Full description of Lebanon. Lebanon: Religion and Politics - Confessional System Supreme Executive Body
Plan:
- Introduction
- 1 Confessions
- 1.1 List of officially recognized religious communities
- 2 Approximate statistics
- 3 Muslims
- 4 Christians
- 5 Other religions Notes
Introduction
Dispersal of religious groups throughout Lebanon.
Religion in Lebanon plays a huge role in all spheres of society. Even the political structure of the republic is based on confessionalism, which presupposes the organization of state power in accordance with the division of society into religious communities.
Lebanon stands out for its extreme religious diversity. This is the only Arab state headed (by the President of the Lebanese Republic), according to the Constitution, by a Christian (Maronite). The Prime Minister is a Sunni Muslim. The Speaker of Parliament is a Shiite Muslim.
There are many different religious communities in Lebanon. The division and rivalry between them dates back at least 15 centuries and remains a very important factor today. The principles of peaceful coexistence have changed little since the 7th century, but there have also been cases of ethnic cleansing (most recently during the Lebanese civil war), which entailed significant changes political map countries.
1. Confessions
Lebanon has the largest percentage of Christian population of Arab countries. Both Christianity and Islam in Lebanon come in many different denominations. The largest communities are: Sunni, Shiite and Maronite. Any statistics are highly controversial, since every religious community is interested in inflating the number of its adherents. It is important that despite disputes about the percentage of denominations, religious leaders are avoiding conducting a new general census, due to fears that it could cause new round interfaith conflicts. The last official census was carried out in 1932.
Religion has traditionally been a major factor in dividing the Lebanese population. The division of government power between communities and the granting of judicial power to religious authorities dates back to the time when Lebanon was part of the Ottoman Empire. This practice was continued during the French Mandate, when Christian communities were granted privileges. This system of governance, although a compromise, has always caused tension in Lebanese politics.
It is believed that the Christian population has been since the late 1930s. does not have a majority in Lebanon, but the republic's leaders do not want to change the balance of political power. Leaders of Muslim communities demand increased representation in government, which causes constant sectarian tensions, leading to a violent conflict in 1958 (followed by American military intervention) and to a long-term civil war from 1975-1990.
The balance of power was slightly altered by the National Pact of 1943, in which political power was distributed among religious communities in accordance with the 1932 census. The Sunni elite by that time had become more influential, but Maronite Christians continued to dominate the power system. Subsequently, the interfaith balance in power was again changed in favor of Muslims. Shia Muslims (now the largest community) then increased their representation in the state apparatus and mandatory Christian-Muslim representation in Parliament was changed from 6:5 to 1:1.
The Constitution of the Lebanese Republic officially recognizes 18 religious communities, which are major players in Lebanese politics. They have the right to administer family law in accordance with their traditions. It is important that these communities are heterogeneous and there is political struggle within them.
1.1. List of officially recognized religious communities
- Alawites
- Ismailis
- Sunnis
- Shiites
- Druze
- Armenian-Gregorians
- Armenian Catholics
- Assyrian Church of the East
- Chaldean Catholic Church
- Copts
- Evangelical Christians (including Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists)
- Greek Catholics
- Orthodox
- Maronites
- Roman Catholic Church
- Syriac Catholic Church
- Syrian Orthodox Church
- Judaists
2. Approximate statistics
According to CIA World Factbook
Other religions: 1.3%.
3. Muslims
On at the moment In Lebanon, there is a consensus that Muslims make up the majority of the republic's population. The largest religious community in the country is Shiite. The second largest group is Sunni. Drusen, although small in number, also have a significant impact.
4. Christians
The Maronites are the largest Christian community in Lebanon. It has a long connection with the Roman Catholic Church, but has its own patriarch, liturgy and customs. Traditionally, Maronites have good relationship with the Western world, especially France and the Vatican. They still dominate the Lebanese government. The President of Lebanon is always chosen from among the Maronites. Their influence in lately decreases. During the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, she helped Sunni and other Muslim communities and resisted many Maronites. Maronites are mainly settled in rural areas, with significant concentrations living in the Lebanese Mountains and Beirut.
Greek Orthodox are the second largest Christian community. It is less connected to Western countries than the Maronites. The Greek Orthodox Church exists in many countries of the Arab world and its followers are often seen in pro-Arab and pro-Syrian sentiments.
5. Other religions
The remnants of a very small Jewish population are traditionally concentrated in Beirut. It was larger - most Jews left the country after the Six-Day War in 1967.
