Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Rahi rejected having a Lebanon of "one-color and one-party", reiterating the need to elect a president of the republic who alone can guarantee the country's unity amidst its diversity, being the head of state and the symbol of the nation's unity and balance according to the Lebanese Constitution (Article 49).
Presiding over the celebration Mass for the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary at the Summer Patriarchal Church in Dimane, Rahi underlined the profound reverence for the Virgin Mary harbored by both Christianity and Islam, considering that this blessed occasion reflects the harmonious partnership shared between Lebanon’s diverse religious communities.
He said: "Mary is honored in both Christianity and Islam, and the feast of her Annunciation has been declared a national holiday in Lebanon. It is one of the beautiful elements that unite the Lebanese. The things that unite Christianity and Islam are numerous, and we must resort to and enrich them in our national life. They are the basis for the system of cultural and religious pluralism in Lebanon - pluralism in unity, and by pluralism we mean diversity. This is a fundamental feature of the Lebanese political system. Lebanon of one color is not Lebanon; Lebanon of one party is not Lebanon; Lebanon of one opinion imposed by a person or group is not Lebanon; Lebanon of one religion is not Lebanon..."
Rahi raised prayers to the Lord Almighty to grant us, through the intercession of our mother, the Virgin Mary, Queen of the Assumption, attributes that resemble her virtues, and prayed for the war in the south to end and to establish a just, comprehensive and permanent peace in both southern Lebanon and Gaza.
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