusalem since November 2020, said that while there have been constant conflicts between Israel and the Palestinians since the State of Israel was formed in 1948 and even earlier, this time, it feels very different, and a comprehensive political solution may be the only way to stop the ongoing bloodshed.
“It is a political conflict, first of all, that now is assuming more and more religious connotations, unfortunately. This makes things more difficult because religion is less open to any kind of compromise,” Cardinal Pizzaballa told the Rhode Island Catholic, the newspaper of the Diocese of Providence.
The cardinal said that now is the time for leaders to concentrate their efforts on finding a viable solution for all those living in the Holy Land, including the Palestinians living in the West Bank as well as the Gaza Strip. Cardinal Pizzaballa feels that the time is now for political leaders to finally make good on slogans that have only paid lip service to resolving the long-term conflict.
“A Two-State Solution was a slogan without content for many years. Now, we have to give to this slogan some content,” he said. “This situation reminds us that it is necessary to find a solution.”
Picture: Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa (OSV News photo/Rick Snizek, Rhode Island Catholic)