BEIRUT: Lebanese Christians across the country marked the religious Good Friday holiday with morning masses.
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir led prayers in the outer courtyard of the Patriarchate’s residence in Bkirki, along with Bishop Roland Abou Jawdeh, Bishop Samir Mazloum and several other religious figures. The Good Friday ceremony, which commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ, was also attended by a number of political figures.
In his sermon, Sfeir said that many Lebanese citizens had been complaining about a deterioration in security, noting that burglaries and other criminal activities were on the increase.
“Gangs are breaking into houses, aiming weapons, killing and smuggling illegal products for material benefits,” Sfeir said.
He attributed the rise in crime to political campaigns targeting senior government officials.
“No post has any immunity anymore, a situation that Lebanon has never experienced before,” Sfeir said, in reference to the recent campaign against Lebanese President Michel Sleiman. Last month, Tawheed Movement head Wi’am Wahhab, a close ally of Syria, called on Sleiman to resign after “failing to fulfill his promises.”
“The late Egyptian President Jamal Abdel-Nasser resigned, so why doesn’t Sleiman?” Wahhab asked. “Where is the problem if he wasn’t able to fulfill his promises of eradicating corruption and guaranteeing transparent administrative appointments?”
Sfeir urged the Lebanese to embrace their country and president, and to work on preserving Lebanon, improving its reputation and forgetting hatred.
The Maronite patriarch is scheduled to fly to the Vatican on April 21 to take part in an international cardinals’ rotational meeting chaired by Pope Benedict XVI, the Central News Agency reported. During the visit, Sfeir is expected to hold discussions with Vatican officials about the situation of Christians in Lebanon and the Middle East. Sfeir will then head to France upon the invitation of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, with whom he will discuss Lebanese and regional affairs, as well as bilateral ties between Lebanon and France.
In other Good Friday commemorations, a religious ceremony was held at the Holy Spirit University headed by superior general of the Maronite Order, Father Elias Khalifeh. President Michel Sleiman, first lady Wafaa Sleiman, Vatican Ambassador to Lebanon Gabriel Katcha, Change and Reform Bloc MPs Walid Khoury, Farid Elias al-Khazen, Hekmat Dib, Phalange MP Sami Gemayel and Lebanese Armed Forces Commander General Jean Kahwaji were among those who attended the Mass. After the prayers, Khalifeh delivered a speech praising the Lebanese president’s leadership. – The Daily Star
Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=113433#ixzz0k2k5TSci
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)
Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=113433#ixzz0k2jxQiBS
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)
