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News & Current Events Mar 29, 2026 at 4:03 PM

Israeli police prevent Catholic leaders from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at Jerusalem church

Posted by igetproteinfartsHELP

Israeli police prevent Catholic leaders from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at Jerusalem church
AP News
Israeli police prevent Catholic leaders from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at Jerusalem church
Israeli police have blocked top Catholic leaders from entering Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre for a private Palm Sunday Mass.
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igetproteinfartsHELP Mar 29, 2026 +4520
The Catholic Church called the police decision “a manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate measure.” It prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and the head of the Custos in the Holy Land, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the place where Christians believe Jesus was crucified.
4520
terrorrier Mar 29, 2026 +873
I am pretty stoked that Pizzaballa is back in headlines though
873
Wapook Mar 29, 2026 +299
Was pulling for him hard to become pope on the name alone
299
VRichardsen Mar 29, 2026 +98
They have to choose a new name when they are elected, though.
98
GenericUsername2056 Mar 29, 2026 +183
So just choose Pizzaballa. What are they going to do, un-pope you?
183
enjoythesilence-75 Mar 29, 2026 +64
He could have added an extra “z” to make it different.
64
Jakelby Mar 29, 2026 +38
Pope Pizzaballz I
38
plaidpixel Mar 30, 2026 +17
I mean then go 2006 username rules xPizzaballa72x
17
mortgagepants Mar 29, 2026 +8
pope calzone!
8
SlavaAmericana Mar 29, 2026 +27
To be fair, if he became pope, the name Pizzaballa wouldn't be in the news anymore. 
27
Oseirus Mar 29, 2026 +2614
Sorry, I know all this is important, but is the man's name seriously Pierbattista Pizzaballa? Am I reading that right?
2614
wcanka Mar 29, 2026 +530
Iirc he volunteered to exchange himself for the children kidnapped on October 7th as well.
530
Greizen_bregen Mar 29, 2026 +172
True good religious person there. Practicing what he preaches. Love to see that.
172
Thickerdoodle92 Mar 29, 2026 +180
F***, he is a Balla. A Pizzaballa.
180
Diver_Ill Mar 29, 2026 +7
Someone had to say it. 
7
Expert-Ad-4246 Mar 29, 2026 +1701
He could’ve been pope pizzaballa. He was in the running with Leo last year.
1701
alexefi Mar 29, 2026 +1311
They change name when elected. So it probably wouldve been Calzonara.
1311
chocolatedesire Mar 29, 2026 +302
Honestly probably why he didn't get the nod. Who could ethically take the pizzaballa name from the people?
302
KirbyBucketts Mar 29, 2026 +130
Nothing closer to God than 'beautiful pizza"
130
JustARandomGuy_71 Mar 29, 2026 +104
That would be pizzabElla. Balla, has various meanings, it could be 'lie', or 'bale' or even 'testicle', and it is a surname so originally could have been different or have different meanings, like ball(palla) or dance(ballo), edit: That is interesting, from wikipedia: **Pizzaballa** (pronounced [\[pittsaˈballa\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Italian)) is an Italian surname from [Bergamo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Province_of_Bergamo), derived from an archaic [Lombard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombard_language) term for 'chatterbox' or 'troublemaker, one who picks fights'. I went off on a tangent, sorry.
104
ebb_omega Mar 29, 2026 +80
Sorry but you lost me at testicle, and now you won't ever convince me to not mourn the lost chance at Pope Pizza Nuts.
80
Pitamo Mar 29, 2026 +7
Pope Pizza Deez Nuts. No wonder he didn't get the nod. The Cardinals saw the setup.
7
JustARandomGuy_71 Mar 29, 2026 +11
Unfortunately I don't think the 'pizza' in the name is related to the food, even if I have no idea from what it derives.
11
ebb_omega Mar 29, 2026 +32
What part of "you won't ever convince me" did you miss? ;)
32
Tinysaur Mar 29, 2026 +82
Bet he had an absolutely bangin Eucharist Supposedly delivered in 30mins or less else its tithe free
82
135686492y4 Mar 29, 2026 +19
It would be pizza-bullshit / pizza-lie or pizza-dances [verb] (beautiful is has an E in place of the first A)
19
SomniumOv Mar 29, 2026 +6
> pizza-dances the pizza dance, the pizza dance, everybody look at your hands.
