Cardinal Pizzaballa: Abusing God’s name for war is the gravest sin

By Linda Bordoni 

“The abuse and manipulation of God’s name to justify this and any other war is the gravest sin we can commit at this time” said Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa at a webinar on the conflict ravaging the Middle East.

“War”, he continued, “is first and foremost political and has very material interests, like most wars. We must do everything we can to leave no room for this pseudo-religious language, which speaks not of God, but of ourselves”.

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem was commenting on the words of the U.S. Secretary of War who, during a briefing, quoted Psalm 144 to invoke a divine blessing on the ongoing U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran.

During the link-up with the International Oasis Foundation, Cardinal Pizzaballa said that “as believers (…) we need to say that no, there are no new crusades. If God is present in this war, He is among those who are dying, who are suffering, who are in pain, who are oppressed in various ways, throughout the Middle East.”

 “I am not saying that on one side or the other this conflict has religious connotations,” he added, “but there are manipulations: those who wish to bring religion into it exploit the name of God.”

The Christian message

And commenting on the appeal launched by Pope Leo XIV for a ceasefire and dialogue, the Patriarch said it may well fall on deaf ears, but the Church, he said, needs to continue to speak of reality and come together to invest in the future.

“What is built on violence perishes; it has no future, but it also creates a void around itself: fear, resentment, hatred—all that which, in Christian language, belongs to the world of death,” he said.

The role of the media 

During the link-up, the cardinal also spoke of the responsibility of the media in the war, noting that communication is part of the conflict: “it is a way of making it known, but also of justifying it or making it acceptable.”

Thus, he said, journalists have the responsibility to help readers make sense of the news, providing an accurate interpretation, or at least helping them form a critical view and make their own judgment.

The situation in Gaza and the West Bank

In this regard, he decried the fact that the crisis in Gaza and the violence in the West Bank are no longer being discussed, noting also that the humanitarian situations there remain dire.

“There is no longer a problem of hunger, but there are still 2 million displaced people, deprived of everything; 80% of the Strip is still destroyed, and no reconstruction has begun; 36 hospitals are partially operational, but medicines are lacking, even basic antibiotics. People are literally living in the sewers; the images cannot convey the smells. It is impossible to understand how and when this dramatic situation will be resolved: the Board of Peace has not yet understood what it should do. And in any case, it is a sort of vicious circle: if Hamas does not hand over its weapons, Israel will not withdraw; Hamas will not hand over its weapons unless Israel withdraws. Everything remains at a standstill,” Cardinal Pizzaballa denounced.

“As for the West Bank,” he added, “the situation is deteriorating constantly: almost every day there are attacks by settlers on Palestinian villages. There are now almost a thousand checkpoints; Palestinians still struggle to move about, and permits have largely been cancelled.”

Finally, the Patriarch expressed his concern regarding the consequences of recent measures relating to the land registry and to the non-recognition of Palestinian acadmic qualifications in Israel, recently adopted by the Israeli government, which will bring further financial difficulties, hardship, and a lack of Christian teachers for the schools.

(Source: AsiaNews)