Al-Rahi Rejects Violence, Urges Reconciliation during Mass Boycotted by March 14
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi rejected on Sunday any form of violence in Lebanon and elsewhere and called for “sustainable reconciliation” among the Lebanese.
In his sermon on the occasion of the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the first anniversary of his election, al-Rahi said: “Based on our Christian culture we reject and condemn any violence committed on our territories or anywhere else.”
“We also reject any incitement to violence,” he stressed.
Al-Rahi added that division and political and religious differences are rejected by the Maronite church.
Furthermore, the patriarch considered any attack on human beings or their dignity as an assault on God who alone gives and takes life.
He urged the Lebanese to overcome their differences and “achieve sustainable reconciliation among the different factions.”
The mass in Bkirki was attended by current and former officials, including Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun, several members of his Change and Reform parliamentary bloc and Energy Minister Jebran Bassil.
But March 14 opposition officials and mainly Lebanese Forces lawmakers boycotted the mass.
Asked about the boycott, Aoun refused to comment, saying “This is a political issue. I came here to congratulate (al-Rahi) on the feast.”
The patriarch has come under severe criticism by the LF, whose leader Samir Geagea accused him of defending the Syrian regime and endangering Christians in the region.
Aoun held closed-door talks with al-Rahi after the mass.
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