Maronite Patriarch Bechara Raï presided over a festive mass at St. Charbel Parish in Florence, Italy, in the church named after Saint Charbel. The church was restored by Lebanon's Honorary Consul in Florence, Charbel Chebeir, and his brothers Zakhia and Paul, at their own expense. Assisting him were the Archbishop of Florence, Cardinal Giuseppe Betori; apostolic administrator Bishop John Rifiq Al-Warchah; the General Superior of the Lebanese Maronite Order, Abbot Hadi Mahfouz; and parish priest Father Danny Kammal.
Among those attending the mass were the Ministers of Interior and Municipalities, Bassam Mawlawi, and Tourism, Walid Nassar; the head of the "Strong Lebanon" bloc, MP Gebran Bassil, and his wife Chantal; Lebanon's Ambassador to the Vatican, Fred Khazen; the ambassadors of Lebanon and Palestine to Italy, Mira Dahir and Abir Oda, respectively; the Consul of Lebanon in Naples, Zakhia Quba; the Director of Administrative and Personal Affairs at the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities, Najwa Suwaydan Farah; Judge Miray Malak; the President of the Lebanese Banks Association, Selim Sfeir; the Vice President of the Municipal Union of Jezzine, Mayor of Lbba Fadi Romanos; Mayor of Blat, Qartaboun and Msiteita, Abdo Al-Atiq; Sara Fonaro, representing the Mayor of Florence, Dario Nardella; Beirut Municipal Council member Elie Yashouh; the Global Peace Ambassador, Hussein Ghamlouch; the President of the Housing Bank, Antoine Habib; the Vice President of the "Free Patriotic Movement" for foreign party relations, Dr. Najy Hayek; the Chairman of the Rosary Holding and the Electric Utility of Jbeil, Engineer Elie Bassil; the Head of Middle East Airlines in Rome, Marwan Attallah; the Coordinator of the "Free Patriotic Movement" in Italy, Dr. Jihad Jbour; the Ambassador of the Ministry of Tourism for religious tourism in the diaspora, Josephine Abi Ghosn; and a large number of members of the Lebanese diaspora as well as invited guests.
At the beginning of the mass, Cardinal Betori delivered a speech congratulating the community on their new church and complimenting the honorable consul for his generosity in its restoration, announcing the official creation of St. Charbel Parish.
After the Holy Gospel, Patriarch Raï delivered a sermon titled "I am with you always, to the end of the age." He stated, “Let’s open our minds and hearts to understand the Word of God, for through it we can comprehend what is happening around us and in our lives. We refute everything against truth and reality and strive for goodness, unity, love, and peace, for this is the culture we carry wherever we go. We cannot live without a culture and a message we bear as Christians wherever we are, working for peace, understanding, and the struggle for people to live in peace and truth. This is our message we carry as Christians wherever we find believers in the grace of the Holy Trinity.”
In conclusion, there were remarks from parish priest Father Danny Kammal and the honorable consul, who discussed the stages of the restoration process, asking God "through the intercession of Saint Charbel to grant our country Lebanon a miracle to rescue it from its crises.”
Patriarch Raï then presented an icon of Our Lady of Lebanon to the church and a medal of the patriarchate to both Cardinal Betori and the honorary consul, announcing the awarding of the Mar Maroun Medal to the honorary consul during his visit to Lebanon.
Following that, Patriarch Raï received the church key from Cardinal Betori and blessed the statue of Saint Charbel, made of marble and crafted in Lebanon, donated by member of the Lebanese diaspora, Sakhr Azar. Global Peace Ambassador Ghamlouch commented, “It is a great honor for me as a Lebanese resident abroad that a church aged 800 years is inaugurated in the name of the 'Heavenly Doctor' Saint Charbel, whose name now resonates throughout the world.”
