\u00a0<\/p>\n
The community of Lebanon has sent us a new witness: it\u00a0is part of the drama that the Christian and Muslim population of this small nation are living, and it is a witness that the commitment for peace and solidarity wins over fear, hatred and violence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Those who would like to contribute help by sending money, they can do so through AMU (see note at the end). <\/strong><\/p>\n The Witness<\/p>\n I was in my car. Traffic was very slow and\u00a0 I\u00a0 could see that\u00a0 supermarkets and\u00a0 big shopping centres were very crowded. The look on people\u2019s faces was sad or rebellious. It was only in my car that I could sense that\u00a0 which I thought has been forgotten.<\/p>\n \u00a0As I\u00a0 was\u00a0 listening all the time to a radio station that warns against any danger that can crop up any minute, once again I could hear the same note on Flash Information Radio Liban, the one\u00a0 we\u00a0 have been listening to during the most difficult and terrible moments of the long war.\u00a0 It is a note that has stuck to our ears and it continuously makes us shiver: \u201cHere is the news:\u00a0 the villages of South Kleya, Debl, Marjehyoun and many other localities are in a very critical situation.\u00a0 Crowds of people are sheltering in churches and in townhalls because\u00a0 they are in great danger. They are appealing for help to evacuate the sick, the handicapped, the old, the wounded. . . They lack food and medicines, and they have neither water nor electricity. This is a state of emergency, a situation that cannot last for a long time. . .<\/p>\n After a few seconds I hear the same sad voice: \u201cThe outskirts of Zahle` have been intensely bombarded; the central electric power station has been damaged. We appeal to everyone to stay indoors unless it is extremely necessary to go out.\u201d<\/p>\n My mobile phone rings: it is a friend of mine who lives in Achrafieh, Beirut. She asks me to find a safe place for her mother. . .<\/p>\n Yes, this time war is presenting a new danger: it is destroying a nation, a people. . . This war is being fought by distructing bridges, roads, all public and private infrastructure.\u00a0All regions are being targeted; not one region is being spared: the south, Bekaa, the north, the coast, Beirut. There is danger everywhere. The people are exhausted.\u00a0And by the look of things, the end does not seem to be near. . .<\/p>\n But . . . This is what is happening in IRAP (a rehabilitation centre for the deaf and dumb):\u00a0 there are crowds of people in the big hall, in the corridors, in the classes that have been transformed into lucky places of shelter.<\/p>\n One\u00a0 tries to establish contacts with social institutions to coordinate help.\u00a0Rolls of toilet paper, blankets, foodstuffs, medicines for small children who risk to suffer from acute diarrhoea, are being transported to a\u00a0 centre in Bourg Hammoud\u00a0 where people\u00a0 are finding shelter.\u00a0 Matresses and clothing are being donated by the Lebanese themselves to help families with small children.<\/p>\n We try to contact our friends, who live in the south and who are isolated wihout any help.\u00a0 But many telephone lines have been destroyed.<\/p>\n The will to live and make others live does not die out even though the possibilities are very limited.<\/p>\n Christians, Muslims, Schiiti and Sunniti,\u00a0all\u00a0 share the same fate,\u00a0and they are united because they\u00a0 are all\u00a0 prey of\u00a0 the same violence.\u00a0They\u00a0 are united because they are Lebanese,\u00a0they love their country\u00a0and they are faithful to their roots.<\/p>\n This spirit of solidarity is kept alive.\u00a0We, ourselves must build the peace\u00a0 we strife for, sustained by prayer; we must build it inside us every moment being ready to always start afresh.\u00a0This is the way to win the sentiments of fear, hatred and violence that want to destruct us.<\/p>\n A group of young people has left our Centre to go to help others. One of them said: \u201cWe have lived \u2018heavenly moments\u2019 here\u201d. I said to her: \u201cMay\u00a0you bring this\u00a0heaven to the places where you go.\u201d<\/p>\n This is the greatest richness we try to give to those around us.\u00a0We need all kinds of goods. Many people\u00a0 lost everything.\u00a0But above all we need friendship, solidarity and prayers.<\/p>\n For yet another time \u201cThe Country of cedars\u201d will be born again, it will live!\u00a0The hope of Claudel and the faith of the great saints are alive in us.\u00a0\u00a0Our Lady of Harissa\u00a0 protects this small country, the garden of God, \u201ca piece of heaven on earth\u201d, that everyone wants to possess, as a Lebanese singer says.<\/p>\n We launch an appeal to all our friends, to all organisations that have already collaborated with us:\u00a0start a chain of prayers, a chain of help.\u00a0 Mobilize the public opinion in favour of the sovereignity of Lebanon.\u00a0Every act of solidarity is welcome!<\/p>\n From the group at IRAP:\u00a0 Janine and Mona <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n How to help: International Bank information needed for contributions from other\u00a0 foreign countries: In Italy one may also use the conto corrente postale 81065005,\u00a0made out to AMU, indicating the address of the NGO and specifying the project one wishes to support.<\/p>\n The \u201cAction for a United World\u201d (AMU)\u00a0association is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that is inspired by the spirit of unity of the Focolare Movement.\u00a0 It aims at universal brotherhood,\u00a0 promoting projects of cooperation for the development of countries and peoples while fully respecting their\u00a0 social, cultural and economic realities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cAsk people to start a chain of prayers, to give help, to mobilize public opinion in favour of peace\u201d. How are we going to answer this appeal?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[893],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-291320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-focolare-worldwide-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=291320"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291320\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=291320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=291320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.focolare.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=291320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
. . . amidst\u00a0 this hell and state of general desolation, there is always a ray of light,\u00a0 of new energies that give hope, motivate and encourage. . .<\/p>\n
Association: \u201cAction for a United World\u201d
NGO \u2013 Via Frascati, 342 \u2013 00040 Rocca di Papa (Roma) \u2013 Italia
Bank Account No.\u00a0 640053
Bank:\u00a0 Sanpaolo IMI, Ag. di Grottaferrata (Roma) ABI\u00a0 01025\u00a0 CAB 39140 CIN M<\/p>\n
IBAN IT 16 M10 2539 1401 0000\u00a0 0640 053 BIC IBSPITTM \u2013 \u201cEmergenza Libano\u201d<\/p>\n