Notes
downloadThis abstract is based on an article from Russian Wikipedia. Synchronization completed 07/12/11 07:51:30
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Religion has traditionally been a major factor in dividing the Lebanese population. The division of government power between communities and the granting of judicial power to religious authorities dates back to the time when Lebanon was part of the Ottoman Empire. This practice was continued during the French Mandate, when Christian communities were granted privileges. This system of governance, although a compromise, has always caused tension in Lebanese politics. It is believed that the Christian population has been since the late 1930s. does not have a majority in Lebanon, but the republic's leaders do not want to change the balance of political power. Leaders of Muslim communities demand increased representation in government, which causes constant sectarian tension, leading to a violent conflict in 1958 (followed by American military intervention) and a long-term civil war from 1975-1990. The balance of power was slightly altered by the National Pact of 1943, in which political power was distributed among religious communities in accordance with the 1932 census. The Sunni elite by that time had become more influential, but Maronite Christians continued to dominate the power system. Subsequently, the interfaith balance in power was again changed in favor of Muslims. Shia Muslims (now the largest community) then increased their representation in the state apparatus and mandatory Christian-Muslim representation in Parliament was changed from 6:5 to 1:1. The Constitution of the Lebanese Republic officially recognizes 18 religious communities, which are major players in Lebanese politics. They have the right to administer family law in accordance with their traditions. It is important that these communities are heterogeneous and there is political struggle within them. List of officially recognized religious communities
Approximate statisticsAccording to CIA World Factbook
Other religions: 1.3%. MuslimsAt the moment, there is a consensus in Lebanon that Muslims make up the majority of the population of the republic. The largest religious community in the country is Shia. The second largest group is Sunni. Drusen, although small in number, also have a significant impact. Lebanon is the only country in the Arab world (although Maltese is a dialect of Arabic, like the languages of Lebanon, but Catholic Malta is not classified in the Arab world) where Islam is not the dominant religion. Islam in Lebanon is represented not only by orthodox, but also by peripheral movements, which, like Christians, were subjected to severe persecution during the Arab Caliphate. Largely thanks to them, a unique political and ethno-confessional situation that exists there to this day was formed in Lebanon, because it was the Druze, one of the Shiite sects, that ruled this territory for many centuries. However, both Sunnis and Shiites also played important roles in building Lebanese society. SunnisSunnism is the largest denomination in Islam. Almost 90% of Muslims in the world practice Sunni Islam. The full name of the Sunnis - “people of the Sunnah and the harmony of the community” (ahl-as-sunnah wa-l-jamaa) - reflects the most important principles of traditional Islam - adherence to the values enshrined in the Koran and Sunnah, and the idea of the leading role of the community in solving vital problems. The main formal signs of belonging to Sunnism include:
Unlike Shiites, Sunnis reject the idea of mediation between Allah and people after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, do not accept the idea of the “divine nature” of Ali and the right of his descendants to spiritual leadership in the Muslim community. Sunnis appeared in Lebanon during the Arab conquests in the 7th century, However, secular nationalism among the Lebanese was rather weak, and the Arabization of the Greek, Syrian and Phoenician populations occurred quite quickly, but was not accompanied by “Sunniization.” The population of Lebanon (before the resettlement of the Armenians) was practically single-ethnic, but extremely diverse in religion. Islam came to Lebanon through Muslim warriors who settled on its lands, particularly in large cities, and thanks to Arabic-speaking tribes, mostly Muslim, who settled in the southern and northeastern regions of the country, although some of them professed Christianity. According to other sources, Lebanese Sunnis trace their origins to the Tanukh tribal confederation that once lived here. It is worth noting the isolation of Lebanese Sunnis from the rest of the Sunnis in the Middle East, which existed until recently. Sunnis make up about 21% of Lebanon's total population and play an important role in its political life. However, they are not the largest Muslim community in Lebanon, and are inferior to the Shiites in terms of population. According to established tradition, the Prime Minister of the Lebanese Republic is elected from among Sunni Muslims. This community elects about 20 of its deputies to parliament. ShiitesShiites (Arabic Shia شيعة - adherents, group, faction, party) - a general term that in a broad sense means followers of a number of movements of Islam - Twelver Shiites, Alawites, Ismailis, etc., recognizing the exclusive right of the descendants of the Prophet Muhammad to lead the Muslim community - the Ummah , to be an imam. In a narrow sense, the concept, as a rule, means Twelver Shiites, the second most adherent (after Sunnis) direction in Islam, who recognize the only legitimate successors of the Prophet Muhammad as Ali ibn Abu Talib, the fourth righteous caliph, and his descendants along the main line. The movement arose during the period of the third righteous caliph Osman. The impetus for its emergence was a dispute over the succession of community leadership. Arguments in favor of Ali were his family ties with the Prophet Muhammad (he was the cousin and son-in-law of the prophet), as well as his outstanding personal qualities. The founder of the Shiite religious doctrine is considered to be a Jew from Yemen, Abdullah ibn Saba, who converted to Islam (mid-7th century). His name is associated with the propaganda of the idea that every prophet had an assistant, or “receiver in the spiritual will” (wasi). Muhammad, according to Ibn Saba, by personal order, chose Ali as his successor in teaching and government and clearly destined him for this. Until the 20th century, the Shiites experienced the heyday of their community in Syria in the 18th century under the famous Sheikh Dagher el-Omar, who established a semi-independent pashalyk in Galilee during the Ottoman rule. For many centuries, Shiite clans lived on the territory of Lebanon, but were few in number, so K. D. Petkovich notes that “Persecuted and persecuted, in the 19th century they ceased to play a noticeable political role and weakened. At present they do not even constitute an independent tribe, like their other Lebanese neighbors.” Now the Shiites are the largest Muslim community in Lebanon, making up 40% of the country's population. They live mainly in the Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border, and in South Lebanon, the region of Lebanon bordering Israel, they make up 80% of the population. Moreover, this ethno-confessional community has the least political rights, since at the time the Lebanese Constitution was written in 1926 and the creation