6
hdcase1 Mar 29, 2026 +19
And his favorite place to eat would have been Ben Wyatt's Lo Cal Calzone Zone.
19
pseudoveritas Mar 29, 2026 +4
Ben Wyatt would had converted to Catholicism immediately had that happened.
4
LorderNile Mar 29, 2026 +130
The chicago pope was competing with the pizza pope
130
Disused_Yeti Mar 29, 2026 +49
now i want deep dish pope
49
Cognitive_Spoon Mar 29, 2026 +34
Lol, in my house we refer to Leo as Deep Dish Papa in honor of his Chicago roots (affectionately. We dig Leo, he's been the dude necessary for times like these).
34
OgnokTheRager Mar 29, 2026 +30
[TIME TO DELIVER A PIZZA BALL!!](https://youtu.be/GxOkeLQohC0?si=pE6zuhf_-sxe9M96)
30
Kelor Mar 29, 2026 +310
Was one of the finalists for pope last time round IIRC. Has been opposed to Israel's occupation of [Palestinian territory](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/22/cardinal-pizzaballa-gaza-visit-israel-criticism) and also [offered himself](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/05/world/europe/italian-cardinal-in-jerusalem-new-pope.html) to Hamas as a hostage in exchange for several of the children being held. Edit: I can't speak for his actions in the wider context of the church, but on this issue at least he has been good.
310
GoodLeftUndone Mar 29, 2026 +75
Damn. A real one.
75
NewIntroduction4655 Mar 29, 2026 +31
damn he's a balla
31
Lucius-Halthier Mar 29, 2026 +63
He was actually one of the top choices for the newest pope until they chose Bob from Chicago, apparently his name translates to pizza dance too
63
UsedWelcome5903 Mar 29, 2026 +33
Ok just to clear things up it’s a travesty that the real Italian pizza pope lost to that casserole pizza wannabe from Chicago
33
Lucius-Halthier Mar 29, 2026 +18
True, but now we have Daaa Pope and he knows how awful Malort tastes
18
Con_Dinn_West Mar 29, 2026 +362
Yep, and he's Italian.
362
Pointlessname123321 Mar 29, 2026 +295
That was a given
295
Farkerisme Mar 29, 2026 +70
I'm of the belief that many an Italian can Ballapizza
70
BearWrangler Mar 29, 2026 +67
did JK Rowling name him??
67
grip0matic Mar 29, 2026 +33
Hideo Kojima did it.
33
shortalay Mar 29, 2026 +13
The kinda naming convention I expect from a Nintendo game in the 80s.
13
drinkduffdry Mar 29, 2026 +87
You don't say
87
DummyDumDragon Mar 29, 2026 +22
*Idontbelieveyou.gif*
22
StaticSystemShock Mar 29, 2026 +18
That's as obvious as being Irish and called O'Whiskey...
18
MapleBaconBeer Mar 29, 2026 +5
I was gonna guess Vietnamese.
5
JRRVulcan Mar 29, 2026 +12
Did a spittake reading this one, you win 🏆
12
imLiztening Mar 29, 2026 +31
He was also one of the contenders for pope so we very nearly got a pope pizza!
31
Apprehensive-Slip473 Mar 29, 2026 +39
Soon to be pope pizzaballa.  
39
Unusual_Artichoke_73 Mar 29, 2026 +29
Shot calla
29
the__ghola__hayt Mar 29, 2026 +10
20 inch pies In the Impala
10
spoonycoot Mar 29, 2026 +8
Twenty inch blades on the impala
8
ARazorbacks Mar 29, 2026 +21
This shit made me laugh out loud. 
21
mandalorian_guy Mar 29, 2026 +15
When your name feels like a hate crime.
15
unfortunatebastard Mar 29, 2026 +4
I’m pretty sure that dude was playing for team Italy in WBC
4
_PM_ME_PANGOLINS_ Mar 29, 2026 +42
> at the place where Christians believe Jesus was crucified The BBC's article has the same error. It's not that at all. Why is journalism so universally c*** these days?
42
Real_Long8266 Mar 29, 2026 +25
I was surprised by this error too. It’s right in the name. Sepulchre.
25
EatinSumGrapes Mar 29, 2026 +258
So the people that disrupted a church service because the pastor was ICE were called terrorists by thr administration. How are they going to handle this one? Just not report on it and pretend it didn't happen? I hope their zealous Christian base finds out and turns on Israel
258
goddamnitwhalen Mar 29, 2026 +486
Evangelicals f****** *loathe* Catholics and think we’re devil worshippers, lol. They don’t give a f*** about any of this.
