Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, has warned that the Middle East remains trapped in a cycle of conflict and that lasting peace cannot be built through force and violence.
Speaking to the Italian news agency ANSA during his visit to the Abbey of San Benedetto in Monte in Norcia, Umbria, the cardinal described the current situation in the region as “very hard and difficult”, marked by tensions that have now “exploded” after years of war and instability.
Pizzaballa was in Norcia to receive the prestigious International San Benedetto Award, recognising his commitment to dialogue, peace and reconciliation. During his visit, he reflected on the deep challenges facing his homeland and the wider Middle East, where political and religious tensions have shaped generations of conflict.
“The crisis in the Middle East cannot be overcome easily. It is a complex situation, it has always been so and it will continue to be so,” he said.
The patriarch stressed that one of the most important lessons for the future is the need to abandon the belief that new political and social balances can be created through military power.
“What we must learn in the Middle East,” Pizzaballa explained, “is to overcome the idea that new balances can be formed only through the use of strength and violence.”
According to the cardinal, the foundations of future stability must be based on different principles, including dialogue, mutual respect and the recognition of human dignity on all sides.
“Future balances cannot be built only on the criterion of force and violence,” he said.
Pizzaballa has repeatedly called for a culture of peace, emphasising that reconciliation requires patience, courage and a willingness to understand the suffering of others.
“Peace is a culture and it is not so widespread,” he said, highlighting the difficulty of creating genuine dialogue in societies marked by fear, mistrust and decades of hostility.
His remarks come as the international community continues to search for solutions to the conflicts affecting the Middle East. The cardinal’s message was a reminder that political agreements alone are not enough unless they are accompanied by a deeper transformation in attitudes and relationships between communities.
