Cautious welcome for renewed relations with Israel Govt , CathNews.com, Jerusalem, June 30, 2004

Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land head Fr Pierbattista Pizzaballa has described the resumption of diplomatic talks between Church leaders and Israeli government officials as a "positive sign", but warned that "serious problems" remain.

Speaking to the Italian daily Avvenire, Fr Pizzaballa said that he had seen clear signs of good will in his first official talks with Israeli officials. He voiced some optimism that those talks would soon produce a resolution to one problem that has worried Church leaders: the government's failiure to renew visas for Catholic missionaries working in the Holy Land.

But Catholic World News says the Custos, as he is known, cited further unresolved problems, such as the construction of a subway system that will block the "New Gate" to Jerusalem, closing off the only direct vehicle access to the Christian quarter of the old city.

Fr Pizzaballa said he hopes the resumption of talks on an economic agreement between the Holy See and the Israeli government would lead to progress in other areas as well. The diplomatic talks are scheduled to resume next week following months of diplomatic stalemate that arose when Israeli negotiators abruptly pulled out of the talks.

SOURCE Hopes, fears for Christians in Holy Land (Catholic World News 29/6/04)

Hopes, fears for Christians in Holy Land , CWNews.com, Jerusalem, Jun. 29, 2004

Jerusalem, Jun. 29 (CWNews.com) - Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who heads the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, sees a "positive sign" in the resumption of diplomatic talks between Church leaders and Israeli government officials. But the Franciscan leader also sees serious problems remaining in relations between the Catholic Church and the Israeli regime.

Speaking to the Italian daily Avvenire , Father Pizzaballa-- who assumed his current post on May 15-- said that he had seen clear signs of good will in his first official talks with Israeli officials. He voiced some optimism that those talks would soon produce a resolution to one problem that has worried Church leaders: the government's failiure to renew visas for Catholic missionaries working in the Holy Land.

However, the Custos cited other problems that remain unresolved, such as the construction of a subway system that will block the "New Gate" to Jerusalem, closing off the only direct vehicle access to the Christian quarter of the old city.

Father Pizzaballa said that he hoped the resumption of talks on an economic agreement between the Holy See and the Israeli government would lead to progress in other areas as well. "I hope that the climate of collaboration will bear fruit," he told Avvenire . The diplomatic talks are scheduled to resume on July 5, after months in a diplomatic stalemate that arose when Israeli negotiators abruptly pulled out of the talks. Speaking to Avvenire on a different topic, Father Pizzaballa denied reports that his selection to head the Franciscan Custody represents a political shift away from the previous leadership, which had been widely regarded as sympathetic toward the Palestinian cause. (Father Pizzaballa, who studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, had previously worked with the Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah of Jerusalem, providing pastoral care for the Hebrew-speaking Christians of the Holy Land.) However, he pointed out that the proportion of non-Arab Christians in the region has grown steadily in the past decade. And he argued: "It is extremely important-- not just for Jerusalem but for the universal Church-- to have a Christian community with Hebrew roots in Jerusalem." He explained that this small group helps other Christians to recall their own spiritual origins.

While the Franciscan Custody is heavily involved in charitable work, the new Custos stressed that the primary purpose of the Franciscans in the Holy Land will always be evangelization. Their mission, he said, involves "helping Christians to understand that their presence in the Holy Land is a mission."

The Christian population of the Holy Land is still rapidly decreasing. Today about 2 percent of the population is Christian-- of which roughly half is Catholic. In 1947, that figure was about 20 percent.