Pope welcomes ‘spark of hope’ in Israel-Hamas ceasefire
At a prayer vigil on Saturday, Pope Leo asked pilgrims to ‘persevere tirelessly in praying for peace, a God-given gift to which we must make a strong commitment’.
The peace agreement between Israel and Hamas offers “a spark of hope in the Holy Land”, Pope Leo said on Sunday.
A ceasefire came into effect in Gaza on Friday, with Hamas required to return its surviving hostages while Israel will release almost 2,000 Palestinian detainees in the first steps of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan.
“I encourage the parties involved to continue courageously on the path they have chosen, towards a just and lasting peace that respects the legitimate aspirations of the Israeli and Palestinian peoples,” the Pope said in his Angelus address in St Peter’s Square.
The Vatican’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin expressed “general satisfaction” with the agreement as it came into effect on Friday, as “the first step on a path toward lasting and definitive peace”.
The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa said it was an “important step that will bring a little more trust for the future and also bring new hope, especially to the people, both Israeli and Palestinians”.
“Now we finally see something new and different,” the patriarch said. “Of course, there will also be a new atmosphere for the continuation of negotiation, also for all the life inside Gaza that will remain terrible for a long time. But now we are happy and we hope that this is just the beginning of a new phase where we can, little by little, start thinking not about war, but about how to rebuild after the war.”
In his Angelus address, Pope Leo said the Church was close to the “immense pain” of “those who have brutally lost their children, parents, friends and possessions” in the war.
“The gentle touch of the Lord is directed especially toward you today, in the certainty that even amidst the deepest darkness, he always remains with us: ‘Dilexi te, I have loved you,’” he said, referring to the title of his first apostolic exhortation published on Thursday.
“We ask God, who is the true peace of humanity, to heal all wounds and to help us with his grace to accomplish what now seems humanly impossible: to remember that the other is not an enemy, but a brother or sister to be seen, forgiven and offered the hope of reconciliation.”
At a prayer vigil for the Jubilee of Marian Spirituality on Saturday, Pope Leo asked pilgrims to “persevere tirelessly in praying for peace, a God-given gift that we must strive to receive and to which we must make a strong commitment”. He has asked Catholics to pray the Rosary for peace throughout October.
“Disarm your hands and, even more importantly, your hearts,” Leo said at the vigil, reflecting on Jesus’ words to Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane – “Lay down your sword” (John 18:11) – in the light of Mary’s last recorded words in the gospels, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).
“As I have said before, peace is unarmed and disarming. It is not deterrence, but fraternity. It is not an ultimatum, but dialogue. Peace will not come as the result of victories over the enemy, but as the fruit of sowing justice and courageous forgiveness,” he said.
“‘Lay down your sword’ is a message addressed to the powerful of this world, to those who guide the fate of peoples: have the courage to disarm! At the same time, it is an invitation to each one of us to recognise that no idea, faith or policy justifies killing. We must first disarm our hearts because unless we have peace within ourselves, we cannot give it to others.”
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