Reconstructing Beirut

Aid to the Church in Need has pledged €5 million to help the Church in Beirut rebuild.

By ACN Staff

Prayers for Jaqueline Jebrin, a nurse in the Rosary Sister’s Hospital who was killed in the August explosion. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need/Saglietti)

Beirut was left devastated after the explosion on 4th August this year. In particular the Christian quarter of Beirut was left in ruins. The situation in Lebanon was already extremely difficult because of Covid-19, and also because of a monetary and political crisis. The largest grain silo in Lebanon was destroyed in the blast and Lebanon’s largest port, Beirut port, was also devastated by the explosion. A food shortage loomed. This is why Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) immediately pledged €250,000 to provide food packages to 5880 families.

Beirut port after the explosion. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need/Saglietti)

In September ACN staff visited Beirut to inspect the infrastructure damage from the blast. After this visit ACN has decided to focus on infrastructure repair. ACN has pledge €5 million for repairs of Church-related buildings. These include buildings such as schools and hospitals, and of course church buildings themselves. These buildings include the Maronite Cathedral of Saint George, which is located in the centre of Beirut. ACN will also help with the repair of the Melkite Church of Saint Saviour, which was originally constructed in 1890. Other repair projects include a hospital run by the Sisters of the Holy Rosary and the mother house of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The executive president of ACN, Thomas Heine-Geldern, explains the priorities of ACN in Beirut over the coming months: “The initial priority for the Foundation is to provide the necessary funds to complete the essential emergency repair work before the arrival of winter, in order to forestall still greater damage, caused by the winter rains for example, and at the same time to make these buildings usable.”

View of Beirut from the Sisters of the Rosary Hospital. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need/Saglietti)

Lebanon in many ways is the only country left in the Middle East were there is a substantial Christian population with full political, civil and religious rights. The maintenance of this Christian population is absolutely vital for a continued Christian presence in the Middle East as a whole.  Mr Heine-Geldern said in relation to this: “The Christians of Lebanon feel very much alone at the present time and are considering emigration as a solution to their problems. Pope John Paul II said that Lebanon has a special mission in the Middle East. ACN will always remember it. We will therefore continue to support the Christians in this country and not going to leave them to face this task alone.” All the work that ACN carries out in countries such as Lebanon is to enable the Church to continue Her mission in difficult circumstances. We are only able to do this with the prayers of our supporters and generous donations of our benefactors.