The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem has called for new political leadership in the Middle East, saying that it is a necessary step in implementing lasting peace.
Few cardinals have risen to prominence quite as rapidly as Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem who famously offered himself in exchange for hostages following the October 7 attack in 2023. A Franciscan who has now spent around three decades in the Holy Land, Pizaballa’s knowledge of the region is widely respected and his leadership similarly so. Not for nothing was his name bandied around as papabile prior to the 2025 conclave.
