Scandal at the Holy Sepulcher. The heads of the Latin Patriarchate, prevented by the Israeli police from officiating the Flower service. “Both were stopped on the way”
For the first time in many centuries, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the priest of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were prevented by the Israeli police from officiating the service on Palm Sunday, in the context of the restrictions imposed in the Old City.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, stopped on the way by the Israeli police. PHOTO: Facebook
The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, the Italian Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and the priest of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were stopped by the Israeli police from officiating the service on Palm Sunday in the Holy Sepulcher, for the first time in centuries, the Latin Patriarchate announced, Sunday, March 29, through a press release. The incident took place on Catholic Flowers, when the two were on their way to the sacred place and were detained along the way, being forced to return without being able to celebrate the ceremony.
“Both of them were stopped on the road, while they were traveling privately (…) and were forced to turn back from the road”, states the joint communiqué of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Custody of the Holy Land. “Therefore, for the first time in many centuries, the heads of the Church were prevented from officiating the service on Palm Sunday in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher,” continues the quoted document.
In the context in which the Israeli authorities closed all the holy places in the Old City, in East Jerusalem, citing security reasons, the Latin Patriarchate and the Custody of the Holy Land consider this measure “a serious precedent” and points out that it shows “lack of consideration for the sensitivities of billions of people around the world who this week turn their eyes to Jerusalem“.
Disproportionate measures
Due to the restrictions, the Latin Patriarchate announced the cancellation of the procession.
“Preventing the entry of the Cardinal and the Custos, who bear the highest ecclesiastical responsibility for the Catholic Church and the Holy Places, is a manifestly unreasonable and extremely disproportionate measure.
This hasty and fundamentally flawed decision, tainted by improper considerations, represents an extreme departure from the fundamental principles of reasonableness, freedom of worship and respect for the existing status quo.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Custody of the Holy Land express their deep sorrow to the Christian faithful in the Holy Land and around the world that prayer was thus prevented on one of the holiest days of the Christian calendar.” it is shown in the cited document.
According to the Latin Patriarchate's 2023 estimates, Christians made up more than 18% of the population of the Holy Land when Israel was founded in 1948. Today, their proportion has fallen below 2%, with the majority being Orthodox, and religious events such as Palm Sunday continue to be of major importance to the Catholic community and pilgrims around the world.
