Defense of The Faith
"Blessed are the Peacemakers": Patriarch Theophilos III speaks with Breitbart
The Primate of the Mother of Churches shares his thoughts on the war in Ukraine and prospects for peace.
On August 30, Breitbart News published an interview with His Beatitude Theophilos III, Patriarch of Jerusalem and All Palestine. In the interview, which took the form of written answers to questions submitted by the news outlet, the prelate spoke on several issues currently facing the Church. Perhaps most interestingly, he expressed a desire to meet with Presidents Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and Vladimir Putin of Russia to help negotiate an end to the current war. “We very much look forward to working with them to open channels of communication and constructive dialogue,” the Patriarch wrote.
A resident of Jerusalem since 1964, Theophilos served as archdeacon for Patriarch Benedict I (+1980). He was ordained a priest in 1975. For nearly the next twenty years, he was an ambassador for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, representing the Holy City on the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches, in Qatar, and from 2001-2003 as Patriarchal Commissioner in Moscow. This last assignment allowed His Beatitude to develop close connections in the region, which may help his attempts at brokering a peace.
