Resigned
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir said Monday that he would
reside in Bkirki, the seat of the patriarchate, even after the election
of his successor.
“I will remain in Bkirki just like my predecessor late Patriarch Youssef Khreish did,” he told The Daily Star.
The
91-year-old Sfeir, who was elected Patriarch of Antioch for the
Maronites 25 years ago in 1986, said he resigned to allow for a “younger
bishop” to assume the responsibility.
“No
one pressured me to turn in my resignation,” he told The Daily Star
when asked whether the Vatican secretly asked him to resign. “I resigned
when I reached this age since I believe I have to leave to someone
younger than me the responsibility of heading the church.”
Sfeir’s
resignation was accepted last month during a meeting with Pope Benedict
XVI on the sidelines of a visit to the Vatican to unveil a statue of
the Maronite Church founder Saint Maroun on the outer wall of St.
Peter’s Basilica.
Sfeir
denied any intervention by the Vatican in the election of a new
patriarch and rejected claims that he favored any of the current 41
bishops for the post.
“The
Vatican monitors the election from distance and never once intervened
to appoint a patriarch independently from bishops,” Sfeir said.
The
Synod of bishops will gather in a spiritual conclave at the seat of the
Maronite patriarchate in Bkirki Wednesday at 6 p.m. in isolation from
the outside world for a 15-day period to elect the church’s 77th
patriarch
“We ask God to inspire bishops to choose the best successor to carry the message God tasked us with,” Sfeir said Monday.
Asked
whether the new patriarch would hold on to the same values that Sfeir
had carried during his tenure to support Lebanon’s sovereignty,
independence and freedom, Sfeir said circumstances would dictate the new
patriarch’s positions.
“Every patriarch has a personality and he should know [what’s best],” Sfeir said.
Sfeir
has been a staunch critic of Syrian intervention in Lebanese affairs;
under his leadership, the Council of Maronite Bishops issued a firm call
for the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon in 2000, five years
before their actual departure in 2005.
Also
a critic of Hezbollah’s weapons, Sfeir continues to stress the
importance of restricting the possession of weapons to state
institutions.
When asked
about the objective, which he failed to accomplish during his tenure,
Sfeir said that Lebanon has accomplished its independence but it is one
that “lacks many things to become complete.”
He added that foreign intervention in Lebanese affairs still exists and intensifies at times when Lebanon faces crises.
“Every
time Lebanon is weak, people intervene in its affairs and when the
country grows stronger, foreign intervention becomes weaker,” Sfeir
said.
Touching on
statements made by March 8 Christian parties accusing him of bias toward
their rivals in the March 14 coalition, Sfeir said he was at equal
distance from rival Christian parties and he asked God to grant
forgiveness to those who accused him of being impartial.
“If we do not support [them] publicly, they believe we support their rivals. We are neither ally of this group or that group, we are with God and our patriarchate,” Sfeir said responding to March 8 accusations he had taken sides with March 14 parties.
“God forgive them,” he added.
Sfeir said he was unaware of the reasons behind the Free Patriotic Movement’s decision to boycott a Mass held Saturday in honor of the outgoing patriarch.
FPM leader Michel Aoun and Marada Movement leader Suleiman Franjieh have accused Sfeir of bias toward their rivals in the March 14 coalition, particularly Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.
FPM official and caretaker Energy Minister Jibran Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law, did not attend the ceremony in protest against what he described as a breach in protocol given Geagea’s seating in the second row alongside Cabinet members during the Mass in Bkirki.
However, Franjieh praised Sfeir’s tenure despite their “political differences,” during a farewell visit to Bkirki Monday.
Franjieh added that although “at some point we could have offended the patriarch the relation between us was never governed by hatred.”
Reiterating his criticism of Aoun and Franjieh’s ally, Hezbollah, Sfeir said the state should have monopoly over the possession of weapons.
“But if every faction wants to have its own weapons, then matters will not straighten up,” he said.
Asked whether he feared for Lebanon, Sfeir responded: “God will protect it.”
With the March 14 coalition set to boycott the new government of Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati, Sfeir said he hoped for the formation of a Cabinet comprising all parties.
The prelate also reiterated his support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon investigating former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination.