This is Beirut, 28/03 17:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Syrian authorities have reversed a decision to shut bars and restaurants serving alcohol in Christian-majority areas of Damascus after public outcry, witnesses, and a Syrian news outlet said on Friday. After Islamist-led rebels ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, the new authorities had pledged to protect the country's ethnic and ...
Amine Jules Iskandar, 08/03 13:10 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
How much do we know today about the musical heritage that emerged from the Levant and our mountains, enriching the West with its melodies and poetic depth? These hymns, which still echo beneath the vaulted ceilings of humble rural churches and in certain urban neighborhoods or suburbs, trace an unbroken lineage back to the 4th and 5th centuries. ...
Fady Noun, 24/01 08:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
Europe Middle East USA Christians Lebanon
The unity of Christians has never been more vital amid the evolving realities of the Middle East. The “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity,” observed from January 18 to 25, offers a timely opportunity to reaffirm this essential mission. This annual tradition boasts a complex history. It originated from the 19th-century ecumenical movement aimed ...
Tarek Karam, 2024-12-30 16:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
The notion that the Assad regime ever protected Syrian Christians – and previously, the Christians of Lebanon – is entirely unfounded. Equally baseless is the notion that Ahmad al-Sharaa, regardless of his background and representation, serves as a guarantee for the Christians of Syria and Lebanon. What is clear, however, is that Lebanese ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-22 09:50 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Iraq christians alcohol Yazidis prohibition
The smell of dampness rises through the dust at a private club in central Baghdad, one of many shut in a crackdown on alcohol sales in Iraq. "We appealed to all authorities in the country, but no one listened to us," said the owner, a Christian who asked not to be named. Although a law banning the sale and import of alcohol was passed in 2016 ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-15 11:55 - Reading : 1 minute(s)
Sunday Homily Bkerke Syria Christians Béchara Raï
Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai stressed the need to “encourage Christians (in Syria) to get involved in national and political work.” In his Sunday homily in Bkerke, Archbishop Rai affirmed that “it is essential to unite all components of Syrian society to collaborate in rebuilding the country,” stressing the importance of “building a ...
This is Beirut, 2024-12-13 13:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)
Where should the crown be placed? In the courtyard of the Marist Brothers in Aleppo, one of the eleven Christian communities in Syria’s second city (northwest), the question that is sparking debates is about the Christmas tree. Just days after their swift conquest of power in Damascus on December 8, the new rulers of the country, former ...
Elie Ziadé, 2024-12-11 22:50 - Reading : less than a minute
Damascus Bachar el-Assad Christians Revolution
However, in Bab Touma, a district with a strong Christian majority in the eastern part of Old Damascus, a sense of apprehension and waiting prevails in the almost deserted streets. Most shops and churches remain closed, awaiting a stabilization of the political and military situation. This is Beirut spoke to the residents of this neighborhood, ...
Amine Jules Iskandar, 2024-11-10 10:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
Lebanon Christians Human rights Maronites
Born in 1906 in northern Lebanon, in Bterram (meaning "the elevated village" in Syriac), Charles Malek waged a cultural battle for Lebanon and human rights until his death in 1987. His philosophy was deeply rooted in the values and principles of Christianity, which served as the foundation for his contribution to the drafting of the Universal ...
Fady Noun, 2024-10-26 13:15 - Reading : 4 minute(s)
Damascus Middle East christians druze canonization
For some Lebanese Christians, the 1860 massacres remain an open wound — a persistent thorn in their collective memory. The painful recollection of this brutality resurfaced during the canonization of the Massabki brothers, who were martyred in Damascus on the night of July 9-10, 1860. How did it come to pass that over 20,000 Christians — half ...
This Is Beirut, 2023-12-23 18:23 - Reading : 2 minute(s)
Catholic church Christians Gaza
Church leaders in Jerusalem replied to critics regarding a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog amid fighting in Gaza in a statement published on Saturday, December 17. During this meeting, they reportedly insisted on "the universal position of the Church calling for an end to the bloodshed in Gaza" to the Israeli leader. Jerusalem's church ...
Johnny Kortbawi, 2023-12-19 09:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)
The discussion on the rights of Christians in Lebanon takes center stage in various periods — be it amidst the fervor of elections, times of heightened tension, or when it becomes relevant to review and reshuffle all the pertinent matters at hand. Today, we are surfing through a multitude of phases. We are currently in a period dominated by a ...