Nuncio: Lebanon, a message to West and East

(Vatican Radio) - “Yesterday in Beirut there was a meeting with Christians and Muslims coming together to pray and reflect on the Holy Virgin…that’s the best answer that Lebanon could give to the situation around the region and the whole world these days”, says Pope Benedict XVI’s representative in Lebanon , Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Gabriele Caccia.

Speaking to Vatican Radio’s Tracey McClure, the Nuncio reflects on Lebanon’s role as a message of peaceful coexistence between people of different religious and cultural backgrounds in the one nationhood.

Q: What are your hopes regarding the situation in Syria which are so dramatic today?

A: “The Holy Father has intervened many times over the past months and even recently on Sunday, saying stop the violence! That’s the first measure needed for the people, we can’t just look at what’s going on, without trying to do something. There is a dramatic humanitarian situation that needs to be addressed and the Holy Father is asking everyone to stop the violence. And to find a way through dialogue the answer to the legitimate aspirations of the people of Syria in a way which also gives guarantees to all its components for a better society. Of course the situation in Syria depends also on the balance of powers in the region and the good will of the international community as a whole. We know that there is a new distribution of powers in this region and so if there is not the presence of all the actors internationally, regionally and locally, there will be no answer to the situation in Syria”.

Q: Pope John Paul used to call Lebanon “a message of pluralism and coexistence between people of different faiths”…yet the country has struggled with tensions remaining from its civil war years and from outside pressures…what future do you hope to see for the Land of the Cedars?

A: The message of Blessed John Paul II came after a long experience of division, but recalling the long, long tradition of Lebanon, of respect, of freedom. And so when he said the famous sentence “Lebanon is more than a message, both for the West and the East” he was giving the main mission of this country. Even now Lebanon has learned from their own suffering and divisions that no one is a winner, everyone is a loser. That is why even in this difficult moment in the region, Lebanon is trying to find a unity to answer positively to the situation avoiding conflicts divisions in respect for the others. It is very important for Lebanon to be shown as an example of a country where diversity and communion could have a place in society, at all levels of society. The President of this country is Christian – the only one in the whole region. The deputy and his ministers are half Muslims, half Christians. There is no discrimination. That’s the beauty of Lebanon: diversity, respect, freedom and unity”. Listen to the full interview: