This visit is part of the commitment made by the Provinces of the Mediterranean Region to support the Middle East Province (MOR). “Each western Province is called to forge ties with some specific houses of the MOR Province. The SMX Province is matched to a relationship with Salesian works in Lebanon,” shared Fr Navarro, Provincial Delegate for Mission Animation.
The experience has allowed the SMX Province to immerse itself in work and to learn about the country’s economic and political situation as well as the repercussions they have on the lives of young people first-hand. “The Salesian presence has three works in very different places. Al Fidar, near Jbeil, where the community that hosted us resides; there is a Vocational Training Center and its facilities are used at certain times of the year to host the activities of the three oratories. It also has a youth hostel with a capacity of 30 people.
The second place is El Houssoun, a very large house in the mountains. It used to be a formation house and has a very large number of rooms. There is also a youth hostel with a capacity of 120 people, a public church, and a large area of woods, meadows and courtyards for activities. It is the nerve center of the environment of the youth center where the three oratories of the house are developed: one for Syrian Muslim refugees living near El Houssoun, one for Lebanese, and one for Iraqi Christian refugees from the Beirut neighborhood. All of them are brought to the oratories by a system of small buses that pick them up on Fridays and Saturdays to participate in the activities. The great activity of the house comes in the summer when camps are organized for all these children, which occupy the entire month of July and mid-August. Thanks to the collaboration of the volunteer animators, almost 800 children and young people participated last year. A beautiful experience.”
The third place, finally, is the "Angels of Peace" school in Beirut, a small miracle that the Salesians have been striving to run for two years, during a dramatic situation for many refugee families in the country. The school takes in about 200 refugee children, mostly Iraqi Christians and Syrian Muslims. “It's heartwarming to visit these classrooms. We were able to talk to these kids and learn about their dreams. In the midst of misery and poverty, education always has a word to say and a mission to give dignity to those who are the last in our world,” explained the two SMX Provincial Councilors.
Their visit also included various pastoral moments, such as sharing the traditional "Salesian good morning" with the children, participating with the youth center animators in the preparation of spaces, games and activities in pure Salesian style, visiting the monastery and the hermitage where St. Charbel, a Lebanese saint contemporary of Don Bosco, lived and died, or visiting the homes of Christian families of Iraqi refugees. “It was one of the best experiences I've had during these days. Listening to their testimonies of life, imbued with profound faith, was a real lesson for us,” they explained.
The voyage of discovery concluded with Sunday Mass with the Salesian community, and “With the feeling of having lived an unforgettable experience” because “Don Bosco's dream is also written in Arabic,” the two visitors said.
