Pope encourages beleaguered Lebanese Christians not to lose heart

April 08, 2026

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, sent a message in the Holy Father’s name to the beleaguered residents of the Christian village of Debel, Lebanon.

“His Holiness Pope Leo XIV is glad to be able to express to you, on this Easter Day and amidst the tragic circumstances you are facing, his paternal closeness and affection,” Cardinal Parolin said in his message, dated April 7. “He extends his message of consolation and compassion to all Christians in southern Lebanon and to all those suffering the consequences of the war.”

Cardinal Parolin added:

May you, amidst your feelings of sorrow, anguish and mourning, experience today in your hearts a deeper joy: Jesus has gloriously triumphed over death. It is a joy that comes from heaven and which nothing can take from you.

In your misfortune, in the injustice you suffer, in the sense of abandonment you feel, you are very close to Jesus. You are close to Him too on this Easter Day when He conquered the forces of evil, and which resonates for you as a promise of the future.

So do not lose heart! None of your prayers, none of your acts of solidarity, none of the sighs of weariness you utter are lost: Our Lady of Lebanon keeps everything in her heart and brings it to her Son

Vatican News reported that Debel’s residents “have refused to abandon their homes” and “now find themselves under fire from Israeli and Hezbollah raids and bombings. They remain unable to move freely, with food and water running scarce and medicines increasingly difficult to obtain.”

“The Apostolic Nuncio to Lebanon, Archbishop Paolo Borgia, was scheduled to travel on Easter Sunday to the small town—which has been cut off from the rest of the country—continuing the missions he initiated over the past month, during which he traveled aboard trucks loaded with humanitarian aid,” the report continued. “Three trucks carrying 40 tons of essential supplies were en route to Debel when fighting brought the mission to a halt.”

On April 7, Archbishop Borgia again attempted to deliver aid to Debel. He recounted that “crossfire broke out, and we were forced to halt just a few kilometers away.”

 

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Further information:

• Message of the Holy Father, signed by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, to the inhabitants of the village of Debel, Lebanon, 07.04.2026 (Holy See Press Office, 4/7/26)
• Il Papa ai cristiani al sud del Libano: "Sono vicino a tutti voi, non perdete il coraggio" (Vatican News, 4/7/26)