A number of residents of the villages and towns of the Jbeil district and events responded to the invitation of the head of the “Our Lady of the Mountain Meeting,” former MP Fares, to a “loving dinner” on the occasion of Christmas in his home in Qartaba, in which the mayors and mayors participated, the parish priest, Father Charbel Shalita, and Father Ronnie Bou Gharios, during which the situation in the country at all levels was presented and they participated in a mass in honor of Lebanon.
After Bou Gharios blessed the food and those who prepared it, Said delivered a speech in which he welcomed those present in his name and in the name of his family, hoping that the birth of the child Jesus would bring reassurance and peace to all the Lebanese. He said: “Today in Lebanon we are living in a new phase, a phase of peace for all of Lebanon. His Holiness Pope Leo He said to him: “With all my strength, I draw my strength from you.” This situation gave a lesson to everyone and gave us a clear message: “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Peace is the foundation, and general peace among all Lebanese. “And we are among those who worked for peace.”
Saied called on everyone to work for the peace of Lebanon, to get out of the senseless wars and to move to a new stage, mentioning his support for the Taif Agreement, when no one supported it except a few, including the Maronite Church, the Lebanese Forces, and us as independent groups because it established the state and became a constitution, but this agreement was not implemented, the first time because of Syrian weapons, and the second time because of Iranian weapons.”
He said: “Many Lebanese, and some Christians, say that the crisis is the crisis of the Taif Agreement, and that exiting it is the solution and we can secure our salvation, but we clearly say that we are against amending the constitution and harming the Taif Agreement as long as there are weapons outside the state. It is not permissible for us to amend the constitution or grant powers because of the presence of weapons in the hands of a certain group, as if we are giving them weapons in order to give us powers. This principle is rejected in its entirety and in detail.”
He addressed the attendees: “Based on this rejection, and based on our steadfastness on the meaning of Lebanon, on coexistence, on the constitution, and on the Taif Agreement, we call on you, and you are the people of this house, to be vigilant this year, and to be ready, because we are heading towards an exceptional and very big battle and our chances and chances of winning it are very great, because the country has changed, the identity of Lebanon has changed, and the circumstances have changed, so our chances today are much greater than in the past and than some people think, provided To remain cohesive and stick to our positions, to know who we want to be with, to stand shoulder to shoulder, and to know what needs to be said.”
When he announced that he had reached an understanding with the Lebanese Phalange Party at this stage, he said: “I asked them to negotiate with those concerned with the electoral file, and I told everyone that the unity of Christians is more important than anything else. Countries today care whether Hezbollah and the Amal Movement will monopolize the Shiite seats, and they care whether there are Sunni seats with or against Ahmed al-Sharaa, but they do not care about the Christian situation, because Christians have left the banks, education, universities, administrations, and institutions. There is migration, there is a vacuum, there is a real danger, and we are not up to date with the headlines of the region. In order for this country to return to its flavor and for the meaning of coexistence to return, the Christian reality must be reawakened, and this will not happen through quarrels and a struggle between sizes, parties, and people. If we depart today from the headlines of the region and withdraw from the scene, we will no longer have a presence in Lebanon.”
He declared, “Our battle is waged clearly against those who want to harm the Constitution, against those who cling to their weapons at the expense of the Constitution, and against those who place the country on the basis of the balance of power, on the basis of the balance of power in Lebanon,” calling on everyone to go in this direction.
He said: “We are six months away from the parliamentary elections. We call for true Christian unity, transcending parties and individuals. Enough of the bickering over narrow accounts. Whoever wants to be elected must say what he will do. Today, if we did not have a president with the ability, it would not have been possible to form a government or appoint a governor for the Bank of Lebanon. Today, the Financial Gap Law was proposed. This law did not please anyone, and neither do I, but at least we have a text in our hands. Whoever wants to amend it should come to the House of Representatives.” Let him amend it, develop it, or destroy it and create another law, but after seven years of the absence of any reference text, today we have a starting point. We gave our money to the banks, and they gave it to the Bank of Lebanon, and the Bank of Lebanon advanced it to the state, and the money was lost. Today, for the first time, there is a reference text presented to all the Lebanese.
He added: “There is no law that satisfies everyone. The Solidere Law did not satisfy everyone, and yet it has become a reality, and today the financial gap law and people have the right to criticize it, inside and outside the Council, but at least there are those who had the audacity to say: This is the solution that I see, as well as the issue of weapons that the President of the Republic put on track. Who would have dreamed a year, two or three ago that the President of the Republic of Lebanon would announce, in the name of the Lebanese Republic, his readiness to negotiate on behalf of the state with Israel, and that A civilian negotiator is appointed, namely Ambassador Simon Karam, whom we respect and appreciate, matters that were not previously on the table.”
He added: “We want to re-give importance to Christians by once again entering the headlines of the region because there is no value for Lebanon without Christians, and there is no interest for Lebanon without Muslims, and if Christians leave state administrations and jobs and institutions and immigration continues, who will continue the path and which country will remain, and if we go to the parliamentary elections as before with a title of my size larger than yours, and who are you and who am I stronger than you, we will not reach a result.”
Saeed concluded: “We are turning a page with everyone, and we must develop a road map that will save the country and restore true partnership.”
The meeting was preceded by a mass in Saint Joseph Church, headed by the parish servant, Father Charbel Shalita, assisted by Father Bou Gharios, in the presence of Saeed and the invitees.
Shalita pointed out in his sermon that Eid is not only an apparent joy, but a new birth for each one of us, pointing out that “Christ taught us the humility that we must live because a person is great when he knows how to humble himself, forgive, love, and forgive.”
He stressed that “Christmas is peace in action, not in words, and the audacity and courage for each one of us to be the stone and brick in building the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, considering that this year’s holiday in our homeland has a distinctive flavor through the visit made by His Holiness Pope Leo to Lebanon and who gave us his slogan: Blessed are the peacemakers.”
He concluded by calling for prayers, “that Christmas be real in the heart of every one of us, that the holiday brings peace to our homeland, and that Dr. Saeed remains the screaming voice for freedom and sovereignty to save the country.”
