SIDON: Sidon’s Greek Catholic Archdiocese was inaugurated over the weekend along with a center for Islamic and Christian studies, with speakers at the ceremony calling for dialogue of religions and emphasizing coexistence.
A number of religious figures, politicians and businessmen took part in opening the archdiocese which saw a number of refurbishments.
Gregory III Lahham, the patriarch of the Church of Antioch and the entire Levant for Melkite Greek Catholics, participated in the ceremony that took place under his patronage.
Attendees gathered at Saint Nicholas Cathedral inside the archdiocese.
Lahham said that attacks against Levantine Christians reflected a “Zionist conspiracy against Islam.”
“I believe it is necessary to deeply examine fundamentalism … and terrorism that are masked by religion, along with violence and disturbances against Christians here and there and on an increasing level. All this behavior has nothing to do with Islam,” Lahham said.
“But it is actually a conspiracy planned by Zionism and some Christians with Zionist orientations and it aims at undermining and giving a bad image of Islam,” he added.
Gunmen from the Islamic State of Iraq – an Al-Qaeda affiliated organization – stormed Baghdad’s Our Lady of Salvation Church during Sunday Mass on November 1. More than 50 people were killed during an attempted hostage-rescue operation and doubts escalated over the future of the country’s Christians.
“And it is also a conspiracy against Arabs and the pre-dominantly Muslim Arab world that aims at depicting Arabs and Muslims in Arab countries as terrorist and fundamentalist murderers in order to deny them their rights and especially those of the Palestinians,” Lahham said.
The prelate said dialogue between Muslims and Christians was the best means to confront such a conspiracy.
“Dialogue, Islamic-Christian dialogue centers along with coexistence and solidarity here in Lebanon and in Arab countries represent the actual response to this conspiracy which targets us as Muslims and Christians and threatens our countries and generations,” Lahham said.
Banners welcoming Lahham were raised in several streets in the southern coastal city.
The center of Islamic and Christian studies was established as a result of a protocol between Lahham and Saint Joseph University.
Elie Haddad, the Bishop of Sidon and Deir al-Qamar for Melkite Greek Catholics said that coexistence between Muslims and Christians in pre-dominantly Muslim Sidon was perfect.
“Sidon can even set an example of tolerance to Lebanon and the surrounding countries,” he said, adding that the Middle East badly needed to adhere to such an example.
Meanwhile, the Mufti of Sidon and the south Salim Sousan stressed that the West did not represent Christianity.
“Responding on anti-Arab and anti-Islamic Western positions by targeting Levantine Christians is a big mistake,” he said. “We, the residents of Sidon and the south, were and will remain keen on preserving coexistence, civil peace and national consensus along with rejecting civil strife under all circumstances.”
Sousan said that defending the rights and interests of Muslims in non-Muslim states “starts by defending the rights and interests of Christians in Islamic countries in general and Arab ones in specific, and in Iraq in particular.”
For his part, Zahrani MP Ali Osseiran called for holding a spiritual Islamic-Christian summit to be attended by the heads of sects in Lebanon “to help in easing the tense atmosphere in the country that serves nobody, but leads to additional divisions and bickering.”
Osseiran also said that “rescuing” Lebanon from its political crisis and enhancing national unity takes place only through embracing state institutions.
Lebanon is witnessing a political deadlock over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, established by the UN to investigate the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.