Raï: Politics Cannot Be Practiced Without Dialogue

The Maronite Patriarch Bechara Raï affirmed from Bkerke that "the political community cannot practice politics in isolation from clear and selfless dialogue, through mutual listening and differentiating the decision that must be taken, without imposing opinions forcefully, and without hidden calculations, and apart from the persistent effort to provide the common good, which gives its meaning and justification for existence, and which constitutes the foundation of its right to exist." He noted that "all our political, economic, and moral crises lie in the failure to provide the common good, and this is the main reason for the obstruction of the presidential election, which is where the chaos and disintegration of the state lie." He emphasized that "the Christian community cannot practice politics apart from dialogue and mutual listening and differentiating the decision that should be taken without imposing opinions and without hidden calculations."