Pope’s Lebanon Visit Highlights interfaith โฃHope Amidstโข deep Divisions andโ Regional Tensions
Pope Leo recently โฃconcluded a visit to Lebanon, marked by calls for โฃinterfaith harmony and peace, even as the country grapples with political paralysis, โฃeconomic โcollapse, and โthe โloomingโข threat of regional conflict. The visit, part โof his โfirst overseas trip asโฃ pope following a stop โin โTurkiye, aimed to โขofferโ a message of hope to a nation deeply fractured along sectarian lines.
Theโ Pope delivered a powerful message of unity during an interfaith gathering in Martyrs’ โSquare, a locationโ symbolically critically important as both a โmemorial to those who fought for Lebanon’s independence and a focal point for protests โdemanding political reform.”And peaceโ are possible,”โข he stated, โขurging that “every bell toll; everyโข adhan, every call toโค prayer โblend โฃinto a single, โsoaring hymn.”
However, observersโค note aโ starkโ contrast between the โimage of religious leaders united and the reality of Lebanon’s โdeeply divided society. Al jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut, emphasized โthis disconnect, stating that while โthe gathering presentedโฃ aโข unified front, the country remains profoundly fragmented.
Pope Leo met โwith Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, โthe Arab world’s sole Christian head of state, and addressed diplomats at โฃthe presidential palace. He also visited the tomb of St Charbel, a revered Catholic saint, and Harissa, โa hillside shrine overlooking the Mediterranean, where crowds greeted him โwith chants โof “Viva il Papa.” A gathering of approximatelyโ 15,000 young peopleโ heard the Pope encourage them to embrace hope and “dream, to plan andโ toโ do good.”
Lebanon is home to a significant Christian population, โขrepresenting roughly 30% of the country, alongside โคMuslimโ communities (Shia and sunni), as well asโฃ Alawite and โฃDruze minorities.Representatives from all majorโค sects attended the interfaith event, including leaders from communities impacted by violence in โฃneighboring โฃSyria.โ Sheikh Ali al-Khatib, deputy head โof the Supreme Shia Islamic Council, expressed gratitude for โขthe Pope’s visit but also highlighted theโข ongoing impact of “Israel‘s continuedโ attacks.”
The โขPope’s message of unity unfolded against aโข backdrop of escalating regional tensions. Hezbollahโฃ initiatedโข rocket attacks into Israelโฃ onโ October 8, 2023, in solidarity โwithโ Palestinians following Israel’s military operations โขin Gaza. โฃIsrael subsequently โคescalated its actions in Lebanon in September 2024, weakening Hezbollah. While a ceasefireโค was established in โคNovember 2024, Israel has continued cross-borderโฃ strikes,โ resulting in overโ 300 โfatalities in Lebanon, including approximately โข127 civilians, โaccording to UN โfigures. The Pope, while previously โฃadvocating for dialog, refrained from โdirect commentaryโ on the fightingโ during this visit. Many believeโ his presence serves as a deterrent to further Israeli escalation,with โconcerns rising that the situation could deteriorate after his โdeparture.
Beyond the immediate security concerns, Lebanon is facing a severe economic โcrisis โคstemming from decades of mismanagement, which โspiraled into a financial โฃmeltdown in 2019, pushing millionsโฃ into poverty. The country also hosts a large refugee population, including โapproximately one million Syrian and Palestinian refugees.
Pope Leoโฃ is โขscheduled to visitโค the site of the 2020โค Beirut port explosionโ and leadโ a โฃmassโฃ on the city’s waterfront on โTuesday, โคcontinuing his message of solidarity and hope for the future of Lebanon.
