Rome, Italy, Jun 22, 2011 / 11:35 am
Monsignor Robert Stern, a Church expert on the Middle East, is thoroughly “optimistic” about the possibility of a more democratic and pluralistic Middle East.
“I’m very optimistic that will emerge but, okay, God alone knows. I do feel that there’s great hope, though,” he tells CNA while on a visit to Rome.
For the past 22 years this Bronx-based priest has been head of the Pontifical Mission for Palestine and the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, making him one of the most well-informed people on the region.
In his view, the key to change in the Middle East is summed up in one word – Egypt.