The double issue of L'Osservatore Romano that comes out tomorrow for Sept. 17-18 devotes 6 of its 12 pages to a coverage of the second part of the Holy Father's visit to Lebanon. The trip scheduling was such that it allowed the OR on Saturday, Sept. 15, to report on the Pope's arrival in Beirut. The Sunday issue, Sept. 16, carried the accounts of the signing of the Apostolic Exhortation on Friday afternoon, the visit to the Presidential Palace on Saturday afternoon and the Pope's address to Lebanese political, social, cultural and religious leaders, along with the diplomatic corps. Tomorrow's issue covers the Pope's lunch and address to the bishops of the Middle East and his meeting with young people in Bkerke Saturday evening, the Mass and Angelus on Sunday morning, with the consignment of the Apostolic Exhortation to the patriarchs and bishops of the Middle East, the ecumenical encounter in Charfet before going to the airport, and the departure ceremony. Most of the photos are, unfortunately, in black and white, and poorly resolved.
Page 1 in tomorrow's issue leads off with the following editorial - and a beautiful photograph of the Pope:
Benedict XVI delivering his farewell address at Beirut airport on Sunday, Sept. 16.
The true face of the Church
Editorial
by Giovanni Maria Vian
Translated from the 9/17-9/18 issue of
Certainly, it was a journey of peace that Benedict XVI undertook to Lebanon. And the media in general observed that this was so. With positive comments that underscored the courage of the Pope.
But his visit to the region where Christianity was born and where it developed in its first centuries had a deeper sense that in some way summarized all the trips this Pope has made to show the true face of the Church.
His days in Lebanon will remain in the annals of the Pontificate for more than one reason. First of all, for the attention that the Holy See always, and now Benedict XVI, has given to the Middle East.
Suffice it to say that Benedict XVI has been to the region four times in the past six years, visiting Turkey, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, Cyrpus, and now Lebanon. In order to support the Christians of the Middle East and to affirm the need for coexistence among religions.
The Pope's visit took on a particular significance in the Land of the Cedars, as President Michel Sleiman well understood, who decided to be present, way beyond what was expected of him, at all the public events of the visit.
Received with a warmth that was spontaneous, Benedict XVI was seen in person by so many Lebanese, if only for a fleeting moment, after patiently waiting along the streets of Beirut, where on the last day, they greeted him with olive branches.
[And those who weren't there would surely have watched him on TV. Beirut residents also saw his smiling face for days on their streets and buildings ]
And the Pope returned their attention, sympathy and affection with his support for Lebanon, very important to this small modern nation with ancient Biblical roots, which has always been accustomed to many peoples living together in peace, in a history that has at times been tragic, but during its happier moments, has constituted an example for the whole region.
That is, in fact, how the Pope described Lebanon in his farewell speech at the Beirut airport, evoking the wood from the cedars of Lebanon that was destined for the most sacred place in God's Temple in Jerusalem.
Thus, Benedict XVI's wish is that even now, Lebanon should continue to be a space for harmony that bears witness to the existence of God and of communion among men, "whatever may be," he said, "their political, communitarian and religious sensibilities".
An exemplary mission in a region that has been battered for too long by violence and wars, the latest being the tragic conflict in Syria, which is never far from the thoughts and words of Benedict XVI
The Pope has left behind many things from his visit, and not only in Lebanon. Starting with the work-demanding document
Ecclesia in Medio Oriente, born out of the special Synodal Assembly that the bishops of the world dedicated in 2010 to the problems of the Middle East.
A text, translated to Arabic along with the Vatican's other official languages, and personally handed by Benedict XVI not just to the representatives of the various Catholic communities in the Middle East, but also to the leaders of other Christian confessions and of Islam, Indeed, the heads of the four major Islamic sects in Lebanon listened to him with great respect and attention during their private meeting with him.
[When they told him that it is in the interest of the Muslims themselves that the Christians of the Middle East remain in the lands of their birth and continue their contributions to their national societies.]
But from the brief visit to Lebanon one fact remains above all: A great many saw in this kindly man of God who has become transparent with age - anjd who undertook, with impressive courage, a trip he wished to make at all costs - the true face of the Church.
A face that Benedict XVI shows to everyone, explaining it somewhat in an impromptu comment to the Catholic patriarchs after their encounter with the youth representatives in Bkerke.
He said that the Christian identity can best be summed up in the open heart of Jesus.
Indeed, the Successor of Peter is not just Christ's Vicar on earth, but also the primary witness to Christ by his example.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 18/09/2012 15:40]