Lebanese Christians Attempt To Speak With One Voice
Lebanon’s most democratic sect wants to become more like its Muslim counterpart.
You can’t blame the Christian clergy for panicking. Now that the international press is syndicating articles with titles like “Christian Split in Lebanon Raises Specter of Civil War“, the guardians of the Maronite church are scrambling to save face for this once glorious and now beleaguered sect.
Very roughly, the problem with the Christians is the following: There is a cold war between the Sunnis and the Shias, but the regional stakes are too high for them to actually face off, so they do it via Christian proxies. In other words, the conspiracy buffs will tell you, the Christians have been divided to conquer each other. As a result, Sunnis and Shias will benefit to produce an nonthreatening President.
The above is not entirely imaginary. After all, it is Hariri (a Sunni) and Berri (a Shiaa), who are negotiating and trotting the globe to produce the next (Maronite) President. No one is really fooled by the “mandate” March14 Christians have given Mr. Hariri, and no one really believes that Aoun wants Berri to speak for him.
It is precisely that dynamic that gave momentum to Bkirki’s new initiative, which seeks to find common grounds for the Lebanese Christians. Both March14 and March8 Maronites have overlooked their differences and shown interest in reaching “something”, because both sides feel that they can change the rules of the game by speaking as one voice.
But is that a realistic outcome? And more importantly, is diversity really a disadvantage for the Christians?
It is a shame that in the Lebanese political paradigm, the diversity that has produced such rich debate and creative ideas is considered a liability that should be fixed. In an ideal world, it is the Muslim Muftis who should have been busy spinning off their constituencies.
Do you like this post? Would you like to be always updated with new posts on this website? If so, please subscribe to this blog's RSS feed? (tell me more)Share This Post:
Print it: Email it:
-->
Discussion
Comments are disallowed for this post.
Hello, my name is Mustapha and I blog in The Beirut Spring about Lebanese society and politics. I started in February 2005 after the killing of P.M. Rafik Hariri.
Latest Posts
Lebanese Bloggers
Middle Eastern Bloggers
Blog Featured In
Today In Lebanon (NOW)
Naharnet RSS Feed
Yalibnan RSS Feed
Latest Lebanese News
RSS Subscribers
Categories
- No categories
Don’t confuse diversity with polarization. Having the Christians split in two parties that refuse to even talk to each other is definitely a disadvantage, and that’s what allows Christians to be used as pawns. The Christian MPs should grow a backbone and meet on their own initiative, not because a useless old coot like Sfeir invites them.
This christian `council’ will be very important if not the most important among the Nicea and the Council of Chalcedon (451 AD). Our Christian leaders like their brethren the Alexandrians and the Antiochs will fail one more time to reach an understanding on wether the Christ has one divine nature or two distinct natures divine and human. This very controversy if mirrored to our political spectrum in Lebanon will translate as follows: on one side the Monophysites who believe that Lebanon has only one divine independent nature that transcends all others and on the other side you will have the `Antiochs’ who believe that Lebanon has two natures the divine that cannot be complete without the human nature which denies the sole divinity and complements it with `Syrianism’ which existed to save Lebanon from the great Satan. Byzantium prevails!
Dory, I admire your wisdom ;)
Kheir,
much appreciate it.
Very interesting analysis in L’Orient-Le-Jour, unfortunately, it is in French:
L’éditorial de Issa GORAIEB 10/10/07
Feu pourpre
Trop peu, trop tard ? Même si elle ne paraît pas idéalement emmanchée, l’initiative de l’Église maronite visant à rassembler les rangs chrétiens, dans la perspective de l’échéance présidentielle, est naturellement la bienvenue. Comme toute démarche de ce genre, elle comporte des chances de succès, mais aussi sa part de risques. Qu’elle vienne à capoter en effet et la fracture ne peut que s’aggraver, du moment qu’est crûment étalée alors – que se trouve consacrée, si l’on peut dire – l’atterrante impuissance des instances morales les plus hautes.
Ces aléas, d’ailleurs, ne sont pas les seuls inhérents à la charge patriarcale, assumée depuis trois décennies par un prélat qui, le premier sous l’ère de la tutelle syrienne, leva l’étendard de la quête de souveraineté. Voué au service de la communauté maronite tout entière, le patriarcat, malgré ses très claires positions de principe, ne se sent pas en droit de favoriser certains groupes politiques plutôt que d’autres. Et pourtant, le patriarcat n’est pas à l’abri des critiques, pas toujours empreintes de respect, au demeurant : pour d’aucuns, il en fait trop ; et pour d’autres, pas assez.
