Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros Rahi presided over the Divine Liturgy and said in his homily that “Lebanon has its spiritual and cultural identity, and obscuring this identity leads to the loss of the nation. There is no salvation without legitimacy and respect for the law.”

He added, “A country without effective institutions and fidelity to the Constitution is a country threatened at its very core.”

Rahi noted that “Lebanon’s history includes both successes and failures and calls for charting a new course through respect for the Constitution and the protection of coexistence within a framework of historical responsibility.”

He concluded by raising prayers “for our country to find its path toward a just and comprehensive peace.”