of its oral part - the National Pact (1943), Shiites made up 18% of the population, so their representation in parliament was 19 out of 128 deputies, and the only significant post traditionally occupied by a Shiite is the chairman of parliament. Due to the inadequate representation of this large community in the structures public administration, the Shiite group creates numerous organizations, some of which are legitimate parties fighting for their rights under the law (for example, the Amal party of Nabih Berri), while others are characterized by many sources as fundamentalist and even extremist. The Shiites of Southern Lebanon have become the backbone of the Lebanese “Party of Allah” (“Hezbollah”), which is considered by the United States and a number of other countries to be a terrorist organization, but in Lebanon it is a legitimate party represented in the Lebanese parliament (23 parliamentary seats). Lebanese Hezbollah has left the world organization of Twelver Shiites of the same name, which advocates Islamic rule and the introduction of Sharia law, as this is contrary to the Lebanese Constitution. Hezbollah of Lebanon is formally open to citizens of the country of any religion and, thanks to the financial support of Iran (which finances the world party of the same name, which does not operate in Lebanon), has a media system, a network of social and charitable organizations throughout Lebanon. It is one of the most important socio-political and military organizations in the country, usually in alliance with Michel Aoun's Christians and the Amal party. DruzeThe teachings of the Druze are one of the branches of extreme Shiism, although representatives of this community themselves often do not consider themselves Muslims. The Druze doctrine arose in Egypt under the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim (996-1021). On the throne, he pursued an extremely controversial religious policy, forcing many researchers to doubt his mental balance. Here is what K. D. Petkovich writes about him in his work: “He cursed the first Muslim caliphs, the companions of Mohammed, in the mosques of Cairo, and a few days later lifted the excommunication. Forced Jews and Christians to retreat from their faith, then ordered them to return to their confession again. For entertainment, he ordered half of the city of Cairo to be burned, and the other half was given over to his soldiers for plunder. Not content with this, he forbade Muslims to observe their customs (Ramadan, Hajj, Salat, etc.), and finally extended his extravagance to the point that he ordered them to worship him as a deity.” In 1017, Caliph al-Hakim declared himself the incarnation of God on earth and ordered to honor him accordingly. This year was the 1st year of the Druze religion. In 1021 the caliph mysteriously disappeared, there are different versions this event. According to one, he was killed by his own sister Sitt-al-Muluk, who became the regent of his son and, in fact, the sovereign ruler of Egypt. There is also a version that al-Hakim left Egypt, fearing assassination, and then took an active part in organizing the Druze community in the Lebanese mountains under the name Hamza al-Khali, one of the main inspirers of the movement for the deification of the caliph. The religion of the Druze consists of a peculiar combination of the tenets of Islam of an Ismaili nature with elements of Christianity, Zoroastrianism and pre-Islamic cults. The main tenet of their faith is monotheism, faith in the deified al-Hakim. The Druze believe in his second coming, that is, in the “hidden imam.” An integral element of their doctrine is the belief in the transmigration of souls, and they believe that the souls of dead Druze are transmigrated into the bodies of those who are born, and since the number of souls is constant, it is not possible to accept new members into the community. The Druze community has been closed to entry (daawa) since the 11th century. A Druze cannot change religion without losing his nationality. A Druze is only one whose mother and father belong to the Druze community. The social organization of the Druze is characterized by division into initiated and uninitiated, endogamy, isolation and secrecy. Druze sacred texts and some elements of the ritual are accessible only to initiates, since this religion is esoteric in nature. “The Druze law must be hidden from non-believers more carefully than “the trace of an ant walking on a piece of black marble on a dark night.” The Druze follow the principle of “tykiyya” (“mental reservation”, when a person says to himself that he is a Druze, but acts like an adherent of any other religion). Thanks to this principle, a Druze living among hostile infidels may not differ from those around him. The interests of the community are paramount for the Druze; for their sake, it is not considered reprehensible to deceive non-believers. Religious worship and rituals do not occupy a significant place in the daily life of the Druze. They do not follow the rules of Sharia, eat pork and drink wine, do not have mosques and do not attach any importance to the cult of the dead, and therefore their belonging to Islam seems doubtful. With the movement of the Druze from Egypt to Syria and after the closure of the da'wah, the Druze community began to develop as an important political force in the medieval Levant. Druze dynasties began to enter into alliances with various external forces. The Druze community ruled Mount Lebanon for many centuries. The Al-Maani dynasty became the most influential clan in Lebanon after the Ottoman victory over the Mamluks in 1516 because, according to F. Hitti, “together with the conquerors they defied fate.” In any case, it was the rise to power of the Ma'anids that marked a turning point in Druze history, whose influence flourished during the reign of Emir Fakhr ad-Din II al-Ma'ani (1585-1633). During his reign, the territory under his control occupied almost all of modern Syria, from the edge of the Antioch Plain in the north to Safad in the south. By 1667, his nephew Ahmed Al-Ma'ani managed to restore the power of the Al-Ma'ani clan over the Maronite region of Kesrouan in central Lebanon and the southern regions of the country, creating the Ma'anid Emirate, which became the core of modern Lebanon. The Druze, as well as the Maronites, played a vital role in the formation confessional democracy in Lebanon. After the Druze emirs ruled all of Mount Lebanon for several centuries, the political importance of their community diminished somewhat and by the 20th century was no longer so all-encompassing. This is evidenced by the number of their seats in parliament (6 deputies out of 128), as well as only 1-2 ministerial posts, usually the ministers of displaced persons, information or agriculture. ChristiansAt the end of the 12th century, the rapprochement between the Maronite Church and the Roman Holy See began. In 1580, Pope Gregory XIII founded a special theological seminary in Rome for the Maronite clergy. From that time on, the Roman throne became seriously interested in the Maronites. But only in the 18th century did all Maronite hierarchs admit their dependence on the Pope. This happened simultaneously with a radical restructuring of the Maronite Church under the leadership of Patriarch Sarkis al-Rizzi, who held a council of prelates. The decisions of this meeting provided for the recognition of the main provisions Catholic cathedrals, streamlining the family and marriage code (in