Pope Leo XIV calls Lebanon to tenacity, hope, and reconciliation Pope Leo XIV urged Lebanon\u2019s leaders to embrace tenacity, dialogue, and a renewed commitment to the common good during an address at the Presidential Palace in Baabda on Sunday, continuing his weeklong apostolic journey to Turkey and Lebanon. The trip, focused on Christian unity, regional stability, and the Church\u2019s mission in the Middle East, has taken the Holy Father from historic encounters in Istanbul to a nation still recovering from political crisis and the 2023\u20132024 war. \u201cBlessed are the peacemakers,\u201d the pope began, adding that peace \u201ctakes tenacity\u201d and \u201cperseverance to protect and nurture life.\u201d His remarks came as Lebanon seeks stability after years of political paralysis, economic collapse, and the lingering trauma of regional conflict. The Presidential Palace, overlooking Beirut and built in 1956, hosted its first papal address since Parliament elected Joseph Aoun on Jan. 9 as Lebanon\u2019s 14th president after more than two years without a head of state. A Maronite Christian and career army officer born in Beirut in 1964, Aoun welcomed Pope Leo for a ceremony that included a traditional dabke dance and the planting of a \u201ccedar of friendship\u201d in the palace gardens alongside Vatican and Maronite Church leaders. Pope Leo acknowledged the difficulty of governing \u201cin circumstances that are highly complex, conflictual, and uncertain,\u201d but praised the resilience of the Lebanese people. \u201cYou are a people who do not give up,\u201d he said, noting the many who work for peace quietly each day. He described Lebanon as \u201ca community of communities, united by a common language: hope,\u201d at a time when many parts of the world face rising pessimism, instability, and decisions made \u201cto the detriment of the common good.\u201d Despite the burden of crisis and what he called \u201can economy that kills,\u201d he said Lebanon has repeatedly shown its capacity to \u201cstart again.\u201d The pope urged the country\u2019s leaders to remain close to their people, emphasize the role of youth and civil society, and resist reducing national life to competing interests. \u201cThe common good is more than the sum of many interests,\u201d he said. Reconciliation, he stressed, is indispensable. Wounds \u2014 personal and collective \u2014 require time and courage to heal, he said, warning that without this process \u201cwe would remain stuck, each imprisoned by our own pain.\u201d Dialogue, even amid misunderstandings, is \u201cthe path.\u201d Pope Leo spoke of the sorrow caused by emigration and the courage required to remain or return. He highlighted the contributions of women, whom he called uniquely gifted in \u201cthe work of peacemaking.\u201d Closing his address, the pope reminded Lebanon that peace is not only a human achievement but also a gift that shapes the heart and teaches people to \u201charmonize our steps with those of others.\u201d Peace, he said, \u201cis a desire and a vocation; it is a gift and a work in progress.\u201d Following the ceremony at Baabda, Pope Leo was scheduled to travel to Harissa, where he will stay at the Apostolic Nunciature. On Monday morning he will begin his day with a prayer visit to the tomb of St. Charbel Makhlouf at the Monastery of St. Maroun in Annaya. 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 Roman Lent Walking Tour Inside the Pope\u2019s University Pope Francis: Do not abandon grandparents and elderly; remain close to them Synod on Synodality: Who is overseeing the draft report at the end of the assembly? Boko Haram: The Persecution of Christians in Nigeria Life of Pope Francis before his pontificate<\/p>\n