“Lebanon, be a dwelling place of justice and fraternity! With this appeal, Pope Leo XIV concluded his visit to Lebanon on Tuesday at a Mass on Beirut's waterfront before more than 150,000 faithful. The Peruvian-American pope traveled the esplanade in a covered popemobile, in the largest gathering of what was his first international trip, amid the enthusiasm of the country's Catholic community, which comprises less than 30% of the population (although a few decades ago it was more than half the country). "The Middle East needs new approaches to reject the mentality of revenge and violence, to overcome political, social, and religious divisions, and to open new chapters in the name of reconciliation and peace," declared the head of the Catholic Church, who concluded his three-day visit to Lebanon on Tuesday. Turkey and Lebanon, on his first trip abroad. Robert Francis Prevost arrived on Sunday from Turkey, on his first trip abroad as leader of the Church. Catholic, with a message of hope for young Lebanese people, whose faith has been tested by the challenges facing the country.

She received a jubilant welcome in a nation ravaged by economic collapse and still recovering from last year's war between the Islamist movement Hezbollah and Israel, which many fear will summarize.

Leo XIV stated that the beauty of Lebanon “is obscured by the numerous problems that afflict them, by a fragile and often unstable political context, by the dramatic economic crisis that oppresses them, by the violence and conflicts that have awakened old fears.” And he recalled that this morning he visited the site of the explosion at the port, where he was able to console some of the relatives of the 245 victims of the tragedy of August 4, 2020. He encouraged them “to find the small lights that shine in the depths of the night, both to open ourselves to gratitude and to stimulate us to a common commitment in favor of this land,” to no longer be discouraged, “nor to give in to the logic of violence nor to the idolatry of money,” Let us not resign ourselves to the evil that is spreading.”

“Each one must do their part,and we must all join our efforts so that this land can recover its splendor. And there is only one way to do it: let us disarm our hearts, let us cast aside the armor of our ethnic and political divisions, let us open our religious faiths to mutual encounter, let us awaken in the depths of our being the dream of a united Lebanon, where peace and justice triumph,” the Pope encouraged.

The Pope concluded his homily by praying “that this land of the Levant may always be illuminated by faith in Jesus Christ, the Sun of Justice, and, thanks to Him, may preserve the hope that is not missing.”