A mass presided by the Maronite Archbishop of Beirut, Archbishop Boulos Abdel-Sater, on the fourth of August in commemoration of the souls of the martyrs of the Beirut port explosion, in the presence of General President Marie Antoinette Saade, at the church of the Lebanese Hospital Geitaoui - UMC.

Archbishop Boulos Abdel Sater's homily at the Divine Liturgy he presided over from the church of the Lebanese Hospital Geitaoui - University, one year after the Beirut port explosion:

“Glory to God the Father, the source of all love, life and comfort; glory to God the Son who conquered death and who gives us every day life that does not end; glory to God the Spirit who breathes into us every day love, forgiveness, tolerance, cooperation, brotherhood and solidarity, as well as the spirit of truth and daring to remain silent about injustice and evil. I thank you all, administrators, officials, medical and nursing staff and employees, for all that you have done and are doing, and for all your hard work and effort, especially since a year ago on August 4th.

We celebrate Mass this morning because we do not consider August 4th to be a day of death, but rather a day of victory over death and evil with Jesus Christ. It is true that we have lost people we love, and that some of us are still in physical pain, but in this Mass we say to those who want to kill us that we do not die with Jesus Christ, because we believe that death is a bridge to life in the heart of God. We want truth and justice first and foremost, and for everyone involved in this great crime to bear their responsibility, but we believers must overcome evil with good and love, as you did when you healed the wounded and injured, and if we want to continue the path of victory over evil, we must today also show love and repentance, and forgive those who cannot be forgiven.

Let us eliminate despair from our lives, let us stand up and overcome evil, no matter how rampant we think it is in our country. Today is the time when we change things, not with anger, violence and riots, but when we begin to change ourselves and when we make the right choices for the future. I end my sermon with the words of the Gospel when our Lord said to us: “Do not be afraid, I am with you".

This is our faith, our history and our daily example in our steps to overcome evil with good. Message from the General President, Mother Marie Antoinette Saade, on the Fourth of August, St. John says in the Book of Revelation: “And I saw the heavens opened, and a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True, and with justice he judges and fights. Following him on white horses were the armies of heaven, dressed in fine linen of pure white” (Revelation 19:11 and 14) H.E. Bishop Paul Abdel Sater, patron of the Maronite Archdiocese of Beirut, Venerable Fathers, Sisters, Sisters, Prof. Pierre Yarde and my sister Hadia, Directors of the Lebanese Geitaoui Hospital, Doctors, nurses, nurses and all hospital workers, Dearly beloved, Christ is risen!

We are witnesses to his resurrection! Beirut is witness to his resurrection! And you are witnesses to the power of his resurrection working in every good-willed person On August 4, death was looming over every corner of the capital and Lebanon. I was on my way from my mother monastery in Hebron to Beirut, seeing and hearing nothing but news of destruction and victims, and the black cloud was sitting on my chest as well as on the chest of every Lebanese in Lebanon and the world, and as I approached Beirut and walked on the shards of glass that accumulated on its roads, the image grew blacker in my mind. The heavens were open, not only to shower blessings and wonders, of which there are many on this day, but to receive the souls of our innocent and peaceful sisters and brothers. 

I was in front of an “end times” scene like in movies and fairy tales. Everything was black until I reached the courtyards of the Lebanese Geitaoui Hospital! Here, as in the Book of Revelation, the angels of mercy in white, “the armies of heaven dressed in fine linen of pure white”, were working above the rubble of the hospital, receiving the wounded, providing aid and performing emergency operations Yes, I saw you, my nursing sisters in the hospital, and I saw you, my doctors.

Doctors, nurses and paramedics, healing the wounds of the people of Beirut with your wounded hands and your bodies that were also injured by the shrapnel of the explosion and the panic of the tragedy. Where did you get all this love from? Where did you get all this strength from? How did you arrive within minutes from your homes to support your comrades who were in the hospital? 

Is this not the power of the resurrection and faith in God and humanity? Is this not the highest expression of belonging to this human institution - the family institution to which you belong? And expressions of belonging to Lebanon, the true Lebanon that we love, protect and safeguard not with the manifestations of death and destructive weapons, but with expressions of life that heal, compassion and reconstruction. Thanks to God for your love and professionalism and thanks to the Lord, who kept our hospital and everyone in it in the hand of His care, and did not lose any of its patients, staff and workers in this tragic incident: “A thousand shall fall on your side and ten thousand on your right, and nothing shall befall you” (Psalm 91:7), says the Psalmist. Thanks to the hundreds and even thousands of volunteers - some whose names we know and others whose names we don't know, but who have big, young, generous hearts - who didn't leave us for days and helped us remove the rubble from the hospital Thanks to the friends of the association, the hospital and Lebanon, both at home and abroad, who came to our aid both morally and financially. 

Because of them, the hospital regained its mission in a few weeks, and the task of reconstruction is nearing its end after a year. Thanks to the universal Church, in the person of His Holiness the Pope, who first sent the Secretary of the Vatican to inspect the hospital, and to His Beatitude Patriarch Mar Beshara Boutros al-Rai, and to Your Eminence Archbishop Paul Abdel Sater, patron of the wounded Beirut Archdiocese, who never neglected to check on us and stand by us during a year in which the challenges escalated and worsened, from the Great Explosion, to the preparation of several floors to receive coronavirus patients, to the economic crisis, which was the first time the hospital's reconstruction was completed. During a year in which the challenges have increased and worsened, from the big explosion to preparing several floors to receive coronavirus patients, to the severe economic crisis that affects Lebanon, and the great financial collapse, while each of you doctors, nurses, nurses and staff are lovingly engaged in fulfilling your mission, you were - my sister Hadia Abi Shibli and my father Shibli. my sister Hadia Abi-Shibli and my brother Dr. Pierre Yarde, have been faithful guardians, faithfully and steadfastly watching over the deposit. We remember you today before the altar of the Lord.

The responsibility assigned to you is indeed enormous, especially in these circumstances, but you have demonstrated great faith, trust in God and exemplary professionalism, enabling you to plan and manage the affairs of the earth by relying on the Provider of all things, and your motto is the words of the founding father, Patriarch Hawiak: “God provides.” Sisters, sisters, brothers, all of you at the Lebanese Geitawi Hospital, you can rely on the prayers, love and appreciation of each of the Sisters of the Holy Family for who you are and what you do, and on the intercession of the Honorable Patriarch Elias Houeik. Despite the great wound that still hurts us and every Lebanese, you are a source of consolation for us and a source of inspiration and strength for Lebanon and the Church, witnessing the power of the resurrection of Jesus once again, in word and deed: “Christ is risen, truly risen”. Amen