Religious freedom is high on the agenda as Catholic patriarchs and
bishops of the Middle East meet this week in Harissa, Lebanon, to
discuss Ecclesia in Medio Oriente, the apostolic exhortation by Pope Benedict XVI that furnishes a “road map” for the work of the Church in that region.
Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai told Vatican radio that the Church will
defend “the right and duty of Christians to take part in national life
in their various homelands and to enjoy full citizenship, without being
treated as minorities.
“We continue to insist, on every occasion, on the
need for freedom of conscience and the separation of religion and
state.”
However, religious freedom remains a controversial matter in many
Islamic societies, the Maronite Patriarch said. While the Church
welcomes Muslims into the schools and hospitals run by Catholic
institutions, Islamic law does not grant the same sort of freedom to
Christians.
Restrictions on religious freedom have a great impact on the Church’s
evangelizing activities, the Maronite leader said.
“Because freedom of
conscience is not recognized, there are many secret conversions to
Christianity in Lebanon and in Arab countries.”