Pope Leo XIV is heading to Lebanon this week. It is an important visit and comes after his trip to Turkey.
Lebanon continues to sit at a crossroads. Hezbollah refuses to disarm, and this has meant continued tensions with Israel and almost daily airstrikes.
For the Lebanese, the papal visit is a chance to search for hope, and this is embodied in the headlines about the visit.
The pope was expected to arrive in Lebanon on Sunday for a three-day visit.
“Pope Leo travels to Lebanon on Sunday, where he is expected to appeal for peace in a country that is a continued target of Israeli air strikes, on the second and final leg of his first overseas trip as leader of the Catholic Church,” Reuters reported.
Among the sites he is expected to visit is the Monastery of Mar Maroun, or St. Maroun, in the town of Annaya, CNN reported, adding that “the last papal visit to Lebanon was in May 2012 by Benedict XVI.”
Lebanon has a long, historical connection to the Catholic Church. The country has a large Maronite Catholic population that historically was larger than it is today and was seen as the dominant force in Lebanon.
The country has more than a dozen other religious denominations, including Greek Orthodox and Armenian Christians, Druze, and Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims. The Maronite Church is an ancient Christian church, deeply entwined with the Lebanese landscape.
While in Turkey, the pope visited a key mosque in Istanbul and also met with Christian Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople. During the visit, the pope said he was “deeply alarmed by the current international situation.”
Christian leaders issued a call for peace.
'Hezbollah sent a message of welcome to Pope Leo XIV'
As Pope Leo arrives in Lebanon, he will already be wading into a complex place.
“Hezbollah sent a message of welcome to Pope Leo XIV, on the eve of his visit to Lebanon, in which it said that this country, with its diverse composition, represents a civilizational link
between the followers of the two heavenly messages, Christianity and Islam,” Beirut-based newspaper Al Akhbar, which is pro-Hezbollah, reported Sunday.
Hezbollah claimed that “the conflicts the world is witnessing today are caused by some people’s disavowal of any commitment or recognition of the rights of other human beings, whether due to differences in religion, color, race, language, or interest,” the report said.
Hezbollah discussed Gaza in its message and said it “remains a tragedy resulting from the Zionist occupiers’ continued usurpation of the Palestinian people’s rights to their land, homeland, and self-determination, and from the international system’s refusal to adopt the standard of justice and right to find a solution to the ongoing conflict in our region, between the rightful owners of the land and homeland, and the usurping occupier.”
Hezbollah “concluded its message by saying that the pope’s visit to Lebanon is an opportunity that the resistance seizes to affirm its commitment to coexistence, consensual democracy, maintaining internal security and stability, and ensuring national sovereignty and its protection, by standing with the army and the people to confront any aggression or occupation,” Al Akhbar reported.
Pro-Hezbollah member of parliament Hassan Fadlallah said Hezbollah would not “surrender” to its enemies, meaning Israel.
The terrorist group has refused to disarm. Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai recently discussed Hezbollah’s disarmament and advocated for diplomacy over force to disarm the group, according to reports.
“Maronite Patriarch al-Rahi has called on the United States to pressure Israel to ‘end its violations of Lebanon,’ expressing hope that Pope Leo XIV’s upcoming visit will serve as a ‘message of peace’ addressed to both Lebanese and Israelis and a reminder to avoid war,” London-based newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported.
The pope also said Lebanon should “free itself from Iran,” the report said.
Asharq Al-Awsat supports the army having the arms of the state but does not seem willing to go much further in confronting Hezbollah.
“The pope understands Lebanon’s value and its unique cultural and civilizational role in the Middle East,” it added.
Meanwhile, Saudi-based newspaper Arab News reported: “Pope Leo XIV sets foot on Lebanese soil on Sunday in a visit that Lebanese officials describe as ‘historic in terms of timing and content.’ It comes amid fears of a new bloody phase, as the year-old ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah threatens to unravel.”
“The Pope’s carefully selected three-day itinerary is packed with meetings, including with the president, parliamentarians and ministers, as well as visits to the Monastery of Saint Maron in Annaya and the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa,” the report said. “In addition, he will offer a silent prayer at the site of the August 4, 2020, Beirut port explosion with survivors and victims’ families, where he is expected to call for justice nearly five years after the blast devastated the surrounding city.”