Last month in his weekly General Audience, Pope Francis appealed to the crowd gathered at the Vatican, and those watching at home, asking them to pray for peace in the Holy Land. The Holy Father said, “Next Saturday, June 8, will mark the fifth anniversary of the meeting, here at the Vatican, of the presidents of Israel and Palestine with me and Patriarch Bartholomew. At 1:00 p.m. we are all invited to dedicate ‘one minute for peace.’ Prayer for believers and reflection for non-believers. Everyone together for a more fraternal world.”
Pope Francis has dedicated many efforts and his support to help bring peace to the Holy Land for good. In May he commented on the rising tension due to the relocation of the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, saying he was “very concerned” about the potential for violence to escalate. The Holy Father knows that these outbursts of conflict only bring us further from negotiations and prohibit a “path of peace.”
He continues to urge everyone, believers and nonbelievers, to pursue the interest of common good by living peacefully and promoting acts of charity.