particular, the rejection of ortho-cousin marriages), introduction Julian calendar, the separation of monks from nuns and both from the laity. Fearing accusations of plotting, the papal legates negotiated with the Eastern Christians as secretly as possible. The pope's envoys opposed the final Arabization of the Maronite Church and favored the preservation of Latin in worship. Despite the significant rapprochement with Roman Catholicism, the cult and rituals of the Maronite Church retain many archaic Christian institutions and customs, in many ways similar to the rituals of the ancient Syrian Christian communities. Aramaic is considered the liturgical language, but Arabic is also used in worship. Some temples use the East Syrian rite borrowed from the Nestorians. Latinization was a purely external and rather fragile shell, covering up truly profound changes in the Maronite church organization. Their essence was that throughout the 18th century. The Maronite Church became the largest owner of land in Lebanon. Until now, Maronite monasteries own vast lands in Lebanon, where the residence of the Maronite patriarch is located. Many Maronites over the centuries were large feudal lords, therefore, in this ethno-confessional community a layer of prosperous and wealthy clans was formed, many of which trace their history back to the times crusades. At the same time, most Maronites were simple peasants. The historical significance of the Maronite Church for the history of Lebanon was enormous. It was under the influence of this large (by Lebanese standards) Christian community that Lebanon began to differ greatly from other Arab countries in the level of Westernization and the emergence of democratic tendencies even during the time of Turkish rule. The entire confessional system of governance, which is a unique phenomenon in world political history, initially arose mainly from the coexistence and confrontation of the Maronites and Druze, who until the 20th century were the most numerous and powerful communities in Lebanon. Now the Maronite Church is the largest Christian community in Lebanon, plays an important role in the political life of the country through Maronite representation in parliament, and also has its own media, schools and other organizations. The Lebanese President is a Maronite. Greek OrthodoxThe Greek Orthodox Church is the oldest church in Lebanon. Her official name- The Antiochian Orthodox Church (in documents in Arabic - the Roman Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East) is an autocephalous local Orthodox church. The Patriarchate of Antioch is one of the four ancient Eastern Patriarchates of the Byzantine Orthodox Church. According to legend, the church was founded around 37 AD. e. in Antioch by the apostles Peter and Paul. Despite the separation of the Patriarchate of Constantinople at the Council of Chalcedon, the autocephaly of the Antiochian Church was confirmed at the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451. In dogmatic, ritual and cult terms, the Antiochian Orthodox Church is not much different from other Orthodox churches. As K. D. Petkovich writes in his “Note”: “The Orthodox settled in Lebanon due to the same reasons that prompted other nationalities or religious communities to seek refuge there, that is, persecution and persecution for religious beliefs by the ruling power in Syria religion". The Orthodox in Lebanon had no political aspirations, however, the International Commission of 1861, at the insistence of the Russian commissar G. Novikov, endowed the Orthodox in Lebanon with the same rights as other nationalities, granting them the Orthodox kaimakami in Kure in northwestern Lebanon. The Muslim rulers of Lebanon predominantly pursued a policy of religious tolerance, so most of the population continued to adhere to the Christian religion, but quickly began to undergo a process of Arabization. In the Middle Ages, almost all liturgical books and the Bible were translated into Arabic, and divine services were also performed in it. The Greek Orthodox Church is the second largest Christian community in Lebanon, making up about 8-11% of the country's population. Unlike other large religious communities (for example, the Druze and Maronites), there were no large feudal nobility among the Orthodox. Basically, representatives of this community are peasants, as well as artisans, office workers and small traders. Orthodox intellectuals of Syria and Lebanon stood at the origins of Arabic (but not pan-Arabic, since they did not consider Egypt, except Sinai with its Orthodox shrines, the Maghreb, and the Arabian Peninsula to be part of the future single state) secular nationalism, were guided by Moscow, which supported it. All Christian Palestinians, like the Christian Arabs of Israel, except the Armenians, are also Greek Orthodox [ ] . During the civil war, when the Orthodox Palestinians and Moscow found themselves on the side of the Muslims, the Orthodox Lebanese did not create their own militia, although some Orthodox Christians fought in the Maronite militias, but there were many Orthodox Christians in the Lebanese Communist Party and the Syrian Social National Party of Lebanon, who fought in side with Muslims, Palestinians and their leftist allies. The Orthodox Christian community of Lebanon is, in church and administrative terms, subordinate to the Patriarch of Antioch, who has a residence in Damascus. Hence, not only from connections with Orthodox Palestinians and Moscow, is the focus of this community on contacts with Syria, right up to the ideas of unifying the states of Syria and Lebanon. It was only after the outbreak of unrest in Syria that they first founded their political party- all other communities have had their own parties since independence and earlier. The Greek Orthodox community has its own representatives in parliament (about 11 people). Greek Catholics - MelkitesGreek Catholics are Uniates belonging to one of the Eastern Catholic Churches. The word "melkite" comes from the Syriac "malko" - "king, emperor." This is how adherents of the non-Chalcedonian churches called those Churches of the ancient patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem that accepted the Council of Chalcedon in 451 (Byzantine emperors also accepted the decrees of the Council of Chalcedon). The Melkites separated from the Antiochian Orthodox Church in 1724. As V.I. Dyatlov writes, “The very formation of the Greek Catholic community in Syria in the 18th century. was largely the result of major socio-economic changes in this country: the growth of trade with Europe (only the volume of trade between France and the Levant increased 4 times in the 18th century), the strengthening of coastal cities, and the overall development of commodity-money relations. The strengthening of France’s economic and political positions in Syria and the growing activity of Catholic missionaries also influenced this process.” According to T. Philip, the emergence of this religious community was a consequence of the formation of “a new, Arabic-speaking middle class, which provided a link between Syria and the world economy.” According to the remark of K. D. Petkovich, “Although the apostate bishops elected from among themselves a patriarch with the title of Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, nevertheless, the Turkish government for a long time did not recognize either the Uniate clergy or the Uniate Church, separate from the Orthodox. Only in 1827 were the Syrian