Card Parolin in Lebanon: failure to elect a president weighs heavily on today's Middle East
The Vatican Secretary of State is on a five-day visit in the Mideast country at the invitation of the president of the Lebanese Association of the Sovereign Order of Malta. Yesterday, at the Mass for the feast of Saint John the Baptist, he renewed the appeal to fill the void of this Christian voice “that would undoubtedly make a difference” even amid the winds of war blowing dangerously in the region. The Church continues to play a key role in assisting the needy.
Beirut (AsiaNews) – At the invitation of Marwan Sehnaoui, President of the Lebanese Association of the Sovereign Order of Malta, the Secretary of State of the Holy See, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, is in Lebanon on a five-day visit (23-27 June) to see the Order’s humanitarian activities, as well as meet with the country's authorities, the local Church, and representatives of Islamic religious authorities.
Last night, Card Parolin celebrated Mass on the Solemnity of Saint John the Baptist, Patron Saint of the Order of Malta, in the Church of St Joseph of the Jesuit Fathers, in the presence of the Commander-in-Chief of Lebanon’s Armed Forces, General Joseph Aoun. This provided him with an opportunity to relay the Holy See's concerns about the detrimental delay in electing a president.
Lebanon has been without a head of state since November 2022, due to a power game by the Shia community, led by Hezbollah, which is seeking to impose its candidate, and the lack of consensus within the Maronite community, from whose ranks the president must be picked in accordance with the constitution.
In his homily on Saint John the Baptist's Day, the Holy See's secretary of state echoed the Vatican's concerns in the matter.
"The Church in Lebanon must also bear witness, according to her high mission to keep alive and effective the message of 'living together'," he said. “In this regard, allow me to stress that we have felt a great void for months. A Christian voice is missing, one that would undoubtedly make the difference; the voice of the President of Lebanon is missing. This absence weighs heavily at this very serious time for the Middle East.
“In the name of the Holy Father, with confidence and hope, I renew this appeal to all those who have a responsibility, to ensure that the election of the President may soon be accomplished and that the country may once again regain institutional stability, so necessary to seriously face the current challenges.”
As part of his visit to the Order of Malta, Card Parolin's schedule includes meetings with Lebanese leaders and political figures.
Unconfirmed reports say that the cardinal will meet with the commander of the Armed Forces, the only major Maronite in a position of authorities, in the absence of the head of state, a possible candidate to the presidency of the Republic that might be acceptable to all parties, a man considered both "unifying and reassuring", this according to a Maronite from an association who requested anonymity.
The Vatican's Number Two also met in private with Michel Mouawad, a lawmaker whose name was put forward as a candidate for the presidency by a parliamentary majority hostile to Hezbollah but failed to gain sufficient support to be elected.
Tomorrow, the prelate is set to meet with Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berry and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Humanitarian diplomacy
On Monday Cardinal Parolin visited humanitarian centres run by the Order’s Lebanese Association, the undisputed leader in primary health care in Lebanon, through its ten medico-social centres, and involved in the last four years in six agro-humanitarian projects to guarantee food security in Lebanon.
This, the Secretary of State noted, is a response to the country's serious economic crisis. In Lebanon, 80 per cent of the population now lives in poverty and growing insecurity.
“Changing Lebanon’s face”
Renewing with a prayer his visit to the centre for the disabled in Chabrouh (Kesrouan), in the Lebanese mountains, Cardinal Parolin prayed at the end of his visit that the Order's humanitarian action be rooted in Christian love and joy. “Thus, we will be able to change the face of Lebanon," he said.
His final words resonate both on a human and moral level in a country overwhelmed by economic problems and insecurity.
Yesterday, Card Parolin travelled to Zghorta, a district in northern Lebanon, visiting an agro-humanitarian centre, a medical social centre, and a retirement home for seniors.
In his homily, he reminded members of the order of their religious vocation and that the humanitarian action of the Order of Malta reflects the orientations of the Catholic Church.
“Your work is not simply humanitarian,” he said. “It is highly distinctive compared to that of many other institutions and associations to the extent that it is religious action based on the faith in Christ.”
In saying this, he was echoing Pope Francis, who, at the General Conference of the Order of Malta (27 January 2024), invited participants to keep in mind that “there are not two different realities: the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a subject of international law devoted to works of charity and assistance, and the religious Institute.”
Today, Cardinal Parolin joined the Maronite Patriarch, Bechara al-Rahi, in a meal in his honour at the patriarchal see in Bkerké. Other guests included Eastern Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs, Islamic leaders like the Sunni mufti, and Druze and Alawite leaders, as well as Sleiman Frangié and Gebran Bassil, representing the Lebanese Forces and Kataeb, but no one from the Shia community.
A source told AsiaNews that, during the lunch, the cardinal said that the pope "closely follows" the evolution of Lebanese affairs.
In the evening, the cardinal was scheduled to say Mass in Annaya, where Saint Charbel is buried, and pray with the men and women religious of Lebanon.
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25/02/2022 16:12
