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.
"We must not be discouraged," Pizzaballa said in a statement on Saturday confirming his appointment.