Uniates recognized.” Further, K. D. Petkovich describes in his work how the Melkites en masse converted Orthodox Christians to the union during the time of Egyptian rule in Syria (1832-1841). In fact, according to the Russian consul, this happened fraudulently, since the ritual and clothing of the Melkite clergy are practically no different from the Orthodox, and the believers did not notice the substitution. After the departure of the Egyptians, the Orthodox churches returned to their ritual, and the Melkites began to increasingly use Maronite churches for their services. From the very beginning, this community was characterized by very high economic activity. But nevertheless, being a small community, they did not claim political supremacy. Despite this, high level education, knowledge of several foreign languages and “natural abilities” gave many of them the opportunity to successfully occupy many responsible government positions. The spiritual head of the Greek Catholics of Lebanon is the Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem and the whole East. He has two residences, one of which is located in Egypt, in the city of Alexandria, and the other in the capital of Syria, Damascus. Representatives of this community make up about 6% of the Lebanese population and about 12% of Lebanese Christians. More than 2/5 of all Greek Catholics live in the Bekaa governorate, of which the vast majority are in the city of Zahli, which is the center of the Lebanese Melkites. According to established tradition, the Melkite community elects six of its deputies to parliament. Armenian Apostolic ChurchThe fourth largest number of Christian adherents (Muslims and Georgians only mistakenly consider Armenians to be non-Christians due to the fact that the AAC in the liturgy on many days does not use the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, which is generally accepted among all other Christians, but the Nicene Creed with additions, mainly borrowed from the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, read by the Syro-Jacobites who have always been in Eucharistic communion with the AAC, but there are days when only the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed is read in Armenian churches) the church is the Armenian Apostolic Church. This is the Armenian national autocephalous church, belonging to the Orthodox churches of the pre-Chalcedonian tradition, although it is the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed established only by the Council of Chalcedon that is the only creed of all, except the Armenian, of these churches. Therefore, of all these churches, only the Armenian can rightfully be called pre-Chalcedonian, and the rest are more correctly called only anti-Chalcedonian in the sense of opposition to the Chalcedonites, but not to the Council of Chalcedon. These churches, which arose after the Council of Chalcedon, implement many of its decisions, such as the spread of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed to the entire Church, more earnestly than the Chalcedonites themselves. The Armenian Church, in general, condemns not the theology of the council, but the fact that its representatives were not invited to the council, and the council did not consider the issue of providing military assistance to Armenia. Nerses Shnorali showed that since in the orthodox theology of the Armenian Church “essence” and “nature” are not synonymous, unlike the understanding of the Greek Orthodox and Sevirians, then when only the term “essence” is used in the Chalcedonian Creed and its interpretations, the theology of the AAC, in contrast to the theology of the Anti-Chalcedonians themselves, it is fully consistent with the Chalcedonian Creed. They agreed with him Patriarch of Constantinople and theologians of Constantinople. At the head of the Armenian Church is the Catholicos of all Armenians, who has his residence in Etchmiadzin, near Yerevan, but the Lebanese Armenians are subordinate to the Cilician Catholicosate, which is absolutely independent in everything except religious matters - and then in theory, which recognizes only the primacy of honor for the Catholicos of all Armenians. Armenians are the largest non-Arab national minority in Lebanon, making up about 6% of the country's total population. Orthodox Armenians make up about 4/5 of Lebanon's Armenian population, or about 6% of the country's total population. Of these, more than 67% live in Beirut, about 25% in the cities of the Mount Lebanon governorate. Armenians preserve their language, traditions, customs and have their own religious and cultural organizations, schools, colleges, periodicals, etc. Orthodox Armenians are represented in parliament by several deputies. The majority of Armenians moved to these areas already in the 20th century as a result of fleeing the genocide perpetrated by the Young Turks in 1915. Most Armenians were tortured and killed between 1915 and 1924, but some managed to escape to inaccessible areas of the Ottoman Empire, one of which traditionally was Lebanon. There are several Armenian parties in Lebanon: Hunchak - social democratic party, Ramkavar Azatakan - liberal democratic party, Armenian Revolutionary Union Dashnaktsutyun. Orthodox Armenians, being the only national minority in Lebanon (representatives of other faiths are predominantly Arabs), have representation in the Lebanese Parliament and nominate four deputies out of 99. Syro-JacobitesJacobites are adherents of miaphysitism. This community was formed in Mesopotamia and Syria in the 6th century. The founder of the church is considered to be the Syrian bishop Jacob Baradeus (Baradeus). They are part of their own independent (autocephalous) church, headed by the Patriarch of Antioch and the East. In terms of cult and ritual, the Jacobites are not much different from the Orthodox, but they retain more ancient customs in their ritual. They cross themselves with one finger, thereby signifying the unity of God. Jacobites, historically closely associated with the Armenian apostolic church, recognize the one divine-human nature of Christ. But they did not accept the Orthodox confession of Nerses Shnorali. The services of their West Syriac rite are performed in Aramaic, which is not understandable to most parishioners. Along with the white clergy, monks have a great influence on believers. Being the fifth largest Christian community in Lebanon, the Jacobite Syrians do not play a big role in the political life of modern Lebanon; they are represented in parliament by one deputy. Syro-CatholicsFor the first time, the idea of establishing church communion between Rome and the Syro-Jacobites arose during the Crusades, when good relations were often established between Latin and Syrian bishops, but these contacts did not lead to concrete results. The second attempt at union was made at the Ferrara-Florence Council, but it also did not lead to the real establishment of church communion, remaining on paper. The situation began to change in the 17th century. Relations between Rome and the Syro-Jacobite Church were strengthened, also as a result of the activities of the missions of the Jesuits and Capuchins large number Syrians converted to Catholicism. Two parties arose in the church - supporters and opponents of the union. After the election of Andrei Akhidzhyan, a supporter of the union, as patriarch in 1662, the church split. After Akhidjian’s death in 1677, each side elected its own patriarch, which finally formalized the