From Maronite Archdiocese in destroyed Beirut Father Gabriel Tabet: We are working on sowing hope and trust, because God will never leave us!

Report by Elia Nasrallah

Winter is coming, the economic crisis is getting worse and worse, the spread of the Corona virus is increasing horribly and Beirut’s citizens are still suffering from their bleeding wounds.

Over 60 days have passed on the catastrophe that hit Beirut, and huge damages still linger on whereas Lebanese people are exhausted from trying to survive while facing an unknown fate. Who will save them from this disaster that ruined their lives and destroyed their future?

Associations, diocese and church institutions are continuing with their humanitarian work despite of their inability to meet the essential needs of all those who are affected. Moreover, communication and collaboration between the concerned humanitarians are two essential indicators for the sustainability of this mission especially with the complete and total absence of the government.

Hence, the Middle East Council of Churches called to form an Ecumenical Committee that includes a team from various Departments from the Council, in addition to representatives for the member churches in Beirut. Aiming to organize and harmonize the tasks while following up on the relief process to be able to reach the wider range possible of affected people. This humanitarian common job was established due to the appeals sent by the Council consequent to the explosion.

Within this context, our team from the Communication and Public Relations Department will each week roam the destroyed regions of Beirut to shed the light on the damages that befell the churches in Beirut and the dioses people from various church families. Therefore, the team members will be attempting to identify their urgent needs and finding ways to help.

The first visit was to the Maronite Archdiocese in Achrafieh.

Father Gabriel Tabet, the servant of the St. John Church in Achrafieh and a member of the Ecumenical Committee to relief Beirut, welcomed us in the Maronite Archdiocese in Beirut where the operation of removing the rubble caused by the blast is still in progress since the Archdiocese building, the Sagesse school and the vocational school were destroyed.

Together, we recalled moments of the panic they went through during the blast that took place while he was celebrating mass with his diocese. Like other Lebanese people he fell under the trauma which was reflected in the first moments of panic and before scenes of mass destructions. Father Tabet said “No one knew what was going on” while he described the fright that the citizens of Beirut and its suburbs went through. After checking all the damage that took place in the church and the diocese building, everyone who was present headed to the streets of Achrafieh to aid the wounded and injured.

Father Tabet continued by informing us of the material damage the Archdiocese underwent, which was estimated approximately at $1 million, in addition to the number of injured priests and lay people. He went on to say that the 9 churches in Achrafieh were hit badly: St. Antonios Church, St. Maroun Church, St. Joseph Church and the St. Georges Cathedral.

Father Tabet is really worried about the wellbeing of the families whose houses are still in ruins and of those who were completely destroyed and need to be rebuilt. At the same time, he is armed with his faith in the will of Beirut’s citizens and their adherence to their city and their roots; most importantly he counts on it, for Beirut to prevail and to remain the city of faith, love, life and openness.

After the blast, the Archdiocese distributed hot meals to the families who were robbed of their houses and who were ridden of their belongings. They also set tents in front of the churches to welcome them and support them. In addition, several groups visited the houses to inspect the damage and needs of its residents; up until the Archdiocese launched the campaign “Tachajaa” which means “Have Courage” to raise donations to alleviate pain and despair, which is dominating in the Beirut Citizens due to the recklessness and negligence of the government that didn’t come to their aid. This is where Father Tabet explained that the meaning of the campaign “Tachajaa” is to confirm that God, is consoling us with his Holy Spirit, and that he is our sole source of strength. He also praised the volunteers who rushed in great numbers from various Lebanese regions to relief their capital and stand by their brothers and support them.

With limited potential and despite economic hardship, the Archdiocese was able to reconstruct a thousand homes and to insure the necessities of daily life to all its residents through the statistics it made. They were able to finish 800 houses until today. He also added that the Archdiocese is distributing food rations received from several organizations, such as the Middle East Council of Churches, to the most vulnerable and damaged families, noting that the critical need also lies in the cleanliness tools, which prices increased terribly, as it is for other supplies. He praised the spirit of brotherhood and solidarity among the region's citizens, as many of them shared the food rations among each other.

The Archdiocese is still cooperating with the Lebanese army’s emergence room that is based in Beirut, which is working on coordinating between the organizations to be able to fairly distribute aid to all those affected; in collaboration with the organization of "Uniting for Lebanon" that include 90 active members in the field. He also referred to coordination with the Ecumenical Committee, which was launched by the Middle East Council of Churches, where all injured are being helped equally without any discrimination. He also called for cooperation and collaboration between churches and parishes and between Christians in general, saying “We are working on sowing hope and trust, because God will never leave us!”

The Beirut blast is past its third months and in a very difficult political, economic and social stage. The Lebanese are drowning in unfortunate living conditions while the responsible are concerned with their interests and deals. Moreover, the immigration rate is increasing constantly and the Beirut Christians are standing between two choices: to either leave their wounded country or to face extreme poverty. Hadn’t been for the initiatives of the international community and some governmental associations and organizations, Beirut would still be bleeding. The capital remains, until today seriously injured. But despite of all these tragedies, prayer remains the only way to gain strength and hope, “The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen." (Matthew 4:16).

Communication and Public Relations Department