Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday lashed out at Lebanon’s politicians over their protracted failure to form a new government.
“Why don’t you form a government while the people are screaming from pain, starving from poverty and dying from disease?” al-Rahi asked in his Sunday Mass sermon.
“Don’t you fear God, the people and the court of conscience and history? Would a reasonable person believe that the dispute is over the interpretation of a constitutional article that is clear as the sun?” the patriarch added.
“The constitution was devised for implementation, not debate, and let it be a source of agreement not contention,” he urged, addressing officials.
He noted that in the face of the “fateful challenges” that Lebanon is facing, “formal sacrifices become of little value and it is enough for intentions to be good.”
“Anyhow, making an initiative in this direction would gain the respect of the people and the public and would reflect a sense of responsibility,” al-Rahi added.
He also pointed out that “had there been neutrality in Lebanon, we would not have witnessed any constitutional crisis, including the current crisis of government formation.”
“In addition to partisan interests that produce crises and wars in Lebanon, the main reason remains partiality and the multiple allegiances,” al-Rahi said.