Abbot is neither pro-Israel nor pro-Palestine

Seven months after the start of the war in Gaza, Abbot Nikodemus pleads for an humanitarian perspective on the conflict, transcending religious and political boundaries. 

As the Palestine-Israel conflict continues to rage, Nikodemus Schnabel, Benedictine Abbot of the Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion in Jerusalem and Tabgha Priory at the Sea of Galilea, stresses the importance of a Christian perspective on the war, in an interview with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

“People are dying while the world watches, as if it was a simple game, where one waves flags for one team or another. But this is a terrible situation,” the Abbot said.

“This is not a football match, and it’s not about scoring points, seeing who has the most impressive stories, or the best pictures.”

The sad reality is that many people take sides without fully understanding the complexities of the conflict, charged Abbot Nikodemus. “At the moment, we are living in a very polarized environment. There is a lot of pressure to pick a camp and make accusations, but if you do so, you become part of this game. The reality is very complicated, with many ‘footnotes,’ ‘brackets,’ and ‘parentheses.’”

The abbot of the Basilica of the Dormition insisted: “I am neither pro-Israel nor pro-Palestine. I am pro-human being. This is my theological position.” During the interview, he expanded on the belief – shared by Christians, Jews, and Muslims – that every human being is created in the image of God and deserving of respect and dignity, regardless of nationality or religion. 

Christians suffer between extremes

Abbot Nikodemus also highlights the dangerous rhetoric on both sides, and its tragic consequences. “They don’t talk about human beings. They say these are not people, that they are monsters, beasts in human shape,” he said. “There is a dangerous tendency to dehumanize the ‘other.’ They speak of ‘neutralizing’ people. They don’t say ‘killing.’ They talk about casualties as though they were mere statistics. They hide the fact that these are human beings, dying at the hands of other human beings.”

Additionally, the Benedictine abbot reflected on the challenges faced by Christians in the region, torn apart by decades of division, violence, and political conflicts between Israel and Palestine. “Many people think that Israel and Judaism are the same thing, and that they are the same as the Western world, and that Palestinians equal Islam and the East. But even though they are only a small percentage, an estimated two percent of the population, Christians don’t fit into this and have suffered greatly. The truth is that we are victims of both sides,” he explained. “I get the feeling that some people think that without Christians, things would be simpler, because then we really would be left with this wonderfully black and white representation of the conflict. But the Christians are present, and on both sides, which complicates the narrative of a clear division between opposing forces,” he said.

The Christian message of forgiveness

Despite being largely ignored, the Christian community in the Holy Land has a very important role, according to the abbot: it is the only faith group that places the message of forgiveness and compassion at the center of its proclamation. “We feel the pain and suffer with the people on both sides. We shed tears for both sides.” This leads the Benedictine abbot to call for a new perspective, insisting that each life, including that of a sinner or criminal, is created in the image and likeness of God. This basic belief should serve as a reminder of the inherent dignity and value of each person. It does not condone seeing people only from a militaristic point of view.

“My point of reference is Holy Scripture, the Bible. That is where I learned from my Lord Jesus Christ that I should pray for those who hate me and pray also for those who commit crimes. It is a scandal to say so nowadays, but I do pray for the terrorists, and for all the others who are implicated in the conflict,” Abbot Nikodemus concluded.

—Maria Lozano