Rai concludes 2-day visit to Chouf by meeting with Jumblatt

On the second day of his visit to the Chouf region, Patriarch Beshara Rai met with National Struggle Front leader MP Walid Jumblatt at the Moukhtara Palace.  Addressing the Patriarch, Jumblatt said: “We are following up on all your movements and your quest to consolidate coexistence and reconciliation”.  

For his part, Rai said that his visit aims at completing the reconciliation between Chouf residents, considering that coexistence between Christians and Muslims is the foundation of reconciliation.      

Rai stressed that he is seeking to achieve unity in “a civil and democratic state that separates between religion and politics”, adding “I aspire for a new electoral law that would guarantee the citizens’ right to choose their representatives and hold them accountable”.    

Earlier on Sunday, the Patriarch headed a mass in St. Anthony the Great Church in Fouwara where he was received by residents. He held high hopes that the apostolic exhortation that Pope Benedict XVI would deliver during his upcoming visit to Lebanon would usher the way for a Christian Spring that would lead to a "true Arab Spring."             

"We call upon all of you to welcome the Pope and share in the celebrations," said Rai in front of a crowd of high-ranking officials.