President Joseph Aoun said during the ceremony marking the beatification of Patriarch Elias Howayek that “his beatification confirms that holiness and patriotism can come together in the journey of one person.”
Aoun said that serving God is a form of serving humanity, and that serving the Church represents a mission for the nation.
“The struggle of Patriarch Howayek was not the struggle of a sect defending itself, but rather the struggle of a nation that embraces everyone. He was the one who said: ‘I belong to all Lebanese,’” Aoun said.
He added that the beatification of Howayek coinciding with the centenary of the proclamation of the Lebanese Constitution “is not merely a coincidence, but rather a sign of divine providence that accompanied Lebanon during its founding moments and continues to accompany it today amid its hardships and challenges.”
“The message of this nation is greater than its crises, and its founding vision deserves to be protected and defended,” Aoun said. “Let us draw inspiration from Patriarch Howayek’s legacy: the meaning of steadfastness in times of change and the meaning of faith in Lebanon.”
He concluded by calling for the occasion to be a moment to renew commitment to the vision championed by Howayek: “Lebanon as a land of coexistence and a civilizational message between East and West.”
Aoun said that serving God is a form of serving humanity, and that serving the Church represents a mission for the nation.
“The struggle of Patriarch Howayek was not the struggle of a sect defending itself, but rather the struggle of a nation that embraces everyone. He was the one who said: ‘I belong to all Lebanese,’” Aoun said.
He added that the beatification of Howayek coinciding with the centenary of the proclamation of the Lebanese Constitution “is not merely a coincidence, but rather a sign of divine providence that accompanied Lebanon during its founding moments and continues to accompany it today amid its hardships and challenges.”
“The message of this nation is greater than its crises, and its founding vision deserves to be protected and defended,” Aoun said. “Let us draw inspiration from Patriarch Howayek’s legacy: the meaning of steadfastness in times of change and the meaning of faith in Lebanon.”
He concluded by calling for the occasion to be a moment to renew commitment to the vision championed by Howayek: “Lebanon as a land of coexistence and a civilizational message between East and West.”
