Pope to visit Lebanon in September

(April 09, 2012) Pope Benedict XVI will make a three-day visit to Lebanon in September at the invitation of the government and the bishops of Lebanon. The purpose of the Sept. 14-16 visit will be to present the final document of the Special Synod of Bishops for the Middle East that was held in the Vatican in October, 2010. During the three days the Pontiff will celebrate Mass in Beirut and meet the young people and the country’s authorities. In his Easter message on Sunday, Pope Benedict expressed his concern over the situation of Christian communities in the Middle East and Africa. Speaking about the hope that Christ’s Resurrection and the Cross stand for the Pope said Jesus is ``hope and comfort in a particular way for those Christian communities suffering most for their faith on account of discrimination and persecution.'' The Pope particularly mentioned Syria and the Holy Land. Sectarian violence in Iraq, often aimed at Christians, has prompted an exodus over the last years of many from the sizable Christian community there. Benedict also prayed that God sustain the Christian community in Africa, particularly mentioning the Horn of Africa, the Great Lakes region, Sudan and South Sudan, Nigeria and Mali.