Cardinal Pizaballa blocked
Cardinal Pizzaballa on Palm Sunday after he was blocked from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre:
“This Palm Sunday afternoon, we gather without a procession, without palms, waving through the streets.“
“This absence is not merely a matter of form or weather. It’s the war that has interrupted our festive journey, making even the simple joy of following our King difficult…”
“We are certain that the Crucified and the Risen One does not cease to walk among us even when the road is blocked.”
“He dwells in the heart of those who have not stopped following him yet, precisely in this imposed silence, the liturgy becomes more authentic.”
“The cry of Hosanna does not need branches to rise to heaven, and faith does not falter when outward rites are stripped away…”
Blocking a Cardinal from entering one of Christianity’s holiest sites on Palm Sunday is not just a security measure. It is a deliberate message.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre has survived centuries of conflict, crusades, and political upheaval. Denying access to the Latin Patriarch on the most symbolic day of Holy Week sends a signal that goes far beyond crowd control.
This is the kind of provocation that unites Christians across denominations worldwide and puts enormous diplomatic pressure on Israel from nations that have been relatively silent until now.
After being denied entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher by Israeli police, Cardinal Pizzaballa carried out a blessing over Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives using Holy Cross relics.
The place where Jesus prayed the night before His crucifixion.
Statement by Mike Huckabee
Even Huckabee has had to put out a statement of disapproval:
(does he realise he will now be called an ‘antisemite’!)
“My statement re Prohibiting the Latin Patriarch of entering Church of Holy Sepulcher on Palm Sunday:
While all Holy sites in the Old City are closed due to safety concerns for mass gatherings including the Western Wall, Church of the Holy Sepulcher and Al Aqsa Mosque, the action today by the Israel Nat’l Police to deny Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and 3 other priests from entering the Church to offer a blessing on Palm Sunday is an unfortunate overreach already having major repercussions around the world. Home Front Command Guidelines restrict any gatherings to 50 people or less. The 4 representatives of the Catholic Church were well below that restriction. Statements from the Gov’t of Israel indicate the action to prohibit Cardinal Pizzaballa entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were for safety reasons, but churches, synagogues, and mosques throughout Jerusalem have met with the restrictions of 50 or less. For the Patriarch to be barred from entry to the Church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony is difficult to understand or justify. Israel has indicated it will work with the Patriarch to accommodate a safe means of carrying out Holy Week activities.”
Meloni reacts
Meloni reacts after Israeli police blocked the Patriarch of Jerusalem from entering the Holy Sepulcher on Palm Sunday: “constitutes an offense not only to believers, but to every community that recognizes religious freedom”
Meloni adds the Holy Sepulchre must be protected as a place of worship, and blocking entry on Palm Sunday crosses a serious line.
Netanyahu on X:
“I have instructed the relevant authorities that Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch, be granted full and immediate access to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
Over the past several days, Iran has repeatedly targeted the holy sites of all three monotheistic religions in Jerusalem with ballistic missiles. In one strike, missile fragments crashed meters from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
To protect worshipers, Israel asked members of all faiths to temporarily abstain from worshiping at the Christian, Muslim and Jewish holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City.
Today, out of special concern for his safety, Cardinal Pizzaballa was asked to refrain from holding mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Even though I understand this concern, as soon as I learned about the incident with Cardinal Pizzaballa, I instructed the authorities to enable the Patriarch to hold services as he wishes.”
