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PRESBYTERIAN
The Presbyterian Church in Canada • presbyterian.ca ISSUE 20, WINTER 2021
One Year After the Beirut Port Blast
By the Rev. Glynis Williams, Associate Secretary, International Ministries
For many years The Presbyterian Church in Canada has benefited from the relationships made with churches and service organizations in Leba- non, Syria and Palestine-Israel. We have shared our common faith with many individuals and groups in the region where Christ was born and taught. In recent years, we have welcomed partners to Canada who have addressed the General As- sembly, sharing their challenges and their responses. In 2016, Dr. Bernard Sabella, Executive Director of the Department of Service to Palestin- ian Refugees (DSPR), based in East Jerusalem, received the PCC’s Cut- ting Edge of Mission Award on behalf of the organization, and explained to the Assembly what life under oc- cupation is like. He described illegal
human rights abuses by the Israeli occupation forces and struggles for Palestinians to access necessities, such as clean drinking water. “I’d like to say that a prophetic voice is a voice that challenges the wilderness of injustice and that is courageous in its call for a reconciliation based on respecting the rights of an oppressed and occupied people.”
In 2018, Dr. George Sabra, Presi- dent of the Near East School of The- ology (NEST), located in the heart of Beirut, Lebanon, addressed the Gen- eral Assembly. This small seminary trains women and men for ministry in congregations and as Christian edu- cators and confers a master’s degree in theology. They welcome students from the Middle East, as well as North America and Europe; however, the pandemic has hindered interna- tional attendance. When Dr. Sabra addressed the General Assembly, he
reflected on the task of Christians and advised on how to live in a context of religious extremism. More than three years later, the wisdom offered by Dr. Sabra is even more relevant today.
For years, NEST has created a space for serious discussion con- cerning theology and faith, inviting religious leaders—Protestant, Ar- menian, Assyrian, Shia and Sunni Clerics and others—to speak and to share their knowledge. NEST stu- dents were invited to attend and en- gage. This sounds simple enough, but it is an invitation to learn. Our partners have much to teach us.
On August 4, 2020, the city of Bei- rut suffered a horrendous blast in the por t. It was considered the biggest non-nuclear explosion ever recorded. More than 200 people were killed, another 7,000 were injured, and the blast caused an estimated $4.6 bil- lion in damage. The impact of that day
also shattered an already fragile econ- omy and pushed more than half of the population below the pover ty line. A year later, the people of Lebanon ob- served a National Day of Mourning to mark the first anniversary.
A teacher in the synod’s school used to receive a middle-class sal- ary. Now paid in Lebanese Lyra, a month’s salary is worth only $75 USD because of the devaluation. From this income she must buy food, pay rent and pay the ever-increasing bill for the generator, electricity and phone data. Basic items such as rice and milk cost 10 times more than they did in 2019. The cost of basic medicines, including insulin, aspirin and penicillin has increased more than five times in the same time pe- riod. The World Bank says that Leba- non’s economic collapse is likely to rank among the world’s worst finan- cial crises since the mid-19th cen- tury. Families who were middle-class before October 2019 are now poor; families who were poor before Octo- ber 2019 are now destitute.
A Human Rights report writes that senior Lebanese officials knew about the potential for the blast but “sys- temic problems” in Lebanon’s legal and political system have allowed them to avoid accountability. The consequences of this flagrant dis- regard of the risk have fallen on the citizens of Beirut.
For many years, the PCC has sup- ported the work of Sylvia Haddad of the Joint Christian Committee (JCC). Sylvia wrote: “Our politicians have systematically led the country to the bottom and sit back to blame others and give advice while they lead a good life with all they have stolen. A very sad situation—but we have to do the best we can. So, we struggle on in our personal burdens and I struggle on to keep up with the needs of all the people whom we work for and who need us badly.” Sylvia works tirelessly to provide the necessities to sustain the lives of others during this extraordinarily difficult time.
PHOTO CREDITS: SCOTT PARKER, PCUSA MISSION STAFF IN BEIRUT.
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Addressing Harassment
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Human Rights for Migrants
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Honouring Pauline Brown
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