PLYMOUTH — Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, OFM, was the featured guest Dec. 5 during a fundraising dinner sponsored by the Archdiocese of Detroit in support of Christians in the Holy Land at St. John's Resort in Plymouth.
Catholics in the Archdiocese of Detroit and the Chaldean Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle raised more than $500,000 to support the work and ministry of the Church led by Cardinal Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, over two days, Detroit Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger announced.
The fundraising dinner at St. John's Resort, "United in Faith: Bridging Hearts from the Motor City to the Holy Land," included a fireside chat between Archbishop Weisenburger and Cardinal Pizzaballa, who discussed a wide range of topics, including the cardinal's personal faith, his work to support persecuted communities in Gaza and the Middle East, and the dire humanitarian crisis facing the region.
Preceding the event, Cardinal Pizzaballa, Archbishop Weisenburger and Chaldean Bishop Francis Y. Kalabat addressed members of the media during a news conference at St. John's Resort.
During the press conference, Cardinal Pizzaballa spoke about the deteriorating conditions in Gaza, and how the international community in places like Detroit can stand with those who are greatly suffering.
“Hope is a word that cannot remain alone. It has to put its roots in something else,” Cardinal Pizzaballa said of the future in the war-torn Holy Land. “It can be faith; it can be desire. If you have faith, you want to give that faith expression. If you have desire, you want your desire to be realized. So hope cannot remain alone.
“If the institutions have failed, at the grassroots level, we have to have people who are able to think differently and act differently. … We have to try to defend as much as we can the rights of the poor.”
This story will be updated.