486
FinancialReserve6427 Mar 29, 2026 +174
Catholics don't believe in the rapture, so of course they will hate their guts. 
174
Szwejkowski Mar 29, 2026 +118
Most of the Christian world does not believe in the rapture, because it's non-biblical.
118
theredwoman95 Mar 29, 2026 +87
Yeah, it's some American nonsense invented in the 1830s and popularised by the 1970 book ["The Late Great Planet Earth"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Late_Great_Planet_Earth). Imagine completely revising your theology based on a guy who claimed the world would end in the 80s, lol.
87
i-was-way- Mar 29, 2026 +40
Don’t forget about the Left Behind books. They were super popular in the 2000s and brought the idea of the rapture to a larger mainstream audience.
40
ChilledParadox Mar 29, 2026 +19
it was Reagan. Reagan was a big apocalypticist and reader of kooky apocalyptic christianity and cited a lot of it in his time as president and beforehand as governor in CA. frankly a lot of this stuff is a bit broad to get into, but you can start by looking into Hal Lindsey and manly p hall, and how Reagan was influenced by them. [This video briefly touches on it, and christian dispensationalism](https://youtu.be/wh11CuVUZPY?t=1384) and really this was the start of all the insanity sinking its teeth into the military in my opinion.
19
miter01 Mar 29, 2026 +15
Is everything bad about the USA due to Reagan???
15
foulrot Mar 29, 2026 +13
Not EVERYTHING, but certainly a hell of a lot.
13
A_Refill_of_Mr_Pibb Mar 29, 2026 +20
It's like that Daniel Josh joke about Mormonism, "let's not base your entire life on a religion that's old enough for my dad to be like 'that's not true, that didn't happe." Also, apparently that book was the bestselling nonfiction book of the 1970s.
20
WaltonGogginsTeeth Mar 29, 2026 +29
I'm an atheist now, but grew up catholic. I knew some very judgmental evangelicals due to a business relationship, and I asked them once which was worse, being catholic or being an atheist, and unanimously they said catholic.
29
procrastambitious Mar 29, 2026 +16
Which doesn't make sense, right? It's a weird cognitive dissonance. Probably rooted in a deep historic rivalry.
16
TeaTimeInsanity Mar 29, 2026 +13
I'm guessing that guy is from the US and yeah, anti Catholic sentiment is high here. The country was founded by somewhat of an anti Catholic sect of the Church of England, its no surprise how deep the bias is. Sad to see so many that want to follow Christ be so judgmental towards the very religion they broke from.
13
porscheblack Mar 29, 2026 +6
It's rooted in a deep schism, however most people that hate Catholics have no understanding of the history. Instead they just hate them out of a semi-inferiority complex. They love to say how religious they are, but they're not even close to the commitment of Catholics and they know it. So they take this stance that Catholics are demonic to invalidate them so they don't have to compare themselves to them and find themselves lacking.
6
JudgeGusBus Mar 29, 2026 +35
I am no longer religious but was raised Catholic. I met a new coworker who was talking about her mission trip (not Mormon, just some variety of evangelical). I asked where she went, and she said “Poland.” I laughed and said I am pretty sure the Polish people are well familiar with Christianity. She sneered, “not Christianity, *Catholicism*.” Like b****, we work for the government. Tone it down in the lunchroom at least?
35
Sharlach Mar 29, 2026 +18
Which is rich, because if God is real then it's definitely the weird American denominations that are the heretics and going to hell, especially Evangelicals. They're the least Christ-like "Christians" of all.
18
Prudent_Valuable603 Mar 29, 2026 +62
That’s true. Most Pentecostals, southern Baptists and evangelicals think all Catholics are going to hell.
62
Jayrandomer Mar 29, 2026 +48
My very Catholic but also very fun grandfather used to tell a joke about an old Irishman who went to heaven and St. Peter was showing him around and the place was like a dream, drinks and fun and all the sorts of things people enjoy doing. In the middle of heaven was a walled section where there was nothing but people singing hymns. He asked St. Peter what they did to end up stuck in there singing hymns all the time and St. Peter replied that they hadn't done anything necessarily wrong, but if they had any idea *all of you* were in heaven too they would be devastated.
