By Vatican News
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, is formally launching a new interdisciplinary forum dedicated to exploring Jerusalem’s universal vocation and its significance for people both within the Holy Land and beyond.
“Within Your Gates: The Forum for the Universal Vocation of Jerusalem” is being launched in Jerusalem on Sep 7 2026. The initiative has been developed in partnership with the University of Notre Dame’s academic centre in Jerusalem and will bring together scholars and practitioners from different faith traditions and academic disciplines.
The forum seeks to examine Jerusalem’s universal mission while engaging with the realities of daily life in the city and the wider region. Its areas of research will include the theological significance of Jerusalem, the city’s universal vocation, the language of conflict and reconciliation, and questions of agency under conditions of constraint.
A response to the realities of the Holy Land
The initiative comes amid what the organisers describe as the tragic events that continue to affect the Holy Land. In a statement published by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pizzaballa described the forum as an opportunity to confront these realities while working collaboratively toward a better future for all Jerusalem’s residents.
“The mission of earthly Jerusalem is to become the image and mirror of heavenly Jerusalem, a prophecy and promise of that universal reconciliation and peace which God desires for the whole human family,” Cardinal Pizzaballa said. “It is to this mission that we must return.”
The Cardinal will serve as Chair of the Board of Promoters and will present his vision for the initiative at the launch event in Jerusalem. The gathering will include scholars and practitioners who serve on the forum’s Board of Promoters or Advisory Committee.
From conversations to an established forum
According to the forum’s description, the initiative grew out of a series of closed conversations begun by Cardinal Pizzaballa in response to the situation in the Holy Land. The conversations sought to develop a new perspective on the region’s future and translate that perspective into theological guidance and pastoral practice.
Beginning in 2024, the process developed into five workshops held over two years in partnership with Notre Dame’s academic centre in Jerusalem. The workshops brought together scholars and practitioners from different religious and disciplinary backgrounds.
The experience led to the recognition of the need for a permanent structure to continue the work, resulting in the establishment of Within Your Gates in September 2026.
Research rooted in Jerusalem
The forum describes itself as a platform for applied interdisciplinary research and outreach rooted in the concrete realities of Jerusalem while addressing questions with a wider relevance.
Its work will place the common good of Jerusalem’s residents at the centre, while inviting people from other faith traditions to contribute to and shape its mission. The initiative aims to foster encounters and research across ethnic, religious and political lines.
The organisers also envisage collaboration among a wide range of disciplines, including theology, philosophy, history and political science, as well as fields such as architecture, management and literature.
The forum will be led by Dr Daniel Schwake and builds on more than three years of cooperation with the University of Notre Dame’s academic centre in Jerusalem and other colleagues from the university.
At the heart of the initiative is the conviction that Jerusalem’s complexity need not prevent the city from fulfilling its universal vocation. Rather, the forum argues that this complexity can itself become a source of reflection and inspiration for humanity. – Vatican News