schism and the emergence of the Eastern Catholic Church, separate from the Syro-Jacobite Church. The Syriac Catholic Church adopted an orthodox Christology, abandoning miaphysitism but retaining the West Syriac liturgical rite. Andrei Akhidzhyan is revered by Syro-Catholics as the first patriarch under the name Ignatius Andrei I. After the death of the second patriarch of the church, Ignatius Peter VI, in 1702, the line of Syrian Catholic patriarchs was interrupted by the extreme hostility of the Ottoman Empire towards Catholics of the Eastern Rite. For most of the 18th century, the church existed underground. The Syrian Catholic Patriarchate was renewed in 1782, when the Synod of the Syro-Jacobite Church elected Metropolitan Michael Jarvich of Aleppo as patriarch. Soon after this, he declared himself a Catholic, fled to Lebanon and built the monastery of the Virgin Mary in Sharf, which still exists and is considered the spiritual center of the Syro-Catholics. After Jarvich (Ignatius Michael III), the line of Syro-Catholic patriarchs was no longer interrupted. In 1829, the Syrian Catholic Church was recognized by the Ottoman authorities, and in 1831 a patriarchal residence was built in Aleppo. Due to persecution, the residence was moved to Mardin (southern Türkiye) in 1850. The stable growth of the church at the expense of the Syro-Jacobites was stopped by a massacre in Turkey at the beginning of the 20th century. In the 1920s, the residence of the patriarch was moved to Beirut, where many believers fled. Rituals in the Syro-Catholic Church are performed according to the West Syrian ritual. Liturgical languages are Aramaic and Arabic. Armenian CatholicsRegular contacts between the Armenian Church and the Holy See began in the era of the Crusades. The first union with Rome was signed in 1198-1199. Cilician Armenians, but its action was stopped by the Mongol invasion in 1375. In 1439, the Council of Florence restored the union and intensified the activities of the Armenian “brothers of the union.” The Armenian Catholic Church dates its history back to 1742, when Pope Benedict XIV appointed Bishop of Aleppo Abraham Pierre 1 Ardzivian as Patriarch of the Armenian Catholics with the see in Sis. In 1750, the see was moved to Lebanon, and after the settlement of territorial disputes between the secular and ecclesiastical administrations, it was located in Constantinople from 1867 to 1928. Since 1928, the see of the Armenian Catholic Church has been located in Beirut. According to official statistics for 1951, there were 14,218 Armenian Catholics in Lebanon. According to the last official census in 1932, there were 5,800 of them. Armenian Catholics are represented by one deputy in the Lebanese parliament. NestoriansThe Nestorians constitute a special Christian community. Usually the followers of their church are called Assyrians based on their nationality, and their church is Assyrian. NotesSee alsoLinks
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Religion has always occupied key positions in the government of world powers. But if in Western countries for many decades religion has been rapidly losing its influence on all processes occurring in the structure of society, then in the East it is impossible to imagine such a separation of the state from religious beliefs. Lebanon is especially unique in this regard. Religion in this country is strongly connected with all political processes and directly influences the legislative branch of government. Many scientists call Libya a “patchwork quilt”, which is woven from different faiths and religious movements.
If you do not delve into details and consider the religious issue from the point of view of dry facts, then, according to the latest data, among the population in Lebanon about sixty percent are Muslims, thirty-nine percent are Christians, and only a little more than one percent of Lebanese profess other religions.
It seems that this picture is practically no different from the usual balance of power in Lebanon. But the religion of Lebanon is actually a much more complex and multi-layered structure, which is worth talking about in more detail.
Lebanon, religion: historical background for the formation of a multi-religious state
Despite the fact that there are surprisingly many religious movements in the country, the population is ninety percent Arab. The remaining ten percent is a motley carpet of Greeks, Persians, Armenians and other nationalities. These differences have never prevented the Lebanese population from coexisting peacefully, especially since they all share the same language. Many Lebanese speak excellent French and are well educated. All this made it possible to create a special state in which the rights of representatives of all religious faiths are respected.
It is worth noting that tolerance for heterogeneity has always been present in the blood of the Lebanese. Initially, many residents of the country considered themselves pagans. Throughout Lebanon, historians have found numerous altars and temples dedicated to various cults. The most common were the deities who came from Hellas. Numerous conquests of Libya by Muslims and European Christians could not change the cultural traditions of the country. Each time, a new religion was superimposed on past beliefs and successfully assimilated into Lebanese culture. As a result, the country's population could adhere to absolutely any religion, which was more consistent with the preferences of a particular community.
By the mid-twentieth century, religion in Lebanon had penetrated into all spheres of life of the population and, one might say, formed a system of political structure that has no analogues anywhere in the world. Most politicians believe that the country's political model owes its longevity and productivity to a close relationship that can be represented as a symbiosis of “Lebanese culture - Lebanese religion.” It ensures interaction between all faiths and the adoption of legislative acts that take into account the interests of all religious communities.
Religious denominations of Lebanon
Muslims and Christians in the country do not form a single structure. Each religion is divided into numerous movements, represented by their religious leaders who lead the communities.
For example, Muslims are represented mainly. They constitute an influential majority; Alawites and Druze can also be distinguished among Muslims. Lebanese Christians profess a special trend; they call themselves Maronites. This religious movement arose at the end of the fifteenth century, its followers lived in mountainous areas and carefully guarded their identity for many centuries. Even the influence of the Vatican could not break the Maronites; they preserved their traditions and rituals. In addition to the Maronites, Orthodox, Catholics, Protestants and Jacobites live in the country. There are quite a few representatives of the Armenian Church among Christians.
Confessional system of governing the country
As we have already found out, there is no other country as diverse as Lebanon. Religion, or rather its diversity, has forced numerous communities to look for ways to interact and compromise. As a result, 1943 religious leaders of Lebanon signed the "National Pact", which defined the country's political system as confessionalism. According to this document, each confession should have influence on the adoption of laws, therefore the number of seats in parliament is strictly regulated for each religious movement.