48
PinchieMcPinch Mar 29, 2026 +8
My year 4 teacher Mr Young told a similar joke about touring a newbie through Heaven and having to walk very quietly past one particular door - "That's where the Catholics are - they think they're the only ones here." Catholic teacher, Catholic school, sticky humility lesson.
8
Iohet Mar 29, 2026 +16
The beginning of my journey to leave Christianity (which I was indoctrinated on as a child) was my teacher (at a non-denominational protestant school) telling me my grandfather was going to hell because he's a Jew. I was about 10 years old and knew enough about Christianity to know that it is rooted in Judaism, and that it didn't make sense to me that he would go to hell for practicing the root of the religion
16
1HappyIsland Mar 29, 2026 +40
Even Methodists are highly suspect. In the South.
40
Vlad_Yemerashev Mar 29, 2026 +34
Methodists moreso than other mainline denominations, but yes. Not just Methodists, but also Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA, but NOT the evangelical one like PCA or Presbyterian Church of America), Lutherans, and other deonominations that were either tolerant to begin with or had a schism over social issues. To give you one example, Nick Freitas is a right wing political commentator and former VA state politician who recently called James Talerico a heretic (Talerico is a PCUSA pastor and LGBT affirming, and well-known now that he's running for US Senate in TX as a Democrat).
34
Road_Whorrior Mar 29, 2026 +29
The methodists recently had a schism. Only UMC-affiliated churches are likely to not be shitty. Any that took down their flame and cross and UMC signage did so because the general conference decided to allow gay marriage within the church itself. Unless it's carved into the building, they had to take it down when they decided to hold onto hate.
29
The_Impresario Mar 29, 2026 +11
Ours overwhelmingly voted to stay, which surprised me considering the demographic. To the people who left because of that: "bye Felicia."
11
BlasterPhase Mar 29, 2026 +6
It's cool, I loathe evangelicals too
6
MegaGrimer Mar 29, 2026 +4
I was at a bus stop waiting for a bus one day when this guy looking like a missionary came up to me and said that the real Antichrist was the Catholic Church. Didn’t even tell me which sect of Christianity he was, or tell me to go to any church.
4
0zymandeus Mar 29, 2026 +27
American Catholics are becoming increasingly indistinguishable from Evangelicals. It's kind of funny. We get an American pope and like 65% of American Catholics hate him
27
Blackstone01 Mar 29, 2026 +16
Which is ironic considering if Evangelicals had their way, Catholics, even the convenient stooges who were convinced to vote with Evangelicals, would be put into camps alongside everybody else they hate.
16
BananaNutJob Mar 29, 2026 +37
I grew up Catholic and most of them are EXTREMELY lax about faith. The rest are extremely conservative.
37
goddamnitwhalen Mar 29, 2026 +24
They like the trappings but not the faith itself. As my friend once put it, “they should play a FromSoft game and stop trying to influence policy.”
24
mlc885 Mar 29, 2026 +7
I know it is probably a personality trait or something in your brain, but it is odd that the religious but not particularly religious people get along just fine (i.e. my Baptist grandparents had Catholic friends even though they would obviously consider the whole Pope deal to be crazy) and the extremely religious people fail to realize the best lesson of their own religion Though I guess every single religion includes some version of The Golden Rule (i.e. empathy) and we mostly fail at it
7
Dovahkiinthesardine Mar 29, 2026 +40
American "Christians" dont care about catholics
40
bmitchell1990 Mar 29, 2026 +1333
"Cardinal Pizzaballa: “It is true that the police had said that the orders from the internal command prevented any kind of gathering in places where there is no shelter, but we had not asked for anything public, just a brief and small private ceremony to preserve the idea of the celebration in the Holy Sepulchre. There were no clashes; everything was done in a very polite manner. I do not want to force the issue; we want to use this situation to try to clarify better in the coming days what to do, in respect for everyone's safety but also in respect for the right to prayer." [https://x.com/RichRaho/status/2038293889388314828](https://x.com/RichRaho/status/2038293889388314828)
1333
adsf76 Mar 29, 2026 +847
Pizzaballa, for everyone's reference, is the Catholic Patriarch of Jerusalem who offered to be taken hostage by Hamas in exchange for the lives of hostages.  He's a real one. 
847
TimothyMimeslayer Mar 29, 2026 +208
He was also mentioned in the running for pope, but only just slightly.