Cela étant dit, on peut certes regretter que cette idée de vastes assises maronites au siège patriarcal de Bkerké n’ait pas été avancée depuis des mois. On est à moins de deux semaines de la séance électorale de la deuxième chance, si tant est que le quorum des deux tiers de l’Assemblée sera atteint, après la réunion fantôme du 25 septembre. Diverses candidatures à la présidence de la République ont été annoncées entre-temps, ce qui pourrait requérir désormais des trésors de solidarité (et de diplomatie !) pour favoriser les désistements et autres retraits honorables. On peut s’étonner, de même, que les invitations aient été lancées avant que l’on se fût assuré que les convives étaient bel et bien disposés à se retrouver, sans conditions préalables, sous le même et auguste toit qui leur était proposé. En attendant mieux, c’est donc à la faveur de deux audiences distinctes, et à 24 heures de battement, que les ténors de la majorité et de l’opposition se retrouveront autour du cardinal Sfeir.
Le patriarche prêtera sans doute une oreille attentive aux plaintes et doléances des uns et des autres. En revanche, on peut présumer qu’il tiendra à tous un seul et même langage. Par leurs implacables rivalités, les chrétiens, et plus spécialement les maronites, se retrouvent à l’arrière-plan des tractations visant à l’élection d’un président d’entente, même si les deux négociateurs en chef, Nabih Berry et Saad Hariri, se disent habités en permanence par les aspirations et appréhensions de cette communauté. Par leurs divisions, de même, les maronites vont jusqu’à compromettre la tenue même du scrutin présidentiel, ce qui achèverait de marginaliser en bloc cette même composante essentielle du tissu libanais à la réhabilitation de laquelle ils affirment tous œuvrer. Dans l’intimité feutrée du grand salon tendu de pourpre, le maître de Bkerké ne mâchera sans doute pas ses mots pour mettre en garde contre la suicidaire tentation du langage des armes : lequel, et en dépit des dures expériences du passé, montre à nouveau le bout de son vilain museau.
Il est évident enfin que l’initiative de Bkerké jouit du soutien massif du Vatican, où a récemment séjourné le cardinal Sfeir. On notera que le Saint-Siège s’est abstenu d’envoyer à Beyrouth un délégué pontifical pour ne pas paraître douter de l’autorité du patriarche ; mais il ne peut qu’être sensible aux retombées qu’aurait tout dévoiement de l’échéance présidentielle sur la pérennité de cet extraordinaire pays message que chanta naguère le pape Jean-Paul II.
C’est vrai que l’Église libanaise n’est pas la polonaise, qui libéra la Pologne du joug soviétique. Mais face au déferlement des fanatismes dont cette région du monde est le théâtre, comment ne pas constater que l’enjeu de cette présidentielle déborde largement, en réalité, le cadre libanais ?
Issa GORAIEB
We are the Victims… we as in the Lebanese; regardless of who becomes president.
yeah yeah poor lebanese victims!!! we heard that one before!
Dory, great poetry man, very interesting lecture, now lets go back to the subject, there is one community in Lebanon that doesn’t put it “Zay ma hiya.” I used to think that the aounis were Aholes but the more I spend time on this blog the more I understand their point of view and their tactical move (That I still totaly disaprove) Anyway, the aounis gave life to this opposition that was falling appart after hariri’s killing, as much as the other christians gave life to march 14 after the summer war. I think the xtians are playing today a very important role in preserving democracy in Lebanon, and they are defenetely not as weak as some would like to describe them. The opposition will never let go Aoun, and Hariri will never give up on his xtian allies. If the country is left to both major muslim parties, say goodbye to democracy as we have seen their religious leader stating clearly the side that the believers MUST choose.
Ralph,
respoding to that: “I used to think that the aounis were Aholes but the more I spend time on this blog the more I understand their point of view and their tactical move (That I still totaly disaprove)” might be like solving an algebra eaquation while chewing a bubble gum.
I always used to chew gum in algebra classes, and that pissed only one person: the teacher! (You want my grades in school?) I also learned from algebra not to leave anyone outside the equation. Aounis can’t be 100% stupid, they have a stupid leader, charismatic, loved and followed blindly by many, but many aounis follow him because they know that the rest are not better, and they are 100% right on this, we’ve seen where the 14ers got us with their bad decisions since march 14 afternoon until this second.
Anyway, we all agree that its a f…ed up place, and we always wanted it that way! Ask your poetry fan Kheiredin what kind of lebanon he wants? one where HE only will be happy! mech heik kheireddin? yek yek yek
It is none of your business, Istiz Ralf.
