سر اللقاء الثقافي انطلياس دعوتكم الى حوار مع النائب الدكتور فريد الخازن بموضوع الازمة السياسية في لبنان وافاق الحلول يدير الحوار: روبير الهاشم الزمان: السابعة والنصف من مساء الجمعة 2 ايار 2008 المكان: قاعة الكنيسة الجديدة – دير مار الياس انطلياس
المطران رحّو" أو العراق الجديد
المستقبل – السبت 5 نيسان 2008 – العدد 2924 – شؤون لبنانية – صفحة 4
الأب يوسف مونّس(*)
محمد السمّاك وميثاق الرسول
أثار صديقي الدكتور محمد السمّاك بغضب مقدّس، كما عادته في كل مرة يُساء إلى المسيحيين
والمسلمين، في جريدة المستقبل 17 آذار 2008 في عنوان صارخ "اغتيال المطران رحّو اعتداء
على الإسلام" وأشار إلى العهد النبوي الداعي إلى الذود عن الأساقفة والرهبان والسوّاح
والكنائس وبيوت العبادة والحفاظ على هذا الميثاق "من خالف عهد الله واعتمد الضد من ذلك
فقد عصى ميثاقه ورسوله" وإن جريمة القتل تعتبر انتهاكاً ليس فقط لحق إنساني مقدس في
الحياة إنما انتهاكاً لنص إلهي مقدّس أيضاً واعتداء على حرمة الإسلام وإساءة إليه تستحق
كل إدانة وكل الشجب والاستنكار". هذا الاستنكار أكد عليه الأمير حسن بن طلال.
الأمير حسن وأصالة المسيحيين
الأمير الحسن بن طلال، رئيس مجلس أمناء المعهد الملكي للدراسات الدينية في عمّان أعلن:
"ان اختطاف رئيس الموصل للكلدان المطران بولس فرج رحّو وقتل ثلاثة من مرافقيه يُعد
عملاً خارجاً على كل مبادئ الإنسانية المشتركة، ويسيء إلى قيمنا الدينية، وميثاقنا
السلوكي". ويُضيف: "إن المجتمع المسيحي الضارب الجذور في تاريخ هذا البلد المنكوب يقف
شاهداً منذ القدم على الاحترام المتأصل لإخواننا في الدين أهل الكتاب الذين استحقوا
حبنا وحمايتنا منذ أيام الرسول صلّى الله عليه وسلّم". وقد صدر في هذا المجال وفي
النهار مقال صارخ هام للشيخ محمد بشير الفقيه تحت عنوان: "مسيحيو العراق هم ضمانة
العراق الحرّ المنسي" (الشيخ محمد بشير الفقيه، النهار 15/3/2008).
الاستنكار شامل
الاستنكار كان واسعاً في السابق مثلاً في 16/10/2004 حين فُجرت 5 كنائس.
وتلا ذلك عمليات قتل وخطف وترويع. بين بغداد والبصرة والموصل جنون أصولي راح يطاول
كرامات الناس وحرية المعتقد وحرية المرأة المسيحية وكرامتها بالضغط عليها لارتداء
الحجاب ومنع العديد من الطلبة والطالبات خاصة في الموصل من متابعة الدراسة بسبب
المضايقات العدوانية والممارسات الإرهابية. فما هو تفسير هذه الأحداث؟ (الشيخ محمد بشير
الفقيه، النهار 15/3/2008). فهل يفلت المتزمتون ويعرضون على العراق شريعة القتل والذبح
وحرق دور العبادة في موجة من الكراهية لا تليق بهذا البلد الكبير الذي فتح قلبه وذراعيه
للجميع. ومنه كان حمورابي وابراهيم واشور بينيبال ونوبخذ نصّر والخلفاء الراشدون وأمراء
الترجمات المسيحيون. وجذور العراقيين ضاربة في أعماق العراق كما يقول الدكتور سيار
الجميل (جريدة الاتحاد، الأحد، أيلول 2003) وكما قال الرئيس نبيه بري: مسيحيو الشرق لا
يُكافأون بالقتل (السفير 18/3/2008).
BKIRKI: Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir lashed out on Thursday at some MPs refusal to perform their duty of electing of a new head of state, adding that this plunged Lebanon "deeper into political crisis." "This is due either to foreign or internal influences" Sfeir said after meeting with a delegation from the Journalists Union in Bkirki. "There is no way to find a solution but through being loyal to Lebanon first, and electing a president in accordance with the Constitution," he added. Sfeir said that during the first round of the presidential election, the two-thirds quorum should be used, but if in the second round there are two-thirds or a simple-majority of votes available, then the elections could be held.