208
EnjoyerOfBeans Mar 30, 2026 +97
Slightly is a ridiculous understatement, he was one of the most likely candidates. Like legitimately top3.
97
_flatscan Mar 30, 2026 +49
Yeah but then we'd have pope pizza
49
IndieContractorUS Mar 30, 2026 +24
"Greater love no man hath, than to lay his life down for his friends" - Jesus Christ
24
AnOrneryOrca Mar 29, 2026 +15
Makes a ballin pizza too
15
t4boo Mar 29, 2026 +708
Pizzaballa is an incredible name
708
ideonode Mar 29, 2026 +267
I wish I was a little bit taller, I wish I was Pizzaballa
267
TechieInTheTrees Mar 29, 2026 +93
I wish my cat had a phone i would call her
93
WretchedBlowhard Mar 29, 2026 +21
Skee-Lo! You need money!
21
1003mistakes Mar 29, 2026 +188
Actually thought the comment was a joke at first. 
188
Evepaul Mar 29, 2026 +28
He's the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, probably among the most important people in the Catholic church, and definitely the most vocal about the horrors happening in his diocese His name comes up fairly often in the news
28
stolenfires Mar 29, 2026 +24
He was the odds-on favorite to be Pope, literally no one thought we'd get someone from the US until we did.
24
blim9999 Mar 30, 2026 +10
I wonder how many votes were lost because people weren't comfortable with the idea of a Pope Pizza and having the Catholic church suffer a new schism with the Pastafarians.
10
delta8force Mar 29, 2026 +24
we already went over this when he was a contestant on the latest season of “Who Wants to Be The Pope?”
24
boyracer93 Mar 29, 2026 +15
I was hoping he’d be elected and select John Paul as his Papal name bc it would be badass to have PAPA JOHN as Pope
15
Unbridled_Dynamics Mar 29, 2026 +4
Pizza-baller.
4
FriedCammalleri23 Mar 29, 2026 +66
Pizzaballa was a frontrunner for Pope during the last *Conclave. I kinda wish he won off of his name alone. Pope Pizza feels right.
66
Thomasasia Mar 29, 2026 +11
They pick a new name when they become pope tho
11
trollsong Mar 30, 2026 +9
Fine then Pope Stromboli
9
quimera78 Mar 29, 2026 +5
*conclave Sorry I can't help myself 
5
FriedCammalleri23 Mar 29, 2026 +5
I’ve been playing too much Fallout. Thank you.
5
Hyperious3 Mar 29, 2026 +46
that name sounds like J K Rowling's pick for the token Italian student at Hogwarts...
46
addictedpunk Mar 29, 2026 +17
Time to deliver a pizza ball!
17
Alone_Again_2 Mar 30, 2026 +6
Just to add clarity to the situation, this is not aimed at any specific group or religion. Jews as well have been banned from visiting the Western Wall as well as Muslims from the Dome of the Rock. They don’t want crowds and important people gathering while shrapnel is falling from the sky.
6
R3KTMYRAMPAGE Mar 29, 2026 +2006
Where the christian zionists at
2006
simmyway Mar 29, 2026 +1435
O, they hate catholics…they’re going to love this
1435
Finassar Mar 29, 2026 +518
Nothing christians hate more than jesus
518
WindowOne1260 Mar 29, 2026 +126
The Catholic church has its own problems and plenty of reasons to hate it. But those are not the reasons christian zionists hate it.
126
MickoDicko Mar 29, 2026 +101
Practicing Irish Catholic here. We are not liked by other Christians. Especially American Christians.
101
Dereg5 Mar 29, 2026 +76
I don't think people know that the triple K hated Catholics just as much as the other groups.
76
reddit_ending_soon Mar 29, 2026 +41
> Especially American Christians. American Christians dont even like each other.
41
Hangry_Squirrel Mar 29, 2026 +28
Atheist raised Orthodox here. The only other Christians the Orthodox generally respect are Roman and Greek Catholics. Protestants are generally considered cultists 😸
28
cash-monkey72 Mar 29, 2026 +24
As an American Catholic in the South, yeah the Orthodox are really the only other branch I f*** with. American Evangelical Protestantism is a bizarre phenomenon.
24
CrittyJJones Mar 29, 2026 +35
The Catholic Church has been improving majorly in the past decade though and the last two Popes have been kinda cool.
