from our correspondent in Beirut
The public day concludes with a big celebration in the square in front of the patriarchate of Antioch of the Maronites, in Bkerké. A huge crowd of young people, around 15 thousand, who welcomed Pope Leo with joy. Hugging and feeling hugged. In a moment of great crisis even the mere presence of the Pope brings hope. This was underlined by Cardinal Béchara Boutros Raï who, in greeting Leone, calls him «Pope of closeness, Pope of listening and mercythe Pope of peace, who reminds the world that light is always stronger than darkness and that the voice of the Church will always be a voice of hope and not of fear, a voice of peace and not of violence.”
The boys and girls bring the ruins of the Greek-Catholic church of St. George to Prevost, in Derdghaya, a small village east of Tyre, in southern Lebanon, bombed by Israel in October 2024, but which the boys are committed to rebuilding.
And again, among the gifts, also the fragments of a mountain, a cedar, to ask to grow strong like him, a passport to ask not to be forced to leave, a little Child, so that the Lord helps us to become like Him, peacemakers.
A moment of the meeting
(REUTERS)
Leone greets them in Arabic, “assalamu lakum!” (peace be with you!), greeted by applause. «The greeting of the risen Jesus» he immediately explains, «which supports the joy of our meeting: the enthusiasm we feel in our hearts expresses the loving closeness of God, who brings us together as brothers and sisters to share faith in Him and communion between us». He greets, in particular, the young people from Syria and Iraq, and the Lebanese who have returned home from various countries. We are gathered here to listen to each other, me first, asking the Lord to inspire our future choices.” He praises Anthony and Maria, Elie and Joelle who shared their stories speaking of “courage in suffering, hope in disappointment, inner peace in war”. Words that took shape in cooking together, helping each other, burying the dead, helping the wounded when the war destroyed homes and villages.
He recalls that «Lebanon’s history is interwoven with glorious pages, but it is also marked by deep wounds that are struggling to heal. These wounds have causes that go beyond national borders and are intertwined with very complex social and political dynamics». Young people have inherited «a world torn by wars and disfigured by social injustices. Yet in you”, the Pope is certain, “there resides a hope, a gift, which now seems to escape us adults. You have the time! You have more time to dream, organize and do good. You are the present and the future is already being built in your hands! And you have the enthusiasm to change the course of history! True resistance to evil is not evil, but love, capable of healing one’s own wounds while healing those of others.”
The Pope encourages young people, in imitation of the cedar whose strength lies in its roots, to draw «from the good roots of the commitment of those who serve society and do not “use” it for their own interests. With a generous commitment to justice, plan together a future of peace and development. Be the lifeblood of hope that the country awaits!
«Your homeland, Lebanon», he encourages them, «will flourish again as beautiful and vigorous as the cedar, symbol of the unity and fruitfulness of the people».
Speak to kids who were hit, who saw dead and injured, houses collapsed and who immediately worked to help others without asking what faith they were or where they came from. «Like many volunteers, our love for the country was stronger than fear and prevented us from fleeing. Even we young people refuse to abandon our Church, our country in these moments”, they told him during the evening full of symbols.
Leone greets the crowd
(REUTERS)
Pope Leo indicates them as a fixed point for “persevering in the commitment to peace” in Christ. Because the “fixed point cannot be an idea, a contract or a moral principle. The true principle of new life is the hope that comes from above: it is Christ! He died and rose again for the salvation of all. He, the Living One, is the foundation of our trust; He is the witness of the mercy that redeems the world from all evil.” Peace, he continues, “is not authentic if it is only the result of partisan interests, but it is truly sincere when I do to the other what I would like the other to do to me”.
And, after speaking about relationships, which must not be fragile and temporary like consumer objects, about the rosary, which many carry with them, about friendship and love, give them a prayer, the “simple and beautiful one, attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi: “O Lord, make me an instrument of your Peace: where there is hatred, let me bring Love; where there is offense, let me bring forgiveness; where there is discord, let me bring union; where there is doubt, let me bring faith; where there is error, let me bring the truth; where there is despair, may I bring hope; where there is sadness, may I bring joy; where there is darkness, may I bring light”. May this prayer keep alive in you the joy of the Gospel, the Christian enthusiasm. “Enthusiasm” means “having God in the soul”: when the Lord lives in us, the hope that He gives us becomes fruitful for the world. You see, hope is a poor virtue, because it presents itself with empty hands: they are free hands to open the doors that seem closed by fatigue, pain and disappointment. The Lord will always be with you, and rest assured of the support of the whole Church in the decisive challenges of your life and in the history of your beloved country.”