"If two-thirds of votes are not ready, but there is a simple majority, the opposition can say that the Constitution was not respected and could elect a second president, in which case, we would end up with two presidents, which is something the Lebanese and non-Lebanese do not accept," Sfeir said. He added he had discussed the electoral law and electoral constituencies in Beirut with leader of the parliamentary majority MP Saad Hariri "in vague terms, not in detail," during the latter’s visit to the prelate "Bkirki is not taking sides with anyone. We have our own path that we follow, and this path serves the interests of the church and Lebanon," Sfeir said. "Without a president, the country cannot be revived, and the government cannot replace the president," he said, adding that all politicians are responsible for the presidential vacuum. "The issue of me potentially visiting Syria has not yet been raised. I haven’t been invited and probably will not be," he added.
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إلى سفّــــــــاكي الــــــــدم في العـــــــراق
إلى أيـــــــن تهربــــــون يـــــا "أولاد الأفـــــــاعي" ؟
الأب الدكتور يوسف مونّس
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الى اين تهربون يا قتلة الكاهن عادل يوسف في العراق وانتم تتكلمون على الاسلام الرحمن الرحيم ووجه عيسى منوّر في القرآن، كما وجه امه مريم النقية المصطفاة؟ دماء الابرياء النقية تنتصب امامكم كأشجار النخيل في سهول العراق. انها تسيل كنهري دجلة والفرات ولن يوقف مجراها لا رصاصكم ولا خناجركم تدعون باسم الله عليها وتذبحون وتعتقلون والله منكم براء. أصدق الحجاج عندما قال فيكم يا اهل العراق يا اهل الكذب والنفاق؟
صراخ الابرياء الذين غسلوا ثيابهم بدم الحمل، كما يقول كتاب الرؤيا، يسألكم "ماذا فعلت بأخيك"؟ انه دمه يصرخ الي الى السماء؟ "وملائكتهم يعاينون وجه الله"! "وهم مولودون من الله" وانتم من "الوحش ولدتم" كما يقول الكتاب، وستذهبون الى "النار" الى "الجحيم" الى "الهاوية" الى "جهنم" ولا سماء لكم ولا اله. انتم كما يقول يسوع "الحيات اولاد الافاعي، وقبور مكلسة". وانا غاضب اليوم، انا الذي كتبت لاجل طفل اسمه "علي صلب في العراق"، وقد تُرجم هذا النص الى الفرنسية والانكليزية والالمانية… انا غاضب قلق، ودمي ينزف ودموعي وانا اصلي. لكن صراخ اليهود ضد يسوع، يضج في اذني: "ليكن دمه عليكم وعلى اولادكم" وهو يقول "اغفر لهم يا ابتاه لانهم لا يدرون ماذا يفعلون". لينزل عليكم غضب السماء ولعنة الارض كما قال الكتاب "ستكون ملعوناً بسبب الدم الذي سفكته، سيأكل السرطان والوباء والبرص والطاعون عظمكم ولحمكم وتقتلكم جريمتكم، لاجل الاثم الذي صنعتم. "الا تخافون الله"؟
ستلحس الكلاب دماءكم في الساحات، كما لحست دم نابوت اليزرعيلي ودم المطران رحو ودم الكاهن عادل وكل الابرياء والانقياء والشهداء. الكاهن الرقيق الرهيف اللطيف يقف هنا مع يسوع يغفر لكم مع بقية الكهنة والاساقفة والرهبان والراهبات والمسيحيين المؤمنين الذين سقتموهم "كشاة الى الذبح" امام الكنيسة او في الاقبية او على الطرقات. رمال بوادي بغداد تزهر عقيقاً احمر ينشد للقيامة والحب والرجاء والسلام. ماذا فعل الاب عادل لتذجوه بالرصاص امام مذبحه وكنيسته ورعيته؟ ماذا فعل الا انه صلّى باسم الله؟ واحب اله المحبة حتى انه بذل نفسه، كما يسوع، عن احبائه؟ الا انه تعمد باسم يسوع ولبس المسيح وقام كاهناً امام الرب وامام الناس؟ هزّتني مشاهد موته ودفنه وحزن اهله وعائلته ووجهه البهي الشاب المنذور لحب كل اهل العراق وكنيسته المشرقية السريانية الارثوذكسية وخدمة كنيسة الرب.
by Rita Daou, AYHA, Lebanon (AFP) – As night falls on remote villages in eastern Lebanon that border Syria streets and alleyways bustle into life as a small army of pick-up trucks, mules and cars are readied for action. Loaded up with whisky, bread, metal and other goods, drivers head for the dirt roads that zig-zag through nearby hillsides and valleys to deliver loads to fellow smugglers across the border before returning with staples such as heating oil, laundry detergent and vegetables.
"We work from around 9:00pm until dawn," said one 46-year-old smuggler who asked to be identified only by his initials of M.Z. "We leave home in our pick-ups, cars and even mules loaded with alcohol and other products." M.Z., who has plied the trade for decades, said smugglers from both sides have specific meeting points along the mountainous border. "Once we get to a meeting place we wait for Syrian vehicles loaded with products and we make the exchange very quickly," he added.
