Patriarch Al Raei's High Tone Rhetoric Stances & Credibility
Elias Bejjani
November 02/14
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2014/11/02/elias-bejjanipatriarch-al-raeis-high-tone-rhetoric-stances-credibility/
Sadly Our Maronite Patriarch Beshara Al Raei is not a successful Politian at all, and by all standards and means. Not only that, but every time his Beatitude mingles with any political case, no matter big or small a definite disaster is the outcome. Since his election as Patriarch his political and patriotic stances on all levels have been questionable controversial, seen unwise by many, biased, unstable and totally in contrast with the Maronites Patriarchate national and patriotic historical convictions.
Looking thoroughly on the confusion that he has been generating in every political domain, one could not but feel disappointed and extremely frustrated in an era where the majority of the Lebanese political Christian figures are nothing but a total failure.
Historically the Lebanese people from all religious denominations have always looked at the Maronite Patriarch with pride, confidence, respect, reverence and considered him to be the genuine conscience of their beloved Lebanon, the Land of the Holy Cedars.
In this context of high hopes and expectations the Lebanese can not but expect the Maronite Patriarch to side only with Lebanon and advocate vehemently for its sovereignty, independence, freedom, common living, distinguishable identity, rich heritage, and prosperity.
They can not but see the patriarch as the religious and patriotic figure that leads their country in times of hardships to peace, safety, stability, and prosperity. Sadly our Patriarch Al Raei is not fulfilling this role.
Initially, and only within few weeks after his election as Patriarch, Al Raei openly sided with the Syrian butcher and criminal president Bachar Al Assad, visited Syria to meet its officials, and toured the world advocating for  Assad's alleged democracy and protection of all minorities including the Christians.
In his unjustified tours and official visits to many countries, Al Raei loudly promoted Al Assad's delusional protection of all minorities claiming he is a good man, and that his dictatorship regime is the only democracy in the Arab world.
Al Raei at the same supported the occupier of Lebanon, the Terrorist Iranian Hezbollah and walked all through the way with the horrible heresies of its weaponry and resistance.
At one time Al Raei even went too far in his blind support to the terrorist Hezbollah requesting that no one Lebanese has the right to address under any given circumstances the legal case of the Hezbollah criminals and killers, who assassinated ex Lebanese Raffic Al Hariri, or call for their arrest or surrender to the custody of the Special tribunal for Lebanon entrusted by the UN General Council to judicially handle the crime.
During his on going official visit to Australia, Al Raei uttered high tone stances and accused all the Lebanese politicians, with no exception to be mercenaries executing wishes of foreign powers and countries. He did not have the courage or needed faith to name Hezbollah and all the politicians who are mere followers to both Syria and Iran. Accordingly his stances came biased and merely empty of any credibility or effect.
We condemn such vague stances and deplore putting the patriotic Lebanese politicians in the same category with those who are mere Syrian-Iranian puppets and mercenaries.
We call on Patriarch Al Raei to be fair, and to loudly witness for Lebanon and for the truth without any kind of Dhimmitude.
In this realm we end our call on the Patriarch to merely witness for the truth with the following Biblical verse (Isaiah 05/20-21): "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight."
Long Live Lebanon
Long Live the Truth

Elias Bejjani
Canadian-Lebanese Human Rights activist, journalist and political commentator
Email phoenicia@hotmail.com
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Background
Rai: Christian president trumps tripartite agreement
Nov. 02, 2014/The Daily Star/BEIRUT: Only a Christian president can maintain the current power-sharing formula between Lebanon's Muslims and Christians, Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai said Sunday, while warning against any attempt at adjusting the country’s current power-sharing model. Delivering Sunday Mass in the St. Charbel Church in Sydney, Australia, Rai said that Parliament's failure to elect a Christian president last March served as an existential threat to the only “Christian head of state in the Middle East," while arguing that only a Christian president could “ensure Islamic-Christian coexistence in Lebanon and maintain the Lebanese [power-sharing] formula that distinguishes Lebanon as a model in its Arab environment.” Rai warned Lebanon’s political elite against calling for a tripartite power sharing formula between Sunnis, Shiites and Christians, since the move would serve as a violation of the Constitution and the National Pact that guaranteed equal rights and representation for both Muslims and Christians. The patriarch reiterated his call for a swift end to the presidential vacancy that came after former President Michel Sleiman left office in May. On Friday, Rai said that some political parties in the country wanted to change the country’s power-sharing governance formula between Muslims and Christians and expressed his strong opposition to the idea. Rivals of Hezbollah often accuse the party of seeking a new tripartite power-sharing deal between Shiites, Sunnis and Christians, a claim the party strongly denies.

Rifi calls for plan to revive Tripoli economy
Nov. 02, 2014/The Daily Star/BEIRUT: A concrete plan for economic development is needed to revive Tripoli’s economy, because the northern city possesses all the requirements, Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi said Sunday, pledging to maximize efforts toward revitalizing the city. “We call for a scientific study by experts, based on the economic situation and the dynamic facilities of Tripoli and the north, to create job opportunities for the city’s at least 15,000 unemployed youths,” Rifi said in a conference at the office of the Commerce, Industry and Agriculture Chamber of Tripoli. The minister underlined the city’s “real and important” potential for economic rehabilitation and stressed on the importance of compensating residents for the losses suffered during the clashes between Army and jihadists two weeks ago.
Rifi reiterated his call on the government to enhance its services and welfare activities in Tripoli to prevent more extremism.  “Poverty and deprivation are the two most important causes of extremism,” Rifi said, praising the recent $20 million donation by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri designated to rehabilitate the city after the clashes. The conference was attended by many businessmen, officials and figures from Tripoli and north Lebanon, and moderated by the head of the chamber, Tawfiq Dabbousi.
Dabbousi stressed that the private sector was the main vehicle for economic growth, announcing that many development plans for the city’s economy had already been established and were being discussed with officials.

Patriarch al-Rahi: I Will Soon 'Spill the Beans'
Naharnet/01.11.14/Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi lamented on Friday the “make or break” moral that the political parties raise their youth on, stressing that Lebanese politicians are still waiting for a green-light from foreign countries to elect a head of state. “Soon I will spill the beans,” said the Patriarch, expressing resentment at the almost five month delay in electing a president. He made his remarks during his ongoing trip to Sydney, Australia. The politicians are still waiting for a green-light from abroad to elect a head of state, he was quoted as saying. “I have come to the conviction that they want to change the Lebanese entity. They want a tripartite coalition government which we strongly reject,” he concluded. Lebanon has been left without a president since May when the term of President Michel Suleiman ended. Ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps have thwarted the election of his successor.