Maronite Archbishop of Haifa and the Holy Land, Moussa al-Hage, 14 May 2014 (Credit: Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images)
BEIRUT — Head of the Maronite church Bechara al-Rai condemned, in his Sunday homily, the "inciting, offensive, unethical and factually incorrect campaign" directed last week towards Archbishop Moussa al-Hage, who was accused of attending the annual Christmas greetings ceremony for the bishops of Jerusalem alongside Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
"We reject and condemn all that has been written about [al-Hage] on social media, broadcast falsely on television and radio stations, all labeled as news. All these deeply affect the dignity and ecclesiastical stature of this noble Maronite bishop, who is to us personally a spiritual father and leader of the Maronite church. Those behind these malicious acts should be legally pursued. It is known that Archbishop Moussa al-Hage did not participate in the visit to the Israeli President due to his engagements elsewhere in the archdiocese," Rai said.
Hage had denied accusations that he had met Herzog in an interview with the Lebanese daily Nida' el-Watan on Thursday.
In the interview, the bishop claimed "a smear and terror campaign” was “fabricated to launch accusations of treachery against [him]," and he "refuses to submit." However, Hage stressed that as a representative of the Vatican and the church, "he is empowered, on their behalf, to do what is required, and to abstain when necessary."
Archbishop Hage went on to explain that some of his peers took part in the reception of the Israeli president, simply "so that they could take their case to [Israeli] officials and condemn the military operations taking place in Palestine."
In July 2022, the Maronite bishop was arrested by Lebanese General Security for twelve hours at the Ras Naqoura border checkpoint in southern Lebanon, while he was making his monthly trip to Beirut, carrying aid for needy families. This unprecedented incident was seen at the time as a dangerous precedent in patriarchal circles. Rai's intervention with the officials concerned helped to turn the page and spare the patriarchal vicar legal sanction.
Lebanon's 1955 law on boycotting Israel prohibits interaction between Lebanese and Israelis. It prohibits any individual or legal entity from entering into contact with Israelis or persons residing in Israel. It also prohibits all commercial, financial and other transactions. The penalty for violating this law is three to ten years of hard labor.