On Saturday, November 22, 2025 morning, at eleven o’clock, John X, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East arrived at the residence of the Metropolis of Beirut, where Metropolitan Elias Audi of Beirut and Dependencies, together with the Orthodox bishops of Lebanon, welcomed him with a reception.
After prayer, the Patriarch presided over a meeting, following which he declared: “On this day so dear to all our hearts, the Day of Lebanon’s Independence—Lebanon the Mission, the Lebanon of civilization and refinement—we gather in our Archdiocese of Beirut with our beloved brother, His Eminence Elias, Metropolitan of Beirut and Dependencies and the Orthodox bishops of Lebanon.
First, we extend our best wishes to His Excellency the President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, and to all Lebanese people, on this noble occasion.
Our message may be simply that we stand together as Lebanese, regardless of religious, political, regional, or partisan affiliations; that we unite alongside the President and the State, so that Lebanon may rise above all the difficulties that overwhelm it.
Of course, we also discussed the forthcoming visit of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, first to Turkey and then to Lebanon. This visit is of great importance, being the first by His Holiness outside the Vatican since assuming his ecclesiastical office as Pope. It therefore holds a special place and conveys a significant message to Lebanon, to the Lebanese people, and to the whole world about the importance of Lebanon in the thought and heart of His Holiness.
On this day, in our name and in the name of the bishops, we renew our prayers for every blessing and success for every Lebanese person, wishing that Lebanon may rise again, and that every Lebanese person may feel the longed for dignity living in their homeland, with grace, prosperity, and blessings.
May every feast be blessed for you all. We pray for peace in Lebanon, and for a blessed visit of His Holiness the Pope that may bring goodness to Lebanon and to the entire region.”
