Cardinal Nichols appeals for prayers for peace for the Holy Land

By Susy Hodges

“A week into the terrible conflict in Israel and Gaza, I urge Catholics to sustain their prayers for peace,” said Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, in a statement issued on Friday.  “The horrific atrocities committed by Hamas in Israel warrant every condemnation,” he continued.

The Cardinal went on to say that we continue to hold in our prayers those who were killed, the injured, those held hostage, their families, and communities. 

Referring to Gaza, Cardinal Nichols said the situation facing the millions of civilians there also “calls for effective humanitarian relief,” saying we pray for those killed, injured and displaced in the territory.

Day of fasting for peace and reconciliation

Meanwhile, in the Holy Land, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, is calling for a day of fasting, abstinence and prayer for peace and reconciliation.

Cardinal Pizzaballa, who is President of the Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, has urged all parishes and religious communities to mark this day of prayer on Tuesday, October 17. 

In his message, Cardinal Pizzaballa spoke of his great “pain and dismay” at what is happening in the Holy Land, saying we have been suddenly “catapulted into a sea of unprecedented violence.”  He went on to warn that the long-standing hatred in the region will increase even more and the ensuing spiral of violence will create more destruction.

In an interview with Vatican Media earlier in the week, Cardinal Pizzaballa said he was saddened but not entirely surprised by the violence taking place in Israel and Gaza and said he feared it will be a very long war.