The Pope and Father Pizzaballa visit the Church of the Nativity May 13. (CNS/L'Osservatore Romano)
Franciscan Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Custos of the Holy Land, has predicted Israel and the Holy See will resolve differences on implementing their 1993 Fundamental Agreement by the end of this year.
Father Pizzaballa made the comments in a May 20 interview with Terrasanta.net in which he discusses Pope Benedict XVI’s May 8-15 visit to the Holy Land.
The treaty protects the Church’s tax status in Israel and also protects Catholic holy sites and properties. Despite 10 years of on-and-off negotiations, Israel has yet to fulfill the tax- and property-related guarantees specified by the Fundamental Agreement.
As Custos, Father Pizzaballa is charged with oversight of the Church’s holy sites in the Holy Land. In the Terrasanta.net interview, Father Pizzaballa said, “An agreement will definitely be reached by the end of the year” by the bilateral commission that is negotiating a resolution to the tax and property issues.
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