35
Hi_Trans_Im_Dad Mar 29, 2026 +40
You mean a bunch of Mary worshippers??? /s
40
Road_Whorrior Mar 29, 2026 +41
Yeah, how dare they revere a woman (one that Jesus likely revered himself)!
41
dementorpoop Mar 29, 2026 +47
Except for the license to sin he gave them by dying for their sins
47
Feisty_Yes Mar 29, 2026 +4
They're also blissfully unaware of the groups over there that kill Christians and how similar those groups are to kkk.
4
Mrwright96 Mar 29, 2026 +11
But do they hate the catholics or the Jews more?
11
Xatsman Mar 29, 2026 +48
They love Israeli Jews literally because they believe they will bring about the end of the world building the temple on the mount. American (white) evangelicals are part of a death cult that is the biggest threat to the planet.
48
Sponsor4d_Content Mar 29, 2026 +269
Christian Zionists are not Catholics.
269
Oxcuridaz Mar 29, 2026 +57
Neither christians...
57
Illustrious-Okra-524 Mar 29, 2026 +242
They love this shit, they hate Catholics
242
sack-o-matic Mar 29, 2026 +21
Klan Christians have always hated Catholics
21
WindowOne1260 Mar 29, 2026 +9
My god president JD Vance is going to be funny. He's essentially an evangelical in his beliefs, but with the veneer of joining the Catholic church.
9
empty_void_kay Mar 29, 2026 +172
evangelicals hate catheloics and see them as mexicans/europeans. They think their prosperity gospel and hate thy neighbour is true christainity.
172
LeafsWinBeforeIDie Mar 29, 2026 +73
How on earth fools who claim to have any idea of what christianity is can come up with such an anti christian idea like a prosperity gospel is beyond me! It seems like the states is 10% grifters and 90% fools.
73
jessenin420 Mar 29, 2026 +38
Just make it what you want. King Henry became a protestant so he could divorce his wife.
38
Threadheads Mar 29, 2026 +28
Sorry to be a nerd, but he didn’t ‘become’ a Protestant. What he did was he declared himself head of the Catholic Church in England and essentially granted himself a divorce, (through Archbishop Cranmer). And since he was the head of the Church, all that money that was earmarked as tithes to the Church went into England’s coffers instead of being sent to Rome. During the reigns of Edward VI and Elizabeth I more reforms took place to align the Church of England with Protestant ideals.
28
jessenin420 Mar 29, 2026 +11
The more you know.
11
empty_void_kay Mar 29, 2026 +18
In the past, I would have defended Americans but after electing trump twice, what you said sounds about right.
18
PensiveinNJ Mar 29, 2026 +10
Honestly we probably didn't deserve defending in the past either.
10
N3onWave Mar 29, 2026 +30
I recently commented somewhere that many Evangelicals don't accept Catholics as being Christians, and I got downvoted to hell. Lol.
30
SavannahInChicago Mar 29, 2026 +19
I took religion classes at my university and I was literally taught this in my course about abrahamic religions
19
dorkofthepolisci Mar 29, 2026 +24
The don’t believe Catholics (or anyone outside of North American evangelicalism) are Christian.
24
Werechupacabra Mar 29, 2026 +57
Waiting for Israel to be destroyed to usher in the return of Christ…
57
Starfox-sf Mar 29, 2026 +31
Trying to speedrun the third temple thing aren’t they?
31
MaxGoldFilms Mar 29, 2026 +10
It's at the heart of their plan.
10
dBlock845 Mar 29, 2026 +8
Not Catholic, they hate Catholics.
8
WhileCultchie Mar 29, 2026 +4
At what point do we acknowledge that Christian Zionism is literally a suicide cult? They support Israel because they want to build the third temple and usher in the book of Revelations.
4
TheNobleHeretic Mar 29, 2026 +1139
Maybe crusader Pete should do something to make sure safe pilgrimage for Christians
1139
Dreadpiratemarc Mar 29, 2026 +333
Do you want Knights Templar? Because this is how you get Knights Templar.
333
JustafanIV Mar 29, 2026 +96
Funny enough, while the Templars aren't really around anymore in any serious capacity, the Hospitallers *are*. The[Sovereign Military Order of Malta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_Military_Order_of_Malta?wprov=sfla1) still exists, is the direct continuation of the Knights Hospitallers from the Crusades, and has permanent observer status in the UN.
96
Advarrk Mar 29, 2026 +36
The Teutonic Knights also still exist.
