Al-Rahi Believes Visiting Syria is Not Taboo: Christianity in Lebanon Protects Arabs

Newly elected Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi stated that visiting Syria is not “taboo”, adding that he would relay Christian insecurities to officials in Lebanon and the Arab country.

He told the daily An Nahar in remarks published on Saturday: “It is the duty of every patriarch to visit the parishes every five years and I will do that immediately.”

“We want the political issues between Lebanon and Syria to be resolved by the politicians,” he stressed.

“Syria is like any other country and I will relay the Maronites’ concerns to the officials in order to build a friendship with them and share common worries,” al-Rahi said.

The patriarch summed up Bkirki’s central national principles in “the human, society, justice, understanding, sovereignty, independence, and freedom of choice.”

Addressing the situation of Christians in the Arab world, he said through preserving their existence and coexistence with Muslims, Lebanon’s Christians “have carried this responsibility to the Arab world” and they have protected the Arab Christians.