Archbishop Pizzaballa appointed Jerusalem Patriarch

Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Vatican’s apostolic administrator in the Holy Land, has been named as the new Patriarch of Jerusalem by Pope Francis. Pizzaballa, 55, a Franciscan friar, has served as the acting Patriarch for four years and has steered the diocese through a financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic, when the churches at the birthplace of Christianity were closed throughout its holiest season, Easter. In ordinary years, the Holy Land would be preparing for an influx of pilgrims over Christmas - but the outbreak has dealt a heavy blow to tourism in Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Nazareth, home to some of its most famous churches.

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