Papal envoy to Lebanon, Cardinal Etchegaray, winds up visit
From Harissa and Baabda, he made appeals for unity and solidarity among Christians and Muslims. Mass was held in the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon and the cry of John Paul II was renewed: Oh Lebanon, you shall not die.
Harissa (AsiaNews) Cardinal Roger Etchegaray's visit to Lebanon ended today with a press conference at the headquarters of the Vatican Nunciature of Harissa. The President Emeritus of Justice and Peace went to Beirut on 14 August as the personal envoy of Benedict XVI and left the country at midday. In his meeting with journalists, he emphasized "the strong closeness of the pope to the suffering of all Lebanese people" and appealed for unity among Christians and Muslims in Lebanon, a requisite to salvaging its sovereignty. He also highlighted the need to respect the ceasefire and to put a stop all acts of violence, making the Lebanese more "supportive and united". Cardinal Etchegaray also participated in an extraordinary meeting of Maronite bishops and superior-generals in Bkerke, under the chairmanship of Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir, to study ways and means of bringing the country of the cedars out of the crisis gripping it.
The most meaningful moment of the visit took place yesterday, when the cardinal presided over solemn mass in the Basilica of Our Lady of Lebanon at Harissa, which was attended by all the patriarchs and bishops of the country and more than 6,000 believers.
In his homily, he reiterated "the pope's condemnation of all violence that has caused many deaths, especially among civilians", and he upheld the necessity of respecting all the leaders of the country, despite criticisms, for their work in favour of peace. The right road to peace, said Cardinal Etchegaray, "is spiritual rather than political" and no peace "can last, although there may be agreements, without peace that comes from the heart".
The French cardinal who according to the Vatican State Secretariat was undertaking a "strictly religious" mission expressed confidence anew in Lebanon's future, underlining the urgent need for tolerance among religions in the country and asking one and all to "know how to forgive".
"Twenty-one years after my first peace mission in Lebanon on the initiative of the late lamented Pope John Paul II, I would like to cry out loud: Oh Lebanon, you will not die," added Cardinal Etchegaray.
Throughout his brief stay, the pope's envoy also had meetings with the President, Emile Lahoud, the Premier, Fouad Sinora, and the Parliament Speaker, Nabih Berri. The Cardinal also visited the Grand Mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Mouhammad Rachid Kobbani, and the deputy chairman of the Shiite Higher Council, Sheikh Abd El Amir Kabalan.
From the presidential palace in Baabda, the cardinal made another appeal to all Lebanese "in the pope's name", urging the population "to remain united". He said: "On the basis of this unity, the Lebanese people will render a great service to the whole world."
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