Cardinal Pizzaballa’s Calls for Ceasefire in Gaza Put Him on ‘Papabili’ Shortlist - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
Cardinal Pizzaballa’s Calls for Ceasefire in Gaza Put Him on ‘Papabili’ Shortlist
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Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa (Christian Media Center/YouTube)

When Pope Francis announced last July that he would create 21 new cardinals, longtime Vatican watcher John L. Allen Jr. immediately noted the significant number of “papabili” — possible papal candidates — on the list.

Of these candidates, Allen noted Victor Manuel Fernández, the current head of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, whose star has presumably fallen since last summer given the fallout to Fiducia supplicans; Claudio Gugerotti, whose role as the prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches gives him major input in dealings regarding the Russo-Ukrainian war; Christophe Pierre, the papal ambassador to the United States who follows Pope Francis’ style but with a greater degree of delicacy in controversial matters; and Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the patriarch of Jerusalem.

Since the creation of those cardinals on Sept. 30, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, 58, has become one of the most-discussed candidates to replace Pope Francis, 87. Much of this attention stems from world events. While Pizzaballa was in Rome following his elevation to cardinal, Hamas terrorists launched their murderous attack against Israeli civilians. In response, Pizzaballa rushed back to Jerusalem, where he has been serving since he arrived from his native Italy as a 25-year-old priest. Quickly upon his return, he offered himself in exchange for the child hostages. “I am ready for an exchange, anything, if this can lead to freedom, to bring the children home. No problem. There is total willingness on my part,” he said. His brave commitment garnered significant attention worldwide and gave inspiration to many Catholics. He later reflected to Catholic News Agency that the circumstances in Israel and Gaza had led him to contemplate the fact that cardinals wear red as a sign of martyrdom. “The cardinalate’s red color has taken on a profound significance marked by much sorrow, by many hardships,” he said. “Obviously, the Lord wants me here, he wants me to bring his grace to this place.”

The cardinal has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in the Israel–Hamas conflict since last October. Additionally, he has characterized Israel’s military response to the terrorist attacks as “disproportionate.” His repeated calls for peace have drawn strong support from Rome, as Pope Francis has likewise issued adamant calls for a ceasefire in Gaza. The Vatican has continued throughout the duration of the conflict to elevate Pizzaballa’s peace-seeking efforts. Earlier this year, for example, the pope described Pizzaballa as “a crucial figure.”

Pizzaballa’s adamant calls for a ceasefire have met with some resistance. After the cardinal described the Israeli response as “disproportionate” last week in an event alongside Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, the Israeli ambassador to the Holy See called the use of the term “deplorable” before rephrasing and calling it “unfortunate.” In his Holy Thursday homily, Pizzaballa sought to explain his decision to controversially demand an end to all hostilities. He stated that he believes Christians, in response to difficult situations, should act “differently,” with “strength and courage.”

Cardinal Pizzaballa seems to have the backing of the pope’s close allies given that Pope Francis has repeatedly elevated him throughout his papacy. Pope Francis appointed him bishop and apostolic administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in 2016, made him a member of the Congregation for Oriental Churches in 2017, and then elevated him to the role of Latin patriarch of Jerusalem in 2020. The support of the pope’s allies would be critical for election by a conclave given that 94 out of 129 cardinal electors were created by Pope Francis.

Earlier this week, the National Catholic Register’s Edward Pentin described Pizzaballa’s rise to the status of “papabile” as “meteoric.” While Vatican watchers remain in a perpetual state of speculation regarding the potential candidates for pope — Pentin, for instance, published a book in 2020 on the leading candidates, many of whom are speculated to have already aged out of contention, and several of whom are too conservative to be actual candidates — the fact that Pope Francis is so old and Pizzaballa so young means that talk about Pizzaballa may be less useless.

With the pope having reached the age of 87 and his age restricting him in recent years, there is naturally discussion about a potential retirement and how much longer he may live. Yet Pope Francis insists that he is in “good health” and has no intention of resigning. On March 15, he called the possibility of resigning “a distant possibility” since he “do[es] not have any cause serious enough to make [him] think of resigning.” According to Reuters, the pope appeared to be in better shape at his papal audience on Wednesday following a four-week span in which he had an aide deliver his remarks. The pope had been suffering from a “cold, bronchitis and influenza,” for the previous month, per the news service.

Were Cardinal Pizzaballa to be elected pope, he would likely be a centrist. The Franciscan friar adopts Pope Francis’ style of humble pastoralism, maintains adherence to doctrine, does not step into controversial debates, and focuses on issues like world peace, helping the needy, and interreligious dialogue. However, he is likely not seeking out the papal office. When informed by a journalist of Pope Francis’ decision to appoint him a cardinal, Pizzaballa was reportedly confused and asked the journalist, “Who?”

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Ellie Gardey
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Ellie Gardey is Reporter and Associate Editor at The American Spectator. She is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where she studied political science, philosophy, and journalism. Ellie has previously written for the Daily Caller, College Fix, and Irish Rover. She is originally from Michigan. Follow her on X at @EllieGardey. Contact her at egardey@spectator.org.
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