Photo credit Vatican News  

By Andrea Tornielli and Beatrice Guarrera

 “We have a duty toward our communities — to help them look ahead, positively and serenely, toward a different future.”

The hopes of building lasting peace in the Holy Land, the difficulties in Gaza and the West Bank, and the sense of community expressed in public demonstrations that have brought people together in the name of human dignity were among the topics touched upon by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who was a guest on Wednesday, October 15, in the studios of Vatican Radio. The Cardinal spoke of a fragile truce, but also of the shared hope among Israelis and Palestinians that this is not just a “pause,” but rather that “life may resume with a new perspective — one that is not war and violence.”

You are in Rome to receive an award — the Achille Silvestrini Prize — which today will be presented to Father Gabriel Romanelli, pastor of the Holy Family Parish in Gaza. What is the situation of the Christians in that community who have decided to remain in such a difficult situation?

Read the transcript of the interview here.