July 2026 ©CTS
Within a few weeks, Pope Leo XIV has twice expressed his concern for the Holy Land and for the Christians of the East. His words show close attention to the worsening situation on the ground, which is affecting all the people living there.
TerreSainte.net - Editorial staff - 30 July 2026
As conditions continue to deteriorate for the Palestinians, the Pope’s recent interventions have brought some comfort to people there. “At least he has not forgotten us.”
Pope Leo XIV’s most recent intervention was on July 26. After the Angelus at Castel Gandolfo, he said that he was following “with apprehension the continuing and worsening violence in the Holy Land.” He did not remain at the level of a general statement. He named the territories concerned: “the West Bank and Gaza.” He also pointed to the first victims of this deterioration: the many civilians who have suffered during the past weeks.
Earlier, on June 18, Leo XIV had received the participants in the annual assembly of the Reunion of Aid Agencies for the Oriental Churches (ROACO). Before these organizations — including the Custody of the Holy Land — which work very closely with Christian communities, he showed that he was looking not only at the visible destruction. He also recognized its slow and deep consequences: insecurity, the weakening of institutions, the impoverishment of families, and ultimately the departure of Christians.
A precarious situation that leads people to leave
Leo XIV did not hide the seriousness of the situation. He contrasted those who support the people with those responsible for the conflicts:
“While you give life, they sow death; while you extend your hand to your brother, they find enemies to crush; while you open dialogues, they seek monologues; while you trace paths of hope, they imprison peoples in fear; while you build the future, they destroy the present.”
But the Pope is concerned about another wound as well: the “painful hemorrhage of Eastern Christians from their own lands.” This hemorrhage is caused “above all by war,” which, he insists, “does not solve problems but creates tragedies that are often forgotten by the wider world.”
The word chosen by Leo XIV to describe what settles in after or between periods of fighting is “precariousness.” It is not only a matter of money. It gradually comes to affect every aspect of life.
Extending his remarks to all countries affected by conflict, the Pope describes societies “weakened by unstable institutions,” by “the presence of armed groups that divide up the territory,” and by “the poverty of inconsistent and dependent political leadership.” He also refers to the interference of states that “covet resources and exert harmful influence.” From all these combined forces arises “a permanent precariousness that suffocates the possibility of development and always falls most heavily upon the poor.”
The description seems written from very close to the reality on the ground:
“Work is precarious, wages are paid irregularly, the health-care system, when it functions, is uncertain, and education is temporary.”
Families, children, young people, the elderly, and the sick pay the price. Little by little, “fear and insecurity reign everywhere.”
And when people can no longer work, receive medical care, study, or prepare a future for their children, leaving eventually appears to be the only solution. This situation, Leo XIV observes, “destroys hope and prevents the building of a future, encouraging the desire to leave, as is happening with so many of our brothers and sisters in the faith, especially in the Middle East.”
Rejecting unilateral decisions
On July 26, the Pope showed the same attentiveness to the immediate developments in the Holy Land. Faced with “the continuing and worsening violence,” he made “an urgent appeal” for a return to negotiation.
For Leo XIV, the solution must be not only political but also just. It must be “founded on the equal dignity and equal rights of every human person.”
Without explicitly using the expression “two-state solution” on that day, the Pope recalled its foundations. Two peoples will be able to live permanently in this land only if the dignity and rights of one are not placed below those of the other. This remains the approach consistently defended by the Church and the Holy See: a negotiated solution that allows Israelis and Palestinians to live in security, each recognized in their rights.
Such an approach excludes faits accomplis. Leo XIV therefore called for the rejection of “any new military action and any unilateral decision.” He added a particular concern for the holy places and condemned decisions “that violate respect for and the status quo of the holy places of all religious communities.”
Hope is not blindness
Leo XIV’s concern goes beyond Gaza and the West Bank. On July 26 he also spoke of “the situation throughout the Middle East,” where “the intensification of military operations has revived violence and destruction.” He referred both to civilian lives placed “in grave danger” and to the worsening “shortage of drinking water and electricity.”
“From the depths of my heart,” he urged all parties “to suspend the attacks and urgently reopen spaces for dialogue and diplomacy.” The urgent need is therefore not only to silence the weapons. It is also to recreate a place where people can once again speak to one another and “arrive as quickly as possible at the peace so greatly desired for the whole region.”
A month earlier, speaking to ROACO, Leo XIV had refused to regard war, exile, and the gradual disappearance of Christian communities as inevitable. “All this is not the result of an unavoidable destiny, but of free choices and therefore of morally accountable responsibilities,” he had declared.
This conviction leaves no room for despair. What human decisions have caused, other decisions can still stop. Precariousness is not a curse. The departure of Christians is not written in advance.
To those who support the Eastern Churches, the Pope therefore said: “I encourage you to persevere in charity without becoming discouraged, inspired by the hope of Christ.” Then, on July 26, he invited everyone to pray that the Lord “may touch hearts and enlighten the minds of those in authority, so that reconciliation and peace may be achieved quickly.”
