Posted on 05/13/2005 4:52:21 PM PDT by underlying
BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNS) -- A Catholic-run radio station in Lebanon was destroyed in a bombing attack May 6, the latest in a series of attacks in Lebanon's Christian areas.
The attack was an apparent response to the station's campaign regarding the plight of Lebanese detained in Syrian prisons.
The Voice of Charity, operated by the Congregation of Maronite Lebanese Missionaries in the port city of Jounieh since 1984, was completely destroyed in the attack, caused by an estimated 50 pounds of explosives in the main square outside the building. One person was killed, and more than 20 were injured. Several adjoining buildings were also destroyed in the blast.
On the day of the attack, the Voice of Charity broadcast live from outside Beirut's U.N. house, where families of Lebanese detainees staged a sit-in. Approximately 600 Lebanese -- including two Maronite priests -- have been either missing or detained in Syrian prisons since Lebanon's civil war, which ended in 1989. Syrian authorities have denied the existence of the prisoners, and the Lebanese government has ignored the issue.
Former prisoners of Syria recounted their experiences of torture in Syria's prisons during the Voice of Charity's live broadcast, and family members of current prisoners shared their frustrations about not knowing about their loved ones. The daylong programming also included prayers and a Mass celebrated for the intention of the prisoners.
"We consider this attack as a kind of political response" to the May 6 broadcast, said Maronite Father Maurice Chidiac, co-director of the Voice of Charity.
"From now on we will consider the cause of the Lebanese prisoners as our case," Father Chidiac said. "It is a kind of democratic expression of our will and our prayers that this case will be sorted out very soon."
An hour after the attack, the station resumed broadcasting hymns from a transmitter in the sanctuary of Our Lady of Harissa Shrine located on a mountaintop overlooking the Bay of Jounieh; a liturgy was arranged in the station's parking lot May 8, and the following day a eucharistic procession was held around the grounds of the station and the surrounding damaged neighborhood. In addition, a special prayer session will be held daily at 9:46 p.m., the time at which the blast occurred. By May 9, broadcasting had begun from tents erected in the station's parking lot.
The Maronite Church of St. John the Beloved, located on the street level of the station's second-floor facilities, was severely damaged in the attack, but remains intact.
All four of the Voice of Charity's recording studios and possibly its program archives were destroyed.
An estimated 3,000 people attended the May 8 liturgy in the station's parking lot, with the rubble serving as a backdrop behind the altar.
In his homily, Voice of Charity co-director Maronite Father Fadi Tabet called for "an open heart and a clear conscience." Referring to the May 6 broadcast on the plight of those in Syrian prisons, he said: "On that day, the Voice of Charity wanted to carry (the prisoners') voice to all the world and to everyone who is willing to listen. But there are people who wanted to shut off this voice that is calling for freedom. It is because it is the voice of truth, and they thought by destroying the Voice of Charity they would be destroying this message of truth. But you are all here today to prove that this voice never started with the intention to stop."
The liturgy was broadcast live by Telelumiere, Lebanon's Christian television station; coverage was interspersed with footage of the ruins from inside the bombed building.
Nazeeh Zakaria, a former detainee in a Syrian prison who participated in the radio's broadcast, was among those who came to the site to show support for the Voice of Charity. He referred to the station as "the voice of God" and said: "It's time for people to replace the hate in their hearts with love and to stop torturing their fellow men. The traitors (of God) always try to intimidate the faithful, but they cannot kill our faith in God and our beliefs."
"Our initial feeling was sadness and anger," Father Chidiac said. "But we have a stronger feeling to continue, to have faith and to be optimistic."
The Voice of Charity has been broadcasting for nearly 21 years. The 24-hour station was able to reach Syria, Israel, the Palestinian territories, Cyprus and parts of Egypt and Jordan via its satellites and around the world via the Internet; its Web site is: www.radiocharity.org.
"The Voice of Charity is the voice of love, for sure," said Maronite Father Hannoun Andraos, superior of Our Lady of Harissa who began the station using an electronic kit to produce its first transmitter and built the studios with a team of volunteers. "But it is love with freedom and liberty. So the Voice of Charity will maintain the campaign for the freedom of these prisoners."
The Voice of Charity's regular programming included the rosary three times daily, the Angelus and a live broadcast of Sunday services from Bkerke, headquarters of the Maronite Patriarchate. Its live and taped programs, hosted by lay and religious from all rites represented in Lebanon, focused on the Bible, spiritual life, family issues and the church.
In addition to the Voice of Charity's Arabic programming and daily broadcast from the Vatican, segments were also aired in French, English, Armenian and Italian, as well as programming in eight languages native to Lebanon's large Afro-Asian migrant worker population.
Even though all Syrian troops and intelligence forces pulled out of Lebanon April 24, ending Syria's 30-year occupation, it is widely believed that joint Lebanese-Syrian security agencies are still functioning in Lebanon.
The explosion ended several weeks of silence following a March and April spate of bombings of commercial areas in Christian neighborhoods and opposition strongholds, Lebanon's Daily Star newspaper reported.
By Doreen Abi Raad Catholic News Service
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.