Cardinal blocked from holy site in Jerusalem to celebrate Palm Sunday
The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and the Rev Francesco Ielpo were stopped by Israeli police from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, believed to be the site of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, where they planned to hold a mass on Palm Sunday. They said this was “manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate” and was the first time in centuries that Palm Sunday mass had not been celebrated there.
Public worship gatherings have been prevented over safety concerns, and the Palm Sunday procession from the Holy Sepulchre to the city was cancelled. But the mass was planned as a private service with just two clergy broadcasting to the public. Worship went ahead, as the Cardinal moved the Palm Sunday mass to the Basilica of All Nations in Gethsemane.
At 10pm last night, Netanyahu announced he had instructed relevant authorities to grant the Latin Patriarch “full and immediate access” to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre so he can “hold services as he wishes”. The Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he had phoned Cardinal Pizzaballa to express his “great sorrow” over the “unfortunate incident”.
Pope warns God ‘rejects prayers of those who wage war’
Pope Leo reflected, in his Palm Sunday homily, on Jesus as the King of Peace who rejects war and refuses to listen to the prayers of those who wage war. At the end of the Mass before the Angelus, he read an appeal for peace and called for prayers for all the victims of war.
He said: “Jesus is the King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.” Quoting a Bible passage, Pope Leo added: “Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood.”
His comments have been taken as a veiled response to the US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has repeatedly invoked Christian faith in pursuit of the war in Iran. The Independent reports that “A group of former high‑ranking military officials, chaplain corps leaders, and current Pentagon officers told the (Washington) Post that they are troubled by both Hegseth’s overt religious rhetoric and the policy changes he has pursued.”
More than 1,000 march against Christian nationalism
More than 1,000 Christians marched against Christian nationalism in London this weekend, as part of “The Together March”, held in response to the Tommy Robinson’s Unite the UK march last year. They included members of Christian groups such as Christian Climate Action, Red Letter Christians and Oasis Church Waterloo, where a service was held before the group set off.
The Bishop of Croydon, Rosemarie Mallet and the Bishop of Edmonton, Anderson Jeremiah, led prayers, and in an address, Bishop Rosemarie said all people of goodwill seek to build diverse and inclusive communities, and Christians are committed to “building bridges rather than barriers”.
The Together Alliance has support of hundreds of civil society groups against the far right and says an estimated 500,000 people were present on the march – though the police put the figure at 50,000. The Alliance tweeted: “Yesterday we proved that we outnumber them, now let’s out-organise them”.
Interfaith walk in Glasgow to show connection over division
Meanwhile in Glasgow, 60 people went on an interfaith walk to demonstrate the contribution of Interfaith Glasgow in bringing together communities and tackling prejudice, as well as to raise funds to support its work. They visited eight places of worship on their five mile route, receiving a welcome and hospitality at each stop. Dr Rose Drew, CEO of Interfaith Glasgow, said: “At a time when global conflicts, rising prejudice, and the growth of anti-immigrant sentiment risk dividing us, Glasgow’s communities chose connection over division—and, in doing so, showed the city at its very best.”
Cardinal says women’s ordination essential for church’s future
Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, SJ, who was the key facilitator of the global Catholic assembly, the ‘Synod on Synodality’, has called for the ordination of women, saying the church cannot endure in the long term if women are excluded from ordained ministry. Speaking at the University of Bonn, he said he had been a conservative, but his views have shifted.
90 per cent of women in the parishes support women’s ordination, he said, and this is not just the view of “a few left-wing women’s associations”. A working group to consider ordaining women as deacons, able to serve in ministry but not take mass or hear confessions, failed to reach a consensus in favour, so the matter is unresolved and still being discussed.
Faith leaders urge government to abandon refugee family reunion changes
A letter to the Home Secretary from 720 bishops, rabbis, church ministers and an imam, urges the government to reconsider plans to end the automatic right to family reunion for newly recognised refugees. The letter, coordinated by the Joint Public Issues Team of the Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed Churches, says the proposed change will deepen suffering and place Britain at odds with its traditional values. It says restricting safe routes will “push desperate people toward the very smuggling networks we all wish to dismantle”.
Quiet Revival report withdrawn – RMC briefing 1200 today
The Chief Executive of the Bible Society, Paul Williams, told the Sunday programme on BBC Radio 4 that they did not feel embarrassed at the withdrawal of the Quiet Revival report, after flawed data was found. They felt frustrated and disappointed at the errors. The withdrawal did not mean that all the findings in the report were wrong, and “there is a lot of evidence that young people in particular, but not only young people, are newly coming to faith in this country”.
Today at 1200, we are holding an online briefing on the Quiet Revival, looking at the key lessons and future implications. Speakers include:
- Paul Williams, CEO Bible Society
- Prof David Voas, Emeritus Professor of Social Science in the UCL Social Research Institute, which he led from 2016 to 2020
- Prof Sir John Curtice, senior research fellow at the National Centre for Social Research
- Nick Spencer, senior fellow at Theos
- Justin Brierley, author, speaker & podcaster. Director of Think Faith. Host of the podcast Uncommon Ground.
- Rev Giles Goddard, vicar of St John’s Waterloo
To get the zoom link, email [email protected]
