The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, was a recent visitor to Edinburgh when he preached at a Mass at St Mary’s Catholic Cathedral on York Place.
The Bishop of Edinburgh, The Rt Revd Dr John Armes, said: “I was privileged to be there to hear the Cardinal reflect on the challenges of ministry in the Holy Land, where there is so much suffering and so much to lament.
“I joined other faith and political leaders including the First Minister of Scotland, The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP, and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, The Rt Revd Dr Shaw J Paterson.”
Bishop John continued in his reflections, adding: “In his sermon on the Advent Gospel, the Cardinal explained that ‘If there is something that is typical in our land, it is that there is nothing certain. … There is a lot of insecurity everywhere. And also a lot of fear. … This last war [… has] had a tremendous impact on the life of the population, both Israelis and Palestinians.’”
“The Cardinal explained that this means there is no space to consider possible solutions. Fear closes doors, it builds walls, and it is defensive. The Cardinal said: ‘The fear of the other is dominating our decisions’”, Bishop John noted, citing the Cardinal’s sermon.
Bishop John continued: “In the Gospel, Jesus tells us to ‘stand up and raise your head’. In other words, the Cardinal explained, Jesus is encouraging us ‘to look forward, to look beyond, because if you are looking just inward you don’t see anything, just yourself, […] and your fears […], but if you raise your head, you are able to see beside yourself, beyond yourself. And this is what we need now. Israelis and Palestinians will remain there [together in the Holy Land]. To deny one the life of the other is not a solution.’”