36
f4r1s2 Mar 29, 2026 +13
They have several institutions here, including a hospital and orphanage, which is in my city. And the hospital is considered at the level of diplomatic representation for Malta. Edit, to be more specific, the flag of knights flies over the little church in the compound, the orphanage is run by a sisterhood (they also have a small hotel to help fund operations) and the hospital (Holy Family Hospital) locally known as the French hospital because to this day is run by a french organization who technically lease the land from the nuns.
13
the_excalabur Mar 29, 2026 +7
Note: not diplomatic recognition for Malta. Diplomatic recognition for the Order of St. John, aka the SMOM, who are a sovereign entity that happens to lack anywhere to govern. (Edit: on account of Malta being conquered by Napoleon.)
7
TheNobleHeretic Mar 29, 2026 +119
He’s already cosplaying as such while he cheats on his wife and gets black out drunk before bombing schools
119
Affectionate_Link175 Mar 29, 2026 +11
He probably hates catholics.
11
ancientweasel Mar 29, 2026 +433
Israel has a fascist government.
433
Greensentry Mar 29, 2026 +251
You forgot to add some words. Let me correct it for you: Israel is a facist, apartheid and genocidal state.
251
butt_naked_commando Mar 29, 2026 +55
Everyone in this thread is deliberately ignoring that all religious sites, including Jewish ones such as the Western wall, have been closed by the government due to missile attacks. Ambulances can't enter the old city's streets, so a hit on a gathering would be disastrous
55
bizarre_coincidence Mar 30, 2026 +14
They were also still allowed to pray at a nearby church that had access to an underground shelter that would have functioned as protection in the event of a missile strike. People want to say “Jews are bad, just look” without examining any of the details.
14
Successful-Money4995 Mar 29, 2026 +40
Purim celebrations were cancelled, too. If someone is trying to make a point about the Israeli government, this isn't the way to do it. It just sounds ignorant.
40
libr8urheart Mar 29, 2026 +64
Israel's 'shoot myself in the foot' era
64
UnstableMabel Mar 30, 2026 +15
It's like a slow suicide. It's breathtaking
15
elderlybrain Mar 30, 2026 +11
We've known how racist and dumb they were, it was only a matter of time they started taking it out on christians as well.
11
[deleted] Mar 29, 2026 +294
[removed]
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nohopeforhomosapiens Mar 29, 2026 +134
They've disliked the catholics for a long time. Catholic church rejects zionism. The evangelical protestants are the ones they tolerate because they constantly support them.
134
OkValuable454 Mar 29, 2026 +32
Catholics and Orthodoxes don't recognize or teach the apocalyptic prophecies that emerged in the US Christian churches in the 1800s. Doomsday, rapture, etc etc are essentially American.
32
toiletting Mar 29, 2026 +52
Yup, if you look at the Catholic heavy parts of the US, they heavily overlap with areas that reject Zionism. Same goes with strongly Catholic countries in Europe such as Ireland and Poland.
52
DGASAP Mar 29, 2026 +22
Greece also strongly rejects Zionism, they're mostly Orthodox but share the same core doctrines, sacraments, and apostolic succession.
22
Kathdath Mar 29, 2026 +9
Latinate Churchcis one type of Catholic, the Orthodox churches are another type of Catholic. It is only really in Protestant chuches that you find pro-Zionist leadership
9
RentInside7527 Mar 29, 2026 +12
You realize they also shut down the major Jewish and Muslim religious sites too, right? This is a fairly standard thing that happens during war there as these sites dont have bomb shelters capable of shielding the typical number of people there.
12
RicoLoveless Mar 29, 2026 +19
They locked out the other Christians too. Orthodox and Coptic.
19
Worldly_Anybody_9219 Mar 29, 2026 +23
The fact that the cardinal's last name is Pizzaballa is what I'm really stuck on here. What an amazing last name haha.
23
robustofilth Mar 29, 2026 +203
Israel is really working on pariah state status.
