The new Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and Cyprus and Apostolic Delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine has already arrived in the Holy City.
Mons. Leopoldo Girelli, sent by Pope Francis, told us about this new mission.
H.E. Mons. Leopoldo Girelli
New Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and Cyprus and Apostolic Delegate
“I think that the honor of representing the Holy See in the Land of Jesus Christ is a reason for joy for every pontifical representative. Therefore, I am pleased and grateful to Pope Francis for having entrusted me with this new mission in the Holy Land, which follows the traces of the history of salvation. I come here with gratitude in my heart and also with the desire to contribute to the peaceful coexistence of this population. Christian communities living in the Holy Land have a special place in the Pope’s heart.”
Having worked in several countries in South East Asia, Mons. Girelli talks about his expectations regarding the Holy Land.
H.E. Mons. Leopoldo Girelli
New Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and Cyprus and Apostolic Delegate
“I have been able to ascertain, thanks to my connection with the major religions such as Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism, that a genuine inter-religious dialogue is necessary to achieve peace in the world. I believe that the Holy Land can be a laboratory for this interreligious dialogue and that it can, through mutual understanding and acceptance, achieve a fraternal coexistence and good neighborly conditions between the people of Israel and the people of Palestine.”
Mons. Leopoldo Girelli is embarking on the ministry already carried out by Mons. Giuseppe Lazzarotto, who dedicated five of his forty-six years of diplomatic service to the Holy Land on behalf of the Holy See.
Lazzarotto is in Rome at the present time. From the Eternal City he talked about his experience in the land of the Fifth Gospel, as he himself told us, not as a spectator, but completely immersed in the reality of the place.
H.E. Mons. GIUSEPPE LAZZAROTTO
Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and Cyprus and Apostolic Delegate
“The central point is to understand how God continued His work of salvation for the Church and for the world in that land and through that land. The main function of the Holy Father’s representative when he is assigned to this place is to understand how the various realities of communities living in that land, the different religious beliefs, the different political orientations and the different social conditions, can all come together to create unity.”
The bishop talked about important events in this time frame, such as the visit of Pope Francis in 2014, which rekindled Paul VI’s meeting with Atenagora. In this apostolic journey, the Successor of Peter has contributed fundamentally to ecumenical dialogue in this land. He also cited the signed negotiations with Palestine and the ongoing negotiations with Israel.
H.E. Mons. GIUSEPPE LAZZAROTTO
Apostolic Nuncio for Israel and Cyprus and Apostolic Delegate
“We must learn to live together and to share, not our conflicts, but our most precious possessions, despite and even through our differences, which can constitute a treasure, and therefore be able to create unity and live together as brothers in the same home.”
Source: Christian Media Center (CMC)