At the outset of his pastoral visit to the United States which spans from November 22-30, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa has received a warm welcome whereby Knight of the Holy Sepulcher Mr. Majdi Bader and his wife hosted a welcome banquet.

During the banquet, Mr. Majdi Bader welcomed Patriarch Pizzaballa saying, "Your presence here, as our pastor, has filled our hearts with the warmth of love despite the prevailing harsh cold weather."

He also referred to the solemn entrance of Patriarch Pizzaballa to the Holy Sepulcher in his capacity as Latin patriarch of Jerusalem on December 4, 2020 during which he said, "There are many expectations of our Church community and which specifically touches on the vocation and mission of our Church. We look forward to a renewed pastoral impetus which takes into account the different territories and cultures, but which is also capable of unifying all of us."  

Mr. Bader considered the first pastoral visit of Patriarch Pizzaballa to the United States as "a message from our mother church, namely  the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem." Referring to the visit, he said, " We see this first pastoral visit by you as a message from our Mother Church, namely the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. It is a message of renewal, openness, love, and pastoral care for her children that extends beyond geographical boundaries and even transcends different types of 'borders' that may exist in human and cultural reality.  It is a message of preserving the spirit of unity between us all, as the body of Lord Jesus Christ as His Church."

Noting that the Holy Bible states that God loves the city of Jerusalem and blesses those who love it. He continued, "We are gathered here around you and with you because we all love Jerusalem and the Church of Jerusalem. We love it at all our circumstances and all its situations. As you serve her presence and mission there, we hope to see her grow and bear fruit here, in this city, as well." He also wished Patriarch Pizzaballa "long years full of fruitful service."

Following are excerpts of the address by Knight of the Holy Sepulcher Mr. Majdi Bader:

Your Beatitude,

Brothers, sisters, and friends,

Good evening,

It is with great joy, love, and honor that my wife Linda and I, along with our dear brothers and sisters of the Founding Committee of our Arab Catholic Community in Chicago, welcome you here with us.

Your Beatitude,

Your presence here, as our Shepherd, has filled our hearts with a fire of warmth and passion, despite the bitter cold outside. Almost two years ago (December 4, 2020), in your speech for your solemn entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher as Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem, you said: “There are many expectations of our Church community, which specifically touch on the vocation and mission of our Church.  We look forward to a renewed pastoral impetus which takes into account the different territories and cultures but which is also capable of unifying all of us.”

We see this first pastoral visit from you as a message from our Mother Church, the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. It is a message of renewal, openness, love, and pastoral care for her children that extends beyond geographical boundaries and even transcends different types of “borders” that may exist in human and cultural reality.  It is a message of preserving the spirit of unity between us all, as the body of Christ as His Church.

Your Beatitude,

The Bible says that God loves the city of Jerusalem and blesses those who love it. We are gathered here around you and with you because we all love Jerusalem and the Church of Jerusalem. We love it in all our circumstances and all its situations. As we serve her presence and mission there, we hope to see her grow and bear fruit here – in this city – as well. We simply cannot see ourselves or our families separated or far from them.


Your Beatitude, we wish you many years filled with fruitful service. And we say with the people of Jerusalem: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.