Many political scientists believe that this system will sooner or later destroy Lebanon. Religion, according to experts, cannot significantly influence the external and domestic policy states. But while the fears and forecasts of political scientists do not come true, confessionalism has firmly entered the lives of ordinary Lebanese.
How does religion influence the distribution of seats in the Lebanese parliament?
According to the decision of the leaders of religious communities, the posts of the main officials of the state should be occupied by members of the most numerous faiths (according to the latest population census). Therefore, now in Lebanon the president is a Maronite, and the positions of prime minister and chairman of parliament are given to Sunnis and Shiites. In parliament, Christians and Muslims should each have sixty-four seats. This ensures the equality of all currents, and no one’s interests are left unattended when considering new laws.
Lebanon: official religion
After hearing all this, you may have a question about the official religion of Lebanon. What is she really like? Reply to this question is the most striking and surprising characteristic of the country: Lebanon has no official religion. Although it is enshrined at the legislative level that the state does not belong to the category of secular.
So it turns out that in a country where religious denominations occupy such an important place, no one has yet defined an official religion.
Two young men will recreate in the memory of believers the main moments of the suffering of Jesus Christ under the leadership of the Maronite Patriarch and Lebanese Cardinal Bechar Boutros Rai. The statement said Pope Joseph Ratzinger made the choice “in memory of his recent trip to Lebanon and as a call to the entire Church to pray for the Christian community in the Middle East and a peaceful solution to problems.
Last trip Benedict XVI outside Italy to Lebanon took place in mid-September. He was greeted by a huge number of believers who also came from other countries. Of all the countries in North Africa and the Middle East, Lebanon is the safest place for Christians, where they live in relatively large numbers. But for many years now, before everyone’s eyes, the much-vaunted model of peaceful coexistence of religions has been destroyed. Benedict XVI made a cautious appeal: “The good will of all Lebanese is necessary to preserve the famous Lebanese balance in action. Only then will Lebanon become a role model for the people of the region and the whole world.”
It is clear that the Syrian disaster has put the Lebanese Shia Hezbollah movement at risk, since their patrons live in Damascus and Tehran. But it did not improve the situation of Christians either. Lebanese Christians have long stopped dreaming of winning hegemony in the country. They are divided from within: some support the Shiites, others support the Sunnis. The confrontation between Lebanese Sunnis and Shiites is becoming increasingly radical. There is a great temptation to repeat in Lebanon the offensive going on in Syria against the Shiite-Alawite regime of Assad.
Despite all this, both some Christians and some Muslims in Lebanon continue to hope that their peaceful coexistence will continue and act in that spirit. Below is an investigation published in the latest issue of the international magazine Oasis. It has been published since 2004 by the Patriarchate of Venice in six languages, including Arabic and Urdu, and is intended for Christians living in the Islamic world. The purpose of the magazine is to enable Christians and Muslims to better know and understand each other. The magazine and the Newsletter application, published twice a month, also in Spanish, are headed by Cardinal Angelo Scola. It organizes international meetings every year. In 2010, such a meeting took place in Beirut, Lebanon.
Chemical Lebanese formula
What kind of Lebanon did the Pope see? The center of Beirut can still make you believe that the country is developing rapidly: there are many skyscrapers under construction near the sea. But just move a little away from the center, and you find yourself in the poorest neighborhoods, where residents still recognize the front lines of the civil war in road markings. And if you move away from the capital, the landscape changes even more. Towards the east are villages and families whose history is linked to neighboring Syria. Just a few years ago, Syrians were “occupiers,” but now, due to the civil war, they have become “refugees.”
Syrians who have found shelter in Lebanese villages tell their stories sad stories. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled from the incessant bombings, which have been going on for months, from raids and kidnappings carried out either by regular troops or by rebels. They crossed the border in search of respite. The Lebanese government does not allow the official establishment of refugee camps - the balance between different communities is too fragile - but in fact places for receiving and housing refugees do exist.
In Taalabaya in the Bekaa province, the Lebanese Caritas center receives new Syrian families every day who ask them to register in order to receive minimal assistance in the form of a set of food and blankets. Nearby is a camp where refugees have built barracks made of cardboard, fabric and tin. For one hundred and fifty children from two to ten years old, who run freely on the trampled earth, this poor camp is also a playground. They are not very worried about the inability to wash themselves and change clothes; they are completely devoted to playing with their comrades. Their eyes are full of the will to live, while the eyes of their mothers are empty and immersed in despair.
Most of these two hundred families fled from the hell that arose in the Homs area and ended up in these barracks. The thought of having to spend the whole winter in them seems unbearable. For the young twenty-six-year-old mother, time stood still. Her husband was killed in Syria and her house was destroyed by a bomb. She sees no future in front of her, only a hopeless present weighs on her and her two children.
Hundreds of other people are also in dire straits. Each refugee who crosses the border carries with him a burden that is different from that of other fellow sufferers. In the building primary school in the village of Dair Zanoun in the same Bekaa province, twenty families from Damascus are accommodated. At least they have a roof over their head tap water and electricity for two hours a day. But their excitement reaches its limit when a social worker from the Caritas center announces to them that with the start of the school year, they will have to leave the walls of the school.
During the distribution of food, volunteer helpers are bombarded with protests from refugees who do not want to leave the school. They are Sunnis and fear that they will be transferred to Baalbek, where the Shiite majority lives. The school principal looks around the premises with concern, looking at the damage caused by the uninvited guests. Classrooms have been turned into bedrooms and kitchens at the same time, soap and combs are placed on stands of boards, and the garden is used as a toilet.