Ralph,
You seem to be suffering from a “battle stigma”. It is exhausting both physically and emotionally. No hard feelings but it is a common symptom among the Lebanese who cannot situate themselves in this puzzeling political situation. On one hand you understand the aounists yet you call them blind, on the other hand you seem to agree with the `schizofrenic general’ yet you call him a stupid!!. Moreover you reprobate the M14 leaders because of their historical ties with Syria yet you forget to mention Wahab, Irslan, SSNP and last but not least the general’s zealous defender-Sleiman Franjieh-who openly said that if Bashar Assad is convicted with the assasinations he will remain an ally!! I agree with you when you critisize M14 shamefull allience with Syria but those people starting from Hmadeh, paid the high price when they have violated the terms of the game Syria have set for them. Don’t be fooled by Aoun’s fervid and vehement statements, portraying himself the defender of the christians and the guarantor of their existance in the east! Remeber that hallow he is enjoying is nothing but a debt he owes to those very christians he had authorized to kill each others. Just ask yourself the question, How could a convict(according to Lebanese law)! in Paris suddenly returns to Lebanon and blows the cedar revolution to pieces. He was the man for the job. Lahoud, wahab and company have suceeded with the instructions of the syrians to get him back free like a bird with one mission-breaking the back of the popular uprising against the syrian regime. For once, the Sunni leadership stood amid all dangers with the christians for lebanon’s autonomy and independence. Its a lifetime opportunity to seize that national sentiment and have what we always faught for. No one was a more impassioned by Aoun than me in the 90’s but I still have my senses and my sanity.
Yeslam hal tem ya Dory!
I am not fooled by Aoun, but don’t be fooled either by hariri and jumblat! i’m sick of people defending march 14 leaders who are after all the crap of the crap, when syria was breast feeding them they sucked her dry and all of a sudden when syria killed hariri they turned to be the biggest patriots??? I’m sorry, patriotism is something you grow since you are born, you don’t become patriot all of a sudden!!! but i know what kind of patriotism these guys have, one that bashar was talking about a couple of days earlier: Arab patriotisme, not lebanese, ARAB! they are fighting for the independance of lebanon from assads syria because this syria is no longer following the arab line, but they will reembrace syria once assad is out and a sunni comes to power, and they will recall the oumma al arabia, and push lebanon back in the arab-palestinian line that half the population refuses!!! please, it is obvious, guys like kheireddin were raised to recognize nothing but the arab culture and to erase any other culture. that is unfortunately the sunni way of dealing with occupied territory, wherever they went, they destroyed the past, peoples identity, erased the culture, left nothing standing or converted it into a mosque or desagrated it! ma3lech! our memory is not that short, we have souvenirs from before feb 2005, another erasing history date! since that date the sunni wants us to forget the past because they decided to change direction.
i know exactly where to situate myself, and you should read more psychology if you want to start analyzing people! i’m against this bad corrupted political class that has been leading the country for 25 years or more now. ALL OF THEM!!! none is better than the other, they all have their agenda that follows only their community’s well being and poos on the others. And i advise you and the others to stop supporting any of them if you want a real country. If you insist on staying with them, then Lebanon will at least be divided in multiple pieces, and lets pray that this process goes peacefuly and not have it divided 1975’s way.
Amazing…Ralph you don’t know me enough to talk about me. You are expressing so much prejudice against more than 60% of the Lebanese people. Let me tell you something, Lebanese Muslims don’t accept anymore to be second class citizens or be considered to be less Lebanese than the Christians. You don’t understand that we can be at the same time Lebanese ans Arabs. Instead of thinking about building a new Lebanon based on true friendship between Christians and Muslims, people like you keep on ranting about the past…
Issa Ghorayeb wrote today in L’orient- le-Jour:
‘Le temps n’est plus, c’est vrai, où le Grand Liban était créé au bénéfice surtout des maronites. C’est toujours, c’est invariablement à ces derniers pourtant qu’il incombe de veiller à la pérennité d’un paradis en voie de se perdre. Pour tout le monde.’
…and it not with prejudice and hatred that Lebanon will be saved.
YOU only make yourself a second class citizen, your religion does not have anything to do with it! You talk to me as if I was a xtian myself. what makes you so sure that I’m not a sunni just like you totaly disgusted by the way sunnis are behaving in Lebanon and other countries? I’m not saying that the other communities are not as disgusting as the sunnis. I’m saying that they all are rubish and none better than the other. You should work on your complexe d’inferiorite kheireddin, first you keep reminding us who your grandpa was (and not who YOU are!) and second you put yourself in a group of second class citizens, and third you want to be an arab! pfffff somebody help this guy.
f…off Ralph…