The diplomacy of the Holy See in Lebanon : challenges and endurance

Abstract

Throughout its history, Lebanon has had diverse relations with a multitude of countries. Many of these relations faded away, others have changed drastically. However, one that has remained little changed and is today as strong as ever, is the relationship with the Holy See. This makes any observer wonder about the reasons for this solid relationship. While reviewing the long years of the history of the relationship between the two countries, this paper aimed at showing how stable and unchanged the Holy See diplomacy was in Lebanon. To do that, it was necessary to start from the very beginning, even if that gave a historical aspect to the first part of the paper. In fact, it was important to follow the logical and chronological development of the relationship to understand that the view of the Holy See for Lebanon is not the result of a certain crisis or situation in either one of the countries. This view is, as previously shown the expression of a deep acknowledgment of the enormous mutual importance of this relationship, since the early centuries. Through the long years of war, the relationship survived many crises. In fact even when the Holy See's perception of the situation was criticized by many Christian leaders whose actions it didn't approve of, both parties were still able, eventually, to understand each other's position. In post-war Lebanon the mission of the Holy See diplomacy was not easier, as it had the very ambitious objective of revitalizing the Christians, who were depressed because of the results of the war and the practices of the consecutive governments. This revitalization had to start through spiritual renewal and awareness, not through political change. To evaluate the success of such diplomacy, which depends only on the power of moral values and on the charisma of its actors, is a very difficult task. One thing is sure, the endurance of this diplomacy for fourteen centuries, through all the challenges and wars, is enough proof that it is of the most successful ones ever.