Smuggling between Lebanon and Syria goes back to when both countries became independent in the 1940s, sharing a 170-kilometre (105-mile) long border that has never been officially delineated. "The Lebanese economy has depended on a parallel economy for ages," said Fares Ishtay, political science professor at Lebanese University. "Salaries in both countries are very low and people depend on undeclared goods to survive." He said that although hashish used to be the main contraband, other products, not considered illegal as such, have now become hot items.
BEIRUT (AFP) – A mutiny at Lebanon’s largest prison in Rumieh during which prisoners took seven warders hostage ended peacefully early Friday, a security official told AFP. "The prisoners handed over the seven warders they were holding hostage and returned to their cells after having negotiated and handed over demands to the chief of internal security, Antoine Shakuri," the official said requesting anonymity.
The prisoners at Rumieh, eight kilometres (five miles) northeast of Beirut, were calling for an improvement in their prison conditions and a reduction in their sentences, he said. Most of the inmates were serving long sentences, or were on death row."General Rifi promised to examine ways of replying to these demands in the framework of the law," the official said. Earlier he said that the rioters had set fire to their cells in the block holding convicted inmates. An AFP photographer saw a plume of smoke billowing over the prison and troop transporters deployed inside the compound.
The mutiny broke out after a quarrel between a warder and a Palestinian prisoner got out of hand. Academic Omar al-Nashabi, who has carried out a study on the prison, told AFP that more than 4,000 prisoners were being held in the jail which was originally designed in 1971 to hold a maximum of 1,500.
By Ferry Biedermann, The Lebanese, styling themselves as born traders, have made a selling point out of the country
By Alistair Lyon, Special Correspondent, BEIRUT (Reuters) – Empty seats are proliferating in Beirut’s political theatre of the absurd, symptoms of a deep malaise that has crippled Lebanese government institutions, damaged the economy and fuelled fears of renewed civil war.
The president’s chair has been vacant since November. There is no sign the palace in Baabda will get a new occupant soon.Lebanon’s parliament, whose own benches have been deserted since October 2006, failed for the 18th time on Tuesday to meet formally to elect a president — although rival factions agreed months ago that the army chief should be the next head of state.
Last week Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri installed a table with 14 empty chairs in the assembly building to accommodate a "national dialogue" he argues is the best way out of the crisis."He is willing to hold a marathon dialogue after which everyone moves straight from the room to the general assembly to elect (a president)," Berri’s media adviser Ali Hamdan said. However, aware that anti-Syrian factions dominating the government have rejected his proposal, Berri has yet to issue invitations to politicians to fill those neatly arranged seats. Outside the building are yet more desolate chairs in the once-crowded bars, cafes and restaurants of downtown Beirut. Many are shuttered. Those that have hung on rarely have more than a few customers to reward their fortitude."Downtown we are making only 7 percent of our past revenue," Michel Ferneini, who runs Medi Resto, an Italian restaurant and food business with outlets in the area, told Reuters.
by Hassan Jarrah Mon Apr 21, 9:16 AM ET ZAHLE, Lebanon (AFP) – The Lebanese town of Zahle observed an official day of mourning amid tension on Monday, with political leaders trading blame after two activists were shot dead at the opening of a Phalange party headquarters. Funerals for Nasri al-Maruni and Salim Assi, whose son was among three people wounded in the Sunday evening attack, are planned for Tuesday.
Both Assi and al-Maruni were supporters of the Christian Phalange party, a member of Lebanon’s ruling coalition.Police named a suspect in the shooting as Joseph Zouki and said they had launched a manhunt for him. He is thought to be a supporter of Zahle MP Elie Skaff, a Christian who backs the opposition.
Security sources in Zahle said that they were also looking for Zouki’s brother, Toni, who they suspect was with him at the time of the shooting. A security official on Monday said Walid Zouki, a relative of Joseph, had turned himself in to the police. Although he was not an initial suspect "he seems to have had a role" in the crime, the official said. Phalange leader and former president Amin Gemeyel called the incident a "premeditated act" in an interview on the LBC television channel. He accused the assailants’ "leaders of knowing full well where they are and what they need to do to turn them into the authorities". Gemeyel held "the leaders of the opposition responsible" for the act and slammed "Christian leaders of covering up an obvious terrible plot to spark divisions and ignite a war" in alluding to what his coalition identifies as a Syrian plot to destabilize Lebanon.
Skaff rejected Gemeyel’s accusations and told AFP that this was an "isolated act" and that he would "not provide protection for the assailants."He accused the Phalangists of "threatening Zouki and shooting at him. He took a bullet to the hand and his car has bullet marks on it.""His brother Toni came like a madman to his rescue. This was a question of self-defense where it was kill or be killed," he added.
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