Cardinal Pizzaballa: The West Bank is a 'lawless land'
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, addressed the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples in Rimini, urging the West to increase diplomatic efforts to curb violence in the Middle East. He described the West Bank as “lawless” with ongoing aggression by settlers, and highlighted the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza while noting some political stability. Pizzaballa emphasized that hope must come from people’s interactions— Israelis, Palestinians, Jews, Muslims, Christians—rather than political solutions alone, and called for interreligious dialogue. He reaffirmed the Catholic Church’s support for a two‑state solution, noting the Pope’s future visit to the Holy Land as part of a meaningful process.
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The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, warned that the West Bank has become a “lawless land” where settler aggression and the lack of security or legal restraints are fueling rising tensions. He called on the international community, especially Western governments, to intensify diplomatic efforts to halt the spiral of violence, emphasizing that diplomacy—despite its weaknesses—is the only viable path to avoid further use of force. 1
He highlighted the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, describing it as “enormously deteriorated” yet “more stable” politically, and stressed that hope must arise from within people’s encounters rather than from political promises. The Cardinal reiterated the Vatican’s support for a two‑state solution as the sole means to guarantee both Israelis and Palestinians a homeland, and urged preparation for a future papal visit to the Holy Land that should be part of a substantive peace process. 1
Addressing the dehumanizing logic of war, Pizzaballa warned that conflict steals young people’s lives and shapes a hostile mindset, urging that the conscience not be overtaken by war’s dynamics. He called for peace to be more than a slogan, insisting that political action must serve the common good rather than partisan interests, and that religious leaders should remind societies of this responsibility. 1
In discussing interreligious dialogue, the Cardinal advocated for “interreligious dialogue” among ordinary believers rather than elite‑only discussions. He urged grassroots encounters between Jews, Christians, and Muslims to break the cycle of victimhood and enmity, stressing that personal relationships can counteract dehumanization and foster mutual understanding. 1
Finally, Pizzaballa emphasized listening to multiple voices amid polarized media, the need to “purify memory” without erasing the past, and the importance of passion, joy, and friendship in rebuilding relationships across the region. He concluded that genuine hope is born in the heart through faith and community, not merely through external solutions. 1*
Analyze Catholic doctrine on lawlessness and interreligious dialogue in conflict zones
Catholic teaching treats lawlessness not merely as a breakdown of public order, but as a moral and social disorder in which human dignity, truth, justice, and legitimate authority are disregarded. In conflict zones, interreligious dialogue is therefore neither naïve religious relativism nor a substitute for justice. It is a practical expression of the Church’s mission to defend human life, seek peace, and cooperate with others while remaining faithful to the truth of Christ.
Catholic doctrine distinguishes between legitimate authority, which serves the common good, and coercive or unjust power. Lawlessness arises when individuals, factions, or governments reject the moral order and treat force, revenge, ideology, or religious identity as higher than human dignity.
The Church’s understanding of truth is not negotiable according to circumstance. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith teaches that the Church is entrusted with the revealed truth and must preserve and proclaim it, while the faithful are not free to reduce doctrine to merely provisional or changeable opinions.
This has several consequences in war and civil collapse:
The Church’s authority to teach is exercised through the apostolic and episcopal office, not through whichever political or religious faction is strongest. The Magisterium’s task is precisely to protect the integrity of faith and morals when disagreement and confusion threaten communion and human conduct.
Interreligious dialogue is justified by the common dignity and interdependence of the human family. It does not mean that all religions are identical or that doctrinal differences are irrelevant. Rather, dialogue can involve:
John Paul II presents this cooperation as especially urgent when armed conflict damages families and prevents them from fulfilling their social mission. He calls believers of different traditions to work together to safeguard human life and promote the family as a foundation of human dignity.
This is particularly relevant in conflict zones, where the family, place of love and moral formation, is often disrupted by displacement, poverty, and violence. Interreligious cooperation can protect schools, hospitals, places of worship, refugees, and children without requiring participants to deny their own beliefs.
A central Catholic principle is that dialogue must be conducted in truth. Catholics are obliged to esteem whatever is genuinely good and true in other religious communities, but this esteem does not erase the uniqueness of Christ or the fullness of the means of salvation entrusted to the Catholic Church.
Thus, Catholic dialogue rejects two opposite errors:
Relativism claims that no religious or moral truth can be affirmed definitively. The Church rejects this approach because it undermines the very basis for condemning atrocities. If truth is entirely subjective, there is no stable ground for saying that genocide, persecution, or terrorism is objectively wrong.
The Church teaches that revealed doctrine possesses a determinate meaning, even though its understanding and expression may develop over time.
The opposite error is to treat dialogue as unnecessary or to regard every member of another religion as an enemy. Catholic teaching permits and encourages recognition of “elements of sanctification and truth” outside the visible structure of the Church, while still maintaining Catholic identity and the call to evangelization.
In practice, this means distinguishing between:
Collective blame is therefore incompatible with Catholic justice.
In a conflict zone, dialogue must be realistic and ethically disciplined. It should not be reduced to public statements of harmony while violence continues. A Catholic approach involves at least four requirements.
Dialogue must serve concrete human beings, especially civilians, children, displaced persons, prisoners, and persecuted minorities. Cooperation that leaves victims unprotected or silences their testimony is inadequate.
John Paul II identifies armed conflict, poverty, and displacement as forces that prevent families from living with dignity.
Peace cannot be built on deliberate falsehood. Religious leaders should name violations clearly, regardless of which side commits them. Dialogue is not moral equivalence: parties may bear very different degrees of responsibility.
Catholic dialogue must respect the freedom of persons, including the freedom to seek, accept, reject, or practice religion without coercion. John Paul II’s account of religious education likewise stresses both an open spirit of dialogue and respect for the conscience of those involved.
This principle prohibits forced conversion, religious discrimination, and the use of humanitarian aid as a means of religious pressure.
The goal is not simply the absence of shooting. Catholic peace requires conditions in which rights are protected, victims are acknowledged, and communities can live together under just laws. Dialogue can contribute to reconciliation, but it cannot replace competent political negotiation, lawful protection, or legitimate judicial processes.
Catholics engaged in dialogue must neither conceal nor relativize their faith. The Church’s proclamation remains centered on Jesus Christ and the Gospel. John Paul II insists that an open and dialogical presentation of Christianity should still communicate the faith according to the authentic and integral interpretation of the Catholic Church.
Accordingly, Catholic representatives should:
The Church’s recognition of the enduring religious significance of Israel, for example, illustrates the need to reject contempt and acknowledge God’s continuing providential action while remaining Christ-centered.
Catholic doctrine views lawlessness as a violation of the moral order and of the common good, especially when violence is justified by political or religious claims. Interreligious dialogue in conflict zones is therefore both legitimate and necessary when it protects life, promotes truth, defends conscience, and seeks just peace.
Its guiding principle is cooperation without relativism: Catholics may work with people of other religions for peace and human dignity without pretending that religious differences do not matter. Genuine dialogue does not weaken Catholic doctrine; conducted faithfully, it makes the Church’s commitment to truth, mercy, justice, and the dignity of every person visible amid conditions of lawlessness.