Why the Italian Who Leads the Church in Jerusalem Is a Contender to Be Pope

In the days after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizza Balla, the Latin patriarch or Jerusalem, offered as a hostage in exchange for the freedom of kidnapped Israeli children.

The sacrifice, reported by the Vatican News, the news portal of the Holy See, was not tasks, but nevertheless Cardinal Pizza Balla was attempted, who is a contender to the success of Pope Francis.

As Italian, Cardinal Pizzaballa would put the papacy again under the control of a country that dominated him for centuries, after a gap of almost 50 years. His long experience in a tense political region that is the cradle of three main religions, was ordered in 1990, at the age of 25, and moved to Jerusalem that year, he has also promoted his papal capital.

But Cardinal Pizzaballa is seen as a stranger from the Vatican, since decades have passed in the Middle East, instead of building alliances closer to home.

Some cardinals and other members of the Roman Cataña hierarchy are also worried that Cardinal Pizzaballa, 60, can be too young for work. Pope John Paul II was chosen at 58 and served for 26 years. The perspective of another papacy that lasts a quarter of a century or more has paused some of the cardinals who will choose the next Pope.

The reverence of Cardinal Pizzaballa for the traditional elements of the Church’s practice has made it acceptable to some conservatives. But after spending decades in the Middle East, he is a kind of wild card, since positions are not known in many issues that have caused division in the Church.

What it does, according to the experts of the Vatican, is a personal touch as leader of the church that Pope Francis valued.

“He incorporates a pastoral approach,” said Massimo Faggioli, professor of theology at the University of Villanova. “In Jerusalem, these are other religions that have strong opinions on these issues, so it should not become a crusade in any possible way of the word.”

Cardinal Pizzaballa “comes from a pragmatic Catholic culture,” added Mr. Faggioli. “It will not fight a cultural war against problems related to sex and gender.”

The cardinal declined to comment for this article.

Cardinal Pizzaballa is attributed to Deefly to navigate the politics and communities of the Middle East, speaking strongly against injustice and hate, but also makes friends among Jews, Muslims, Christians and other communities. Above all, he developed a reputation as some willing to listen.

People who have worked closely with him in Jerusalem described him as a capable administrator and a humble leader with little time for the bomb.

“He cares about the poor,” said Wadie Abunassar, coordinator of the Forum of Christians of the Holy Land, a non -governmental group of Christian lay people in Israel. “He helps in a discreet way. He is a person who likes to build bridges with every human being.”

When Hamas attacked Israel in 2023, the cardinal had been in his new role for just a few days, but he was 35 years in the region. A Franciscan ordered in northern Italy, became a student of Biblical Theology in Jerusalem and ended up teaching Bible Hebrew. Together with his Italian and Hebrew native, he speaks English but only limited Arabic.

His ability with languages ​​and diplomacy came into use while worrying about the Hebrew Catholics who speak of Israel, paying almost monthly visits to the parishes. He has also visited the small Christian community in Gaza Duration the War there and has an open dialogue with the Jewish Israelis.

Hana Bendcowsky, director of the Jewish-Christian program project at the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue, an interreligious organization based in Jerusalem, praised his work and said he hoped to become Pope, but not for another decade. “We still need it here,” he said.

Xavier Abu Eid, a Palestinian political scientist and Ramallah headquarters in Cisjordan occupied, said that many Palestinians believe that the cardinal should have spoken more strongly against Israel’s actions in Gaza, but added that there were limits to how much a church leader could be expected.

Francis spoke when Palestinian victims increased in Gaza, writing in a book published in November that the war should be investigated to determine if it constituted a genocide. This took a hard rebuke from a member of the Israeli government.

In April, the Cardinal traveled to Rome to talk to Francis to organize a meeting between him and the rabbis concerned about the language he had used, according to Oded Wiener, a former general director of Israel’s main rabbinate, who was responsible for interreligious relations and relations with the rabbi with the Vatican.

A date for the meeting was established, but it was not attached, first for technical reasons and then for the decrease in Francis’s health, Wiener said. It was not clear to what extent the cardinal personally sympathized with the rabbin groups.

In Francis’s final speech, delivered the day before he died, the Pope said that the growing climate of anti -Semitism throughout the world was “worrying”, and also denounced the “deplorable humanitarian situation” of Gaza.

Patrick Kingsley Reported Jerusalem reports, and Emma Bubola Of Rome.