Jerusalem, May. 22, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Jerusalem's Latin-rite Patriarch Michel Sabbah has echoed the recent appeal by Pope Benedict XVI for international leaders to promote peace talks between Israel and Palestine.
"There is a need for new initiatives by the international community to end the violence in the Holy Land," said the Patriarch, speaking to a Vatican Radio audience on May 22. "One does not see the possibility for dialogue" between the conflicting parties now, he said. Without some help from abroad, he said, "we are in a hopeless situation."
Patriarch Sabbah said that the Pope's words to world leaders, issued during his Sunday public audience on May 20, "help us not to lose hope." He said that he hoped the Pope's appeal for international leadership would be answered, "because this is not a local but an international conflict."
The Patriarch said that the Catholic Church in the Middle East is building peace through inter-religious dialogue and by promoting the dignity of every man, regardless of nationality or creed.