Sfeir Warns Against Maronite Split
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir on Monday warned Maronite Christians against carrying their differences too far for splits could backfire on them.
"Each time Maronites differ among themselves … they are defeated by greedy persons," Sfeir said during a sermon on the occasion of St. Maroun Day.
"History attests to this," he added.
"But if Maronites united ranks and strengthened cooperation among themselves, their wellbeing would flourish and they would gain respect by their fellow citizens regardless of their sects," Sfeir stressed.
"It is time to make up our minds and look carefully at what brought us here if we want to get out of this dilemma," he concluded, adding that "this situation would lead many of us to migrate with no return."
At a sermon in St. Maroun, Gemayze, Bishop Boulos Matar said that "national unity is the only way to protect Lebanon."
"Let us all work for a united Lebanon," Matar stressed, adding that "we have to protect Lebanon and carry out this obligation through unity."
"We do not have the right to create a new nation day after day to meet our standards," he said.
Matar voiced concern over the upcoming parliamentary elections and expressed hope that polls would be carried out in a "civilized manner."