UPDATED: Pope Leo XIV calls Lebanon to stand up, be a home of justice and fraternity Beirut heard a different kind of voice on Tuesday morning. In a city still marked by the sounds of the 2024 escalation between Hezbollah and Israel, Pope Leo XIV urged Lebanon to rise above violence and division. \u201cLebanon, stand up. Be a home of justice and fraternity. Be a prophetic sign of peace for the whole of the Levant,\u201d he said at a Mass attended by about 150,000 people at Beirut Waterfront. The liturgy closed the final day of the pope\u2019s visit to a nation strained by intermittent political paralysis, economic freefall and persistent instability. The Waterfront itself carries symbolic weight. Built on land reclaimed from the sea with rubble from downtown Beirut destroyed in the civil war, it has come to represent both loss and reconstruction. In his homily, Pope Leo spoke of praise, hope, beauty and responsibility, calling for unity at a moment of national fracture. He acknowledged the burdens carried by the Lebanese people and said praise becomes difficult \u201cwhen life is weighed down by hardship.\u201d Lebanon, he added, has suffered \u201cmany problems\u201d and \u201cdifficult situations\u201d that leave people feeling powerless. The pope urged the country to rediscover gratitude. Lebanon, he said, is \u201cthe recipient of a rare beauty,\u201d even though that beauty is often obscured by suffering. The country is also, he noted, a witness to how \u201cevil, in its various forms, can obscure this splendor.\u201d From the open coastal space, he recalled biblical images of Lebanon. He then pointed to the nation\u2019s present wounds: poverty, political instability, economic collapse and renewed fear after conflict. He mentioned his prayer earlier in the day at the Beirut port, the site of the 2020 explosion, and connected that visit to the broader national trauma. In such circumstances, he said, praise and hope can give way to disillusionment. The pope invited the faithful to look for \u201csmall shining lights in the heart of the night.\u201d Jesus, he said, gives thanks not for extraordinary signs but for the faith and humility of \u201clittle ones.\u201d He spoke of the \u201csmall signs of hope\u201d found in families, parishes, religious communities and lay people who remain dedicated to service and to the Gospel. These lights, he said, promise rebirth. He urged the country not to yield to \u201cthe logic of violence\u201d or the \u201cidolatry of money,\u201d and asked all Lebanese to work together. \u201cEveryone must do their part,\u201d he said. He called for a \u201cdream of a united Lebanon\u201d where peace and justice prevail and where all recognize one another as brothers and sisters. At the end of Mass, the pope offered a spontaneous prayer for peace in the region and the world, calling on “Christians of the Levant” to be “artisans of peace, heralds of peace, witnesses of peace.” After the Mass, the pope traveled to Beirut International Airport for a farewell ceremony, where he was received by the president. In grief remarks, the pope recalled the sight of the port earlier that morning and praised the resilience of the Lebanese people. \u201cYou are as strong as the cedars that populate your beautiful mountains, and as beautiful as the olive trees that grow in the plains, in the south and near the sea.\u201d The pope also greeted regions of the country he was unable to visit and repeated his appeal for peace. \u201cMay the attacks and hostilities cease,\u201d he said. \u201cArmed struggle brings no benefit. Weapons are lethal. Negotiation, mediation and dialogue are constructive.\u201d He urged all to choose peace \u201cas a way, not just as a goal.\u201d Follow all EWTN News coverage of Pope Leo\u2019s First Apostolic Trip here. This article was originally published by CNA. Receive the most important news from EWTN Vatican via WhatsApp. It has become increasingly difficult to see Catholic news on social media. Subscribe to our free channel today EWTN Vatican on WhatsApp Elias Turk Would you like to receive the latest updates on the Pope and the Vatican Receive articles and updates from our EWTN Newsletter. More news related to this article Conference in Rome addresses dangers of AI and child pornography Pope Francis At Wednesday Audience: \u2018Let Us Do Penance For Peace\u2019 An Encyclical on Peace in Ukraine If God Is Love, Why Does He Let Terrible Things Happen? Pope Leo reminds Turkish Catholic minority of the \u2018logic of littleness\u2019 Cardinal Ercole Consalvi, Precursor of Realpolitik<\/p>\n