"Priests against genocide", Monday vigil in Rome
The network, which was set up in recent weeks, has already gathered the support of over 1,200 priests from 34 countries. Not only parish priests but also bishops and, at the moment, a cardinal
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2' min read
The 22 September mobilisation for Palestine will also see the participation of 'Priests against Genocide', a network that has sprung up in recent weeks and has already gathered the support of over 1,200 priests from 34 countries. Not only parish priests but also bishops and, at the moment, a cardinal. They will meet on Monday afternoon at Sant'Andrea al Quirinale for a prayer that will also be a moment of mobilisation. There will be about fifty people representing this new reality demonstrating in Rome. A public moment of prayer and testimony "to reiterate the condemnation of the ongoing genocide in Gaza and give a voice to those who have no voice" that will be led by Father Alex Zanotelli, Combonian missionary, and Father Fernando García Rodriguez, Superior General of the Xaverian missionaries. In detail, at 3 p.m. there will be a community prayer at the Church of Sant'Andrea al Quirinale; at 4 p.m. the march will start and will pass through Via Quattro Fontane , Piazza Barberini, Via del Tritone , Piazza di Pietra al Pantheon with arrival in Piazza Sant'Ignazio. At 5.30 p.m. the priests will meet the media at the Caravita Church.
At the moment, there are no names of bishops among the participants in the Rome event. In any case, even if they will not be physically present, several of them have given their support, from the Cardinal of Rabat, Cristobal Lopez Romero, to the former Apostolic Vicar of Anatolia, Monsignor Paolo Bizzeti. The list of bishops supporting the network also includes the bishop emeritus of Mazara del Vallo, Msgr. Domenico Mogavero, and the former bishop of Caserta, Raffaele Nogaro. The list of bishops who have signed the petition includes Don Luigi Ciotti (Libera) and Don Nandino Capovilla (Pax Christi), who was recently expelled from Israel where he had gone on a pilgrimage.
The term genocide, referring to what is happening in Gaza, however has not been appropriated by the Vatican. The Catholic associations meanwhile have launched an appeal to pray for peace: tomorrow they will participate in the Angelus in St. Peter's Square, while on Monday 22 a prayer vigil will be held in Santa Maria in Trastevere, in connection with the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
