Israel’s embassy to the Holy See has accused Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin of implying “moral equivalence” by describing both the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and Israel’s offensive in Gaza as “massacres”. Source: The Tablet.
Pope Leo XIV defended Cardinal Parolin’s comments that Israel’s embassy to the Holy See said undermined peace efforts.
Speaking to reporters in Castel Gandolfo on Tuesday, Pope Leo said Cardinal Parolin had “very clearly expressed the opinion of the Holy See” on the war in Gaza when he spoke to Vatican News to mark the second anniversary of the Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023.
In the remarks published on Monday, Cardinal Parolin called the attacks on Israel, in which about 1300 people died, an “inhuman massacre”, and said the world “cannot and must not forget” the 251 hostages taken by Hamas and their allies.
He said the Holy See continued to ask and pray “that this perverse spiral of hatred and violence, which risks dragging us into an abyss with no return, come to an end”.
“We need to recover a sense of reason, abandon the blind logic of hatred and revenge, and reject violence as a solution,” Cardinal Parolin said. “Those who are attacked have a right to defend themselves, but even legitimate defence must respect the principle of proportionality. Unfortunately, the resulting war has brought about disastrous and inhuman consequences.”
The conduct of the Israel Defence Force “disregards the fact that it is targeting a largely defenceless population, already pushed to the brink, in an area where buildings and homes are reduced to rubble”, he said. “It is unacceptable and unjustifiable to reduce human beings to mere ‘collateral damage’.”
While he condemned antisemitism as “a cancer that must be fought and eradicated”, Cardinal Parolin said he was “positively impressed by the turnout in demonstrations [against the war] and the commitment of many young people” around the world. He criticised “the countries truly capable of exerting influence [which] have so far failed to act to stop the ongoing massacre”.
In a statement posted on social media the next day, Israel’s embassy to the Holy See said the cardinal’s intervention, “though surely well-intentioned, risks undermining efforts both to end the war and counter rising antisemitism”.
“There is no moral equivalence between a democratic state protecting its citizens and a terrorist organisation intent on killing them,” the embassy’s statement said. “We hope that future statements will reflect this important distinction.”
FULL STORY
Pope Leo defends Parolin after Israeli embassy complaint (By Patrick Hudson, The Tablet)
