BEIRUT: On the second day of his three-day visit to Lebanon, Pope Leo XIV prayed “for peace in this country and the countries of the Middle East.”
His itinerary on Monday included a visit to the Monastery of St. Maron in Annaya, Mount Lebanon, marking a historic moment as he became the first pope to visit the shrine of Saint Charbel, revered patron saint of the Maronite community.
Many Christians and Muslims visit the holy site seeking intercessions or the healing of incurable diseases. Charbel, a Maronite monk and priest who was born Youssef Antoun Makhlouf in Lebanon in 1828 and died in 1898, was canonized in 1977 by Pope Paul VI.
Despite the cold weather and heavy rain, thousands of people of all ages gathered from early morning to greet the pope, lining roads leading from the coastal city of Byblos to Annaya. They came from Lebanon and other countries. Security, enforced by the Lebanese army, was tight.
President Joseph Aoun and his wife formally welcomed the pope, who acknowledged the crowds from his “popemobile” vehicle as the sound of applause, church bells and chants filled the air along the 3 kilometer route to the monastery.