A young carpenter, the father of three sons, fled from Syria because he risked disappearing, like his brother, from whom there is no news, just as there is no news about what is really happening in his homeland. But at least he saved his wife and three children. There are in villages and big cities wealthier refugees, who can pay between $200 and $250 a month for rent. They can afford it because at least one family member was able to find a job. A lot of families share one apartment and common grief. There is no furniture in the houses; practically life takes place on the floor.
Amid the general misfortune, there are stories that reveal unforgotten appreciation and gratitude: one Syrian family, in which the mother of four children knows nothing of the fate of her husband, found shelter in the Lebanese family whom she had previously hosted in their Syrian home when in Lebanon Violence reigned. But if history amazes with its repetition, then geography amazes with its sudden changes over a short distance. Just an hour's drive takes you from an area of desperation among Syrian refugees to Beirut, where masses of Catholics have flocked to join the Pope in their faith and hope.
More than one critical voice was heard in the days leading up to the Pope's visit to Lebanon. Let's not talk about the Salafi sheikh who wanted to get Benedict XVI to apologize for his speech in Regensburg at a time when all communities were expressing the hope that the Pope's visit would provide something like a "truce". This is what happened, if you do not take into account the demonstrations that took place these days in Tripoli against the film “The Innocence of Muslims,” during which one person was killed and thirty were wounded.
“The Pope's visit received a huge positive response because it was perceived by our people as a happy pause,” explains Lebanese economist and historian George Corm. “The population is desperate, everyone’s nerves are raw.” Adding to the political tension is a significant increase in crime rates. In some areas of the country there is no electricity for 12-18 hours a day. In many regions, water does not flow from taps. The socio-economic situation is very bad. Even a short moment of happiness means a lot against the backdrop of the hard life that we have been leading for 40-50 years.”
“But it couldn’t last,” Corm added. The visit of John Paul II to Lebanon in 1997 was a great moment in the history of the country, because from here the Pope's call was made to the entire Middle East and West, but this message remained unanswered. A month after Benedict XVI's departure, in the Christian quarter of Ashrafi, in the very center The head of the secret services was killed in a terrorist attack in Beirut. Korm believes there are many reasons for Lebanon's weakness. One of them is the division of the population into communities, which impedes the development of citizenship, since people do not identify themselves with the country, but with one of the eighteen religious groups recognized by the state.
There is no educational work that would show the significance of the traditions of Lebanese Christians. Korm explains: “You won’t find a single textbook in our schools that talks about the history of the church in Antioch, but the history of France or the United States of America is memorized. People think that Christianity originated in Rome. If you write a book about the persecution of Christians in the Middle East, it will become a bestseller. But if you write a book about the complexity of the situation here, you will have little to sell...”
The words that the Grand Mufti of the Lebanese Sunnis, Mohammed Rashid Kabbani, addressed to the Pope were understood by many as a call for Christians not to leave the Middle East, because their presence is a guarantee of social unity. The mufti said: "We support the call for the Christians of Mashreq to remain in the Arab world and continue to play an important role in national affairs in the hope that this will help maintain the integrity of the social fabric in this part of the world."
Maronite Catholic and member of the Lebanese Constitutional Court Antoine Messarra considers these words very important: “So, Arab Islam is liberating itself and we need to help it liberate itself. It is a pity that Christians in the Arab world have taken a step backward. Lebanese Muslims need Christians to support their traditions of freedom. I think this is the meaning of the mufti's statement. It is a shame that religions are divided into those that inspire fear and religions that are gripped by fear. Imagine, for example, that I was afraid of Islam. But Islam is part of my culture, it is included in everyday life and relationships!
Lebanon stands out for its extreme religious diversity. This is the only Arab state headed (by the President of the Lebanese Republic), according to the Constitution, by a Christian (Maronite). The Prime Minister is a Sunni Muslim. The Speaker of Parliament is a Shiite Muslim.
There are many different religious communities in Lebanon. The division and rivalry between them dates back at least 15 centuries and remains a very important factor today. The principles of peaceful coexistence have changed little since the 7th century, but there have also been cases of ethnic cleansing (most recently during the Lebanese Civil War), which led to significant changes in the political map of the country.
List of officially recognized religious communities
* Alawites
* Ismailis
* Sunni
* Shiites
*Druze
*Armenian-Gregorians
* Armenian Catholics
* Assyrian Church of the East
* Chaldean Catholic Church
* Copts
* Evangelical Christians (including Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists)
* Greek Catholics
* Orthodox
*Maronites
*Roman Catholic Church
*Syrian Catholic Church
*Syrian Orthodox Church
* Judaists
Muslims in Lebanon
At the moment, there is a consensus in Lebanon that Muslims make up the majority of the population of the republic. The largest religious community in the country is Shiite. The second largest group is Sunni. Drusen, although small in number, also have a significant impact.
Christians in Lebanon
Maronites is the largest Christian community in Lebanon. It has a long connection with the Roman Catholic Church, but has its own patriarch, liturgy and customs. Traditionally, Maronites have good relations with the Western world, especially France and the Vatican. They still dominate the Lebanese government. The President of Lebanon is always chosen from among the Maronites. Their influence has been decreasing recently. During the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, she helped Sunni and other Muslim communities and resisted many Maronites. Maronites are mainly settled in rural areas, with significant concentrations living in the Lebanese Mountains and Beirut.
Greek Orthodox- the second largest Christian community. It is less connected to Western countries than the Maronites. The Greek Orthodox Church exists in many countries of the Arab world and its followers are often seen in pro-Arab and pro-Syrian sentiments.
Other religions in Lebanon
The remnants of a very small Jewish population are traditionally concentrated in Beirut. It was larger - most Jews left the country after the Six-Day War in 1967.