The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the highest authority for Catholics in the Holy Land, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, presided over the Good Friday liturgy of the Passion of Christ in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, after Israel restricted his access last Palm Sunday. According to a Patriarchate communiqué, the mass was celebrated in the morning at Calvary, the part located to the right of the altar inside the basilica, situated in the Christian Quarter of the occupied Old City of East Jerusalem, where tradition places the crucifixion and death of Jesus. Yesterday, Holy Thursday, Pizzaballa also officiated in this basilica the Mass of the Lord's Supper, which included the ancient rite of the washing of feet and a procession around the Sepulchre. Due to restrictions on the number of people who can gather as a result of the war with Iran, the mass was limited to the patriarch and four clergy, in addition to the friars who reside in the Holy Sepulchre complex, the Patriarchate detailed. Last Sunday, the Israeli Police did not allow Pizzaballa to enter the Holy Sepulchre, where he was to officiate a blessing and mass for Palm Sunday without an audience. Security restrictions limit attendance to groups of a maximum of 50 people due to the conflict with Iran, provided there is a shelter or bunker nearby (non-existent in occupied East Jerusalem). International consternation was immediate, with European leaders in Italy, France, Hungary, Spain, or Portugal condemning the measure adopted by the Israeli Government, but also the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who pointed out that with Jewish prayer, the Israeli authorities were not being equally restrictive. “The churches, synagogues, and mosques of Jerusalem comply with the 50-person-or-less restriction. It is difficult to understand or justify that the patriarch is prevented from entering the church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony,” Huckabee said on X, after arguing that the four representatives accompanying him were “well below” the 50-person limit. Hours later, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu backtracked and said in another statement that Pizzaballa could “celebrate religious services as he wishes” this Holy Week. “I have instructed the relevant authorities to grant Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch, full and immediate access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem,” he said on X, after having previously justified his veto of the basilica for “security” reasons.
