NNA - Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, presided this morning over the feast Mass of "Our Lady of Lebanon" and the start of the Marian month in the Basilica of "Our Lady of Lebanon" in Harissa.

In his homily, the Patriarch prayed to the Virgin Mary, the Lady of Lebanon, on her feast, "to protect our homeland and our people, preserve it as the land of faith and prayer, and sow peace in the hearts."

"With the beginning of the Marian month, we raise our eyes and our hearts to our Mother, the Virgin Mary, the Lady of Lebanon, and with the Lebanese, we are looking for a new hope that prayers may bring to them, becoming their main longing as recovery plans and reform projects remain useless in an atmosphere of utmost hatred, and as the positive effect of parliamentary and presidential elections remains limited unless accompanied by the spirit of harmony and devotion, for no issue or crisis is resolved with grudges," the Patriarch said.

"With kindness we resolve any disagreement even if deep, while with hatred we fail to resolve any disagreement even if superficial," al-Rahi affirmed.

Referring to the recent Tripoli boat tragic incident, the Patriarch said: "Images of the sinking boat disaster off Tripoli's shores are still vivid before our eyes, and the pain continues in our hearts as we see the death of children, youth, mothers and fathers, and we prayed for the souls of the fallen victims and for comfort and condolences to their families. It is not permissible for this tragedy to be a mere passing event, as some people try to turn its page just as they are trying to turn the page on the Beirut port blast and the explosion of the village of Al-Tleil in Akkar and others...Therefore, we call on the state to conduct a transparent and impartial investigation to determine responsibilities and put an end to questions and suspicion, especially that we are on the eve of parliamentary elections."

On the awaited parliamentary elections, al-Rahi confirmed that "with the people of good will, we are keen on ensuring that the elections take place in a safe and democratic atmosphere." 

He added: "Our priority is to stabilize Lebanon's entity and its national security so that it can carry out the constitutional obligations without surprises. We renew our call on the citizens to vote massively to regain the initiative of self-determination from those who have tampered with their fate and subjected Lebanon to collapse, its identity to fraud and its state institutions and decisions to infringement."

The Patriarch urged Lebanese citizens to fulfill their voting rights and duties, stressing that "the elections give every citizen the opportunity to translate the slogan that democracy is the rule of the people by the people." 

"It is the duty of the Lebanese to take advantage of this entitlement to tell the world which Lebanon they desire, and to inform the countries that follow Lebanese affairs that they reject every proposal for a settlement or bargaining project that is inconsistent with the reality of Lebanon, and does not respect the sacrifices made by the Lebanese people to preserve their independence, civilization and existence," al-Rahi underscored.

"It is clear that the majority of the Lebanese adhere to a free, democratic and neutral Lebanon; a Lebanon of national partnership and charter; a Lebanon of historical identity, justice and equality; a Lebanon of one army and constitutional institutions," he went on, underlining that the Lebanese want to "live, prosper and have a free economy."

In this context, the Patriarch emphasized that "sacrificing people's deposits in banks is not an inevitable fate, for there are other scientific solutions available that are capable of reconciling between addressing the state's debt and its income on the one hand, and preserving depositors' funds on the other hand."

"Yes, there are solutions for depositors if we mix technical proposals with creative ideas," al-Rahi reiterated, regretting that "most of the solutions proposed to solve the economic and financial crisis are alternatives to the original solution, because they are based on a narrow technical angle, ignoring the political dimension and turning a blind eye to the fait accompli that led the country to this collapse."

==========R.Sh.