PHOTOS: This is how Corpus Christi 2025 was held in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, Holy Land

In an environment of reverence and faith, with the mind and heart elevated to heaven to pray for the end of war between Israel and Hamas, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, presided over the Mass and procession for the solemnity of Corpus Christi in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in the Holy Land.

According to the Latin patriarchy of Jerusalemwith the Cardinal, several bishops and priests concelebrated, and in the Mass “a limited group of faithful present, given the difficult circumstances that currently affect the city and the region.”

Gaza’s suffering because of war

In his homilythe patriarch meditated in the miracle of the multiplication of the bread, before the hunger of the crowd that followed Jesus, something that also happens now and “affects the life of our people.”

“I think of Gaza, of course, but not only in Gaza. I think of the many poverty situations that the conflict has created, making life extremely difficult for too many families. So we live in a time of real hunger,” said the purple Franciscan.

“And with it comes a hunger of justice, really, of dignity. Even the latter seem words belonging to a world far from ours, which has nothing to do with our real life,” he continued.

A temptation and the response of Jesus

Given the “tragic situation,” the patriarch continued, appears “the same temptation as the disciples: abandon. Give us up. Throw in the towel. Stop waiting and believe that it is possible to satisfy our hunger, that someone can comfort our thirst for justice and dignity. That this conflict can never change our lives. There is no possibility of a decent life for us here.”

In response to that temptation, said Cardinal Pizzaballa, Jesus appears, who asks his disciples to give people to eat: “Donate, become Eucharist. Being with Christ allows us to live our poverty, live it as an opportunity to share and commune, to trust and give. And this is also possible for us, here and now, especially for us, pastors.”

“We are not asked to share our knowledge, but our lives, in which God’s work shines. Only we can give a precise and recognizable way to our flock to translate what we celebrate in the mystery to the life of communities,” he said.

And “in this time of conflict and war,” said the purple, it is necessary for each one to surrender, “that we are solidarity with each other, which, despite everything, we continue to build relationships, opening horizons, giving confidence, having the courage to be inclusive, that is, to welcome the other when everything points to the opposite.”

All this, he said, “never losing hope.”

“That the feeding heavenly bread and strengthens the path of our Church in the Holy Land and, by intercession of the Virgin Mother of the Church and our mother, holds us in our various vicissitudes,” concluded the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem.

The Eucharistic Procession around the Holy Sepulcher

After communion, Cardinal Pizzaballa presided over the Eucharistic procession around the Holy Sepulcher, accompanied by the priests, altar and faithful present.

At the end of the procession, the cardinal raised the Blessed Sacrament and gave the blessing to all, begging for the end of war and for peace in all Holy Land.