Pope Meets Over 13,000 Young People from Lebanon and Around the World: Youth Presentations, Expressive Artwork, and Personal Testimonies
December 01, 2025 · 20:30
His Holiness Pope Leo XIV concluded the second day of his apostolic and official visit to Lebanon by meeting more than 13,000 young people from Lebanon and around the world at the Patriarchal Headquarters in Bkerké. The gathering was attended by Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch Joseph Absi, Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Yonan, Armenian Catholic Patriarch Raphael Bedros XXI Minassian, Apostolic Nuncio Monsignor Paolo Borgia, and the papal delegation, as well as Lebanon’s First Lady, Mrs. Nehmat Aoun, and a large audience of political, union, municipal, elective, and religious figures.
Patriarch Al-Rai welcomed the Pope in Bkerké, saying: “Welcome to the land of the cedars, silent witnesses who lift their hands toward the infinite, like the psalms ascending from the earth to the heavens.”
He added: “We thank you for visiting us at this precious moment, which will remain engraved in our collective memory. Thank you for looking toward us with trust; your words will serve as a light and a guide for our path, and your blessing will be the new birth we hope for.”
The youth presented several symbolic gifts to Pope Leo XIV:
1. A model of two hands and a nurse’s uniform (symbolizing the nurse who saved the child during the Beirut port explosion)
2. Wheat seeds and ears (symbolizing the Beirut port blast)
3. A stone from Saint George Church in Yaroun (150 years old, destroyed by Israeli shelling)
4. Civil defense and army uniforms with a lamp (symbolizing the victims of the explosions)
5. Pieces of wood and iron (from homes destroyed by war and explosions)
6. A passport and a handful of soil (symbolizing youth migration and suicides caused by the economic crisis)
7. A small cedar with the Lebanese flag
8. A figure of the child Jesus, presented by eight young people with special needs
Following the gifts, Father George Yaraq, the youth coordinator at the Patriarchal headquarters, read a passage from the Gospel entitled: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.”
A group of young men and women of various ages then presented an expressive artwork reflecting their struggles amid the crises that Lebanon has endured and continues to face. They emphasized that the destruction after the 4th of August Beirut blast shattered hearts, not only buildings. Yet, they affirmed that this catastrophe did not stop them from giving their all to help others, strengthened by hope in the Lord Jesus and by their love for Lebanon. They expressed their belief that a seed of peace will grow in this resilient nation.
Then, a young man shared a personal testimony, stating: “No country can thrive without youth who believe in it, and Lebanon deserves that we stay despite the hardships.”
Finally, two young women, one Christian, one Muslim, shared their experiences of “real coexistence during the past war,” affirming that “religious differences are united by a spirit of love, showing that God is present when different hearts meet and form the meaning of coexistence.”
Patriarch Al-Rai welcomed the Pope in Bkerké, saying: “Welcome to the land of the cedars, silent witnesses who lift their hands toward the infinite, like the psalms ascending from the earth to the heavens.”
He added: “We thank you for visiting us at this precious moment, which will remain engraved in our collective memory. Thank you for looking toward us with trust; your words will serve as a light and a guide for our path, and your blessing will be the new birth we hope for.”
The youth presented several symbolic gifts to Pope Leo XIV:
1. A model of two hands and a nurse’s uniform (symbolizing the nurse who saved the child during the Beirut port explosion)
2. Wheat seeds and ears (symbolizing the Beirut port blast)
3. A stone from Saint George Church in Yaroun (150 years old, destroyed by Israeli shelling)
4. Civil defense and army uniforms with a lamp (symbolizing the victims of the explosions)
5. Pieces of wood and iron (from homes destroyed by war and explosions)
6. A passport and a handful of soil (symbolizing youth migration and suicides caused by the economic crisis)
7. A small cedar with the Lebanese flag
8. A figure of the child Jesus, presented by eight young people with special needs
Following the gifts, Father George Yaraq, the youth coordinator at the Patriarchal headquarters, read a passage from the Gospel entitled: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.”
A group of young men and women of various ages then presented an expressive artwork reflecting their struggles amid the crises that Lebanon has endured and continues to face. They emphasized that the destruction after the 4th of August Beirut blast shattered hearts, not only buildings. Yet, they affirmed that this catastrophe did not stop them from giving their all to help others, strengthened by hope in the Lord Jesus and by their love for Lebanon. They expressed their belief that a seed of peace will grow in this resilient nation.
Then, a young man shared a personal testimony, stating: “No country can thrive without youth who believe in it, and Lebanon deserves that we stay despite the hardships.”
Finally, two young women, one Christian, one Muslim, shared their experiences of “real coexistence during the past war,” affirming that “religious differences are united by a spirit of love, showing that God is present when different hearts meet and form the meaning of coexistence.”