Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi received a delegation from the "Bani Dou" University on Saturday, led by former MP Ni'matallah Abi Nasr and attended by MP Mark Dou. Al-Rahi stated, "Our strength and capital are our internal unity to preserve Lebanon and navigate the problems we face today. We must endure, speak, and live our values, passing them on to our children and youth."
He added, "We hope that 2024 will be a year of goodness and blessings for all Lebanese and that God grants us the grace to endure in this homeland. He created this country as a paradise, mentioned in sacred texts more than seventy times. Each time it spoke of God's greatness, the phrase 'like the cedars in Lebanon' was included. These beautiful images used are evidence that God created beautiful Lebanon, which is our responsibility to preserve, as this homeland is our shared home. We must maintain it regarding our social life and diversity; if Lebanon loses this feature, it will lose its role."
Patriarch al-Rahi continued, "Those who believe they can dominate this country by eliminating the feature of plurality are completely mistaken; they are causing our internal problems. We must preserve our unity in diversity, and this is our message in this East. All Middle Eastern countries are homogeneous, but in Lebanon, there is freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of religion. We do not want to lose this feature in Lebanon; our diversity and the sects that constitute the Lebanese entity must teach us that we are one family who cannot lose our diversity."
He added, "We all share the political concern that Lebanon lives in the absence of a president, meaning the absence of a head of state. Do they want us to get used to the absence of a head of state? This will not happen; neither can the Parliament legislate if it loses its legislative power, nor can the government make decisions and appointments. This is unacceptable, and we always express this position; this is the true resistance."
He concluded, "I chose the slogan of partnership and love to say that partnership is unity and union with God, and what strengthens it is love. Today, we need pure, loving hearts, and what distinguishes us as Lebanese is the love for our homeland and for one another."
