Lebanon is in challenging but hopeful times: Rai during Télé Lumière 35th anniversary

Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai said in his Sunday mass that "in Lebanon, we are living in challenging times, but they are also times of new opportunities and ongoing hope," the state-run National News Agency reported.

"We need to renew the language and conduct of politics away from divisive rhetoric and self-serving interests, and to awaken the national conscience to rise to the level of the common good," Rai stressed. 

Presiding over the Mass celebrating the 35th anniversary of Télé Lumière, Rai said that "Télé Lumière is not just a media outlet; it is a platform of faith, a space for prayer, a bridge of communication between the Church and its people and all people in Lebanon and the world. It has become the voice of the voiceless, the eye of truth in a time of manipulation and a bridge of unity among peoples."

Télé Lumière is a Lebanese Christian television station. It was launched in 1991 as a non-profit, apolitical media platform with the mission of spreading Christian values, promoting interfaith dialogue and serving as a bridge between the Church and the people in Lebanon, the Middle East and the worldwide diaspora.