The pain of our times, observed Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, "does not allow us to make sugar-coated and abstract, and therefore unconvincing, speeches about peace, nor to limit ourselves to yet more analysis or denunciations. Rather," he insists, "we are called to stand as believers within this drama, which is not likely to end anytime soon."

In his homily during the Mass celebrated at the Benedictine Abbey of Abu Gosh on the Solemnity of the Assumption, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem offered a meditation on a passage from the Book of Revelation — a text that, he said, has accompanied the Christian community and been a source of reflection many times “throughout these months filled with pain.”

Aware that evil will continue to operate in the world

Cardinal Pizzaballa realistically shared what emerges today from reading the text, focusing especially on the power of Satan, depicted as the dragon — "who will never stop asserting himself and unleashing fury upon the world, particularly against 'those who keep God’s commandments and hold fast the testimony of Jesus.'"

"We would all like evil to be defeated as soon as possible," he admitted, "to disappear from our lives. But that’s not how it is. We know this, but we must always learn anew to live with the painful awareness that the power of evil will continue to be present in the life of the world — and in ours."

"With our human strength alone, we cannot defeat the enormous power of that dragon. It is a mystery — as harsh and difficult as it may be — that belongs to our earthly reality. This is not resignation. On the contrary," he clarified, "it is an awareness of the dynamics of life in the world — without fleeing in any way, but also without fear, without endorsing them, yet without hiding them either."

In the Holy Land, the greatest manifestation of Satan?

Still, the Cardinal highlighted, in light of today’s Solemnity, that “the dragon cannot prevail over the seed of life, which is the fruit of love.” He points out that in the Bible, the desert is not a place of absence but a place where God provides. "In our current experience — so hard and difficult — God continues to provide for us, first of all by warning us of the strength of evil, of worldly power, which in this land and in this time seems truly to prevail."

Cardinal Pizzaballa is very clear when he stated, "We must not deceive ourselves."

Even the end of the war, he warned, will not mark the end of the hostilities and pain it will leave behind. "From many hearts, a desire for vengeance and anger will continue to emerge. The evil that seems to govern the hearts of many will not stop its activity — it will remain constantly at work, and I would even say, creative. For a long time still, we will have to deal with the consequences of this war in people's lives."

“It seems that this Holy Land of ours — which guards the greatest revelation and manifestation of God — is also the place of the greatest manifestation of the power of Satan. And perhaps precisely because it is the place that holds the heart of the history of salvation, it has also become the place where the ‘Ancient Adversary’ seeks to impose himself more than anywhere else.”

Few, unaligned, "troublesome" — but we will be God’s refuge

Faced with a context of death and destruction, the Patriarch encouraged trust, a renewed covenant with those who desire and sow good, and the creation of spaces for healing and life. Bitterly aware that evil will continue to express itself, Cardinal Pizzaballa invites believers to be places of life, so that the dragon will not have the final word.

“We will not, therefore, be the center of the world’s life. We will not follow the logic that guides much of the lives of the powerful. We will probably be few, but always different, never aligned — and perhaps for this reason, even bothersome. We will still be the place where God provides — a refuge protected by God. Or better yet, we are called to become that refuge for those who want to guard the seed of life in all its forms.”

The blood of the innocent is not forgotten

Continuing the biblical metaphor, the Cardinal expressed conviction that the dragon will eventually fall, but that for now, we must endure — and that the blood of the innocent, not only in the Holy Land and in Gaza but anywhere in the world, “is not forgotten.”

That blood “is not thrown away in some corner of history,” he said. It flows beneath the altar, “mingled with the blood of the Lamb, sharing in the work of redemption to which we are all joined. That is where we must remain. That is our place — our refuge in the desert.”

Christian life, he concluded, overturns the criteria of the world. He recalls the witness of Saint Frances of Rome, who was hindered by Satan in her desire to live for God but who, in the end, fulfilled God’s work.

“This is how God works with everyone," the Cardinal noted, saying, "He enters, and He overturns.” Thus, the Cardinal entrusted everyone to the Blessed Mother, suggesting we must look to the mystery of the Assumption of Mary as a foretaste of eternal redemption.