Latin patriarchy of Jerusalem condone the school debt of all families

The Latin Patriarchy of Jerusalem (PLJ) ​​has decided to condemn the school debts of all the families of the diocese, for the school years prior to the Jubileo de la Esperanza, as a gesture “to promote and demand justice, equity and, above all, solidarity.”

The PLJ is the Catholic Diocese of Latin Rite based in Jerusalem, restored in 1847 by Pope Pius IX. Its ecclesiastical jurisdiction covers Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Cyprus, attending to the Latin Catholic communities present in the Holy Land and these regions of the Middle East.

Through A statement this September 14Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, said that the jubilee year “has been in a context of violence and war”, which “seems to increase.”

The cardinal explained that under the motto of Hope does not disappointCatholics are called “a special conversion of the heart, to return to God, to rediscover our Christian roots and the beauty of our faith.” Also to “heal the relationships we have injured” and “rediscover the joy of the encounter with Christ.”

Despite the dramatic situation that the region is experiencing, one that has had “serious consequences on the life of all our families and institutions”, Cardinal Pizzaballa considers it an opportunity not to get lost “in petty considerations already short reach, but to go to the essentials of life in our relationship with God and in the life of the world.”

In that sense, as a concrete gesture to specify “this desire for change, renewal, back to God and the brothers,” the PLJ decided to condon “all debts of all families with the schools of the Latin patriarchy for the years before the jubilee, that is, excluding from this plan the school year 2024-2025”.

“It has been a decision not easy to make, due to the costs that it entails. And as they can imagine, the various administrative offices have not stopped presenting their legitimate concerns. However, we believe that this gesture is necessary and, once again, trust and entrust God and his providence,” the patriarch wrote.

“We hope that this choice will facilitate life to our many families in difficulty and help them recover confidence and hope,” adds the statement.

Cardinal Pizzaballa pointed out that the jubilee is also “a time of responsibility”, so that the dams “entails by all, the decision to commit to change life and to assume their commitments with responsibility.”

“Therefore, the foronation of these debts, does not eliminate the responsibility of anyone, families included, with respect to commitments towards schools. It is a special time that, precisely because it is, remains a unique moment, which involves us as a church, and that must compromise everyone to seriously take their own responsibilities,” said the patriarch.

Therefore, he asked all the directors of the schools to “implement and immediately communicate this decision to the interested parties” and the administrators of the patriarchy to “update our accounting books according to the decision made.”