Lebanese Christians - History

History

Before the Christian faith reached the territory of Lebanon, Jesus had traveled to its southern parts near Tyre where the scripture tells us that he cured a possessed Canaanite child. Christianity in Lebanon is almost as old as gentile Christian faith itself, early reports relate the possibility that Saint Peter himself was the one who evangelized the Phoenicians whom he affiliated to the ancient patriarchate of Antioch. Paul also preached in Lebanon, he had lingered with the early Christians in Tyre and Sidon. Even though Christianity was introduced to Lebanon after the first century AD, its spread was very slow, particularly in the mountainous areas where paganism was still unyielding.

The earliest indisputable tradition of Christianity in Lebanon can be traced back to Saint Maron in the 4th century AD, being of Greek/Eastern/Antiochian orthodox origin & the founder of national and ecclesiastical Maronitism. Saint Maron adopted an ascetic recluse life on the banks of the Orontes river in the vicinity of Homs–Syria and founded a community of monks which began to preach the gospel in the surrounding areas. By Faith, liturgy, rite, religious books and heritage, the Maronites were of Orthodox origin. The Saint Maron Monastery was too close to Antioch to enable the monks freedom and autonomy which prompted Saint John Maron, the first Maronite patriarch-elect to lead his monks into the Lebanese mountains to escape emperor Justinian II’s persecution; the Maronites monks finally settled in the Qadisha valley. During the Arab conquest the Christians, particularly the Maronites were not persecuted; nevertheless the influence of the Maronite establishment spread throughout the Lebanese mountains and became a considerable feudal force. It wasn’t until the Crusades that the western world knew of the existence of the Maronites. In the 16th century, the Maronite Church adopted the catechism of the Catholic Church and merged with it. Moreover, Rome dispatched Franciscan, Dominican and later Jesuit missionaries to Lebanon to secure the conversion of the Maronites to Catholicism.

Spurring from their turbulent history, the Maronites formed a secluded identity in the mountains and valleys of Lebanon,_led by the Maronite patriarch who voices his opinion in temporal issues_ identify themselves as a unique community which by religion and culture is distinct from the predominantly Muslim Arab world. The Maronites played a major part in the definition of and the creation of the state of Lebanon. The modern state of Greater Lebanon was established by France in 1920 after the instigation of Maronite ambitious leaders headed by patriarch Elias Peter Hoayek who presided delegations to France following WWI and requested the re-establishment of the entity of the Principality of Lebanon (1515AD-1840AD). With the creation of the state of Lebanon, Arabism was overcome by Lebanism which emphasizes Lebanon’s Mediterranean and Phoenician heritage. In the National Pact, an unwritten gentleman’s agreement between the Maronite President Bshara el-Khoury and Sunni prime minister Riad as-Solh the seats of presidency were distributed between the main Lebanese religious denominations; according to the pact the President of the Lebanese republic shall always be a Maronite, furthermore, the pact also states that Lebanon is a state with an “Arab face” (not an Arab identity).