203
yuvaldv1 Mar 29, 2026 +570
>[Jerusalem’s major holy sites are closed](https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-war-easter-passover-jerusalem-83dd39fc7f931970230542339cd1b827) because of the ongoing [Iran war](https://apnews.com/hub/iran), including the church, as the city has come under frequent fire from Iranian missiles. >The Israeli police said it had notified the Catholic Church on Saturday that no Mass could take place on Palm Sunday because of safety considerations, the lack of access for emergency vehicles in narrow alleys of the Old City and lack of adequate shelter. I mean, this is a fair concern, especially considering Jerusalem comes under ballistic missile attacks multiple times a day. These restrictions aren't unique to christians. The Western Wall and Temple Mount are both [closed.](https://www.camera.org/article/guardian-corrects-on-jerusalem-holy-site-closures/) Edit: A quick search on the municipality's website shows that [there are zero bomb shelters in the old city.](https://www.jerusalem.muni.il/en/residents/security/spaces/list/?cats=OldCity)
570
rhino910 Mar 29, 2026 +266
Since the Middle East war began on February 28, Israeli authorities have banned large gatherings, including at synagogues, churches and mosques. Public gatherings are limited to around 50 people. The Latin Patriarchate had already announced it had cancelled the traditional Palm Sunday procession that normally runs from the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem and draws thousands of worshippers each year. “The heads of churches have acted with full responsibility and, since the outset of the war, have complied with all imposed restrictions,” the Patriarchate said. “Preventing the entry of the Cardinal and the Custos, who bear the highest ecclesiastical responsibility for the Catholic Church and the Holy Places, constitutes a manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate measure,” it said. https://www.euractiv.com/news/preventing-mass-by-jerusalems-latin-patriarch-an-offence-to-the-faithful-italy-pm/
266
yuvaldv1 Mar 29, 2026 +136
> Public gatherings are limited to around 50 people. I believe this is only allowed if there’s a bomb shelter within reach. I’m not sure there are any bomb shelters in the old city.
136
8BallTiger Mar 29, 2026 +118
Except this was just the Cardinal and a few others going to the church, not an actual gathering for mass
118
fdesouche Mar 29, 2026 +91
It wasn’t supposed to be a public mass but a private one. And the Israeli police doesn’t have jurisdiction on this Church, the Catholic guardians , a Franciscan section is under France military protection.
91
Substance_Bubbly Mar 30, 2026 +4
actually israel does have the **security** jurisdiction, which in this scenario it applies. it's the same with all non jewish religious sites btw, for example the al aqsa mosque and the golden dome, both under the jurisdiction of the jordanian waqf except for security related issues. also, the guidelines not only prevent mass gatherings but also small gatherings when there are no available shelters nearby. and unfortunately the old city of jerusalem is quite old, before the invention of rocket shelters, and building new ones is kind of hard when the entire old city is under historical conservation. with some of those conservation efforts so religiously fragil that even moving [a ladder](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immovable_Ladder) can be an international problem.
4
[deleted] Mar 29, 2026 +96
[deleted]
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vycko12 Mar 29, 2026 +12
I feel like they worship millionaire pastors more
12
StudyVisible275 Mar 29, 2026 +23
Don’t bring us into that mess. They only like Israel because of bogus theories like premillenial dispensationalism.
23
firemage22 Mar 29, 2026 +8
> premillenial dispensationalism i've started calling it the "Rapture Heresy"
8
oldfed2005 Mar 29, 2026 +171
The world hates Israel. We give them money. They fund AIPAC. AIPAC bribes 98% of congress.
171
neji64plms Mar 29, 2026 +99
Why are politicians more afraid of upsetting Israel than their constituents and more concerned with benefiting a foreign nation than their own countrymen?
99
amerovingian Mar 29, 2026 +33
Because their constituents dgaf and they know it.
33
Emperor_of_His_Room Mar 29, 2026 +8
Correction: they DIDN’T give a f***. Polls show that republicans and especially democrats vehemently oppose Israel. It’s starting to become an actual concern for politicians if they wanna get elected.
8
oldfed2005 Mar 29, 2026 +66
Bribes. Money.
66
neji64plms Mar 29, 2026 +46
Also do you know what/who Ghislaine Maxwells father worked for by chance? Totally unrelated question 😉
46
WilliamTee Mar 29, 2026 +10
Wonder who hold the GoPs balls tighter - Israel or the evangelicals?
10
Primary_Ad3580 Mar 29, 2026 +9
There is a terrifying number of evangelicals who want a strong Israel on the basis that it will bring about the end times. From what’s been shown in the past few weeks, some of them are in government. So rest assured, Israel and the evangelicals each share balls and time their squeezing in sync.
9
Photeus5 Mar 29, 2026 +8
The evangelicals don't give a damn about Catholics.  This won't be any issue for them.
8
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