"Rescue, Recovery, and Religion: Humanitarian Aid and Spiritual Care in Times of Crises

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"Rescue, Recovery, and Religion Humanitarian Aid
and Spiritual Care in Times of Crises
Spiritual Care in Times of Crises The Case
of the Lebanese Society in Time of Wars and in
the After Wars 28 February 2009 - 1115-1245
Lecture 5 www.ziadfahed.com ziadfahed_at_nd
u.edu.lb Notre Dame University Lebanon
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Introduction

• The Lebanese war (1975-1990-2006) was a
  multifaceted war
• More than 150 000 civilians were killed and
  injured in those fifteen years of war
• In such context of wars a series of humanitarian
  aid and spiritual care was needed to support the
  civilians all the way on.

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Confessionalism

• 18 religious community
• Moral pact which is based on confessional
  (denominational) power-sharing
• Establishing a consensual confessional
  (denominational ) democracy (dimocratia
  tawafoukia) of a permanent and final Lebanese
  nation-state (watan niha i) with a special
  mission the inter-confessional living
  (co-existence- convivialite - al-aysh al
  mushtarak).

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I - The impacts of the wars Facing the
sufferance as a common ground and common cause.

• 1.1 A country ruled by lord wars
• 1.2 The Emigration and its negative impacts on
  the country demographic structure
• 1.3 Radical groups attempt to rule the country
  and establish their own political system

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• The Lebanese coexistence through the years
• Negative coexistence
• Passive coexistence
• Positive coexistence a positive recognition of
  religious diversity, sharing the responsibility
  of promoting and consolidating coexistence, while
  actively preserving cultural differences and
  securing equal opportunities

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1.1 A country ruled by lord wars

• Nobody was exempted from the consequences of the
  war.
• The Lebanese war, similar to any other war, has
  no religion, no social boundaries and no
  differences.
• The Lebanese government has entered a deep comma
  and was unable to avoid the clash during those
  years.
• Citizens were left to the lord wars have
  kidnapped their own people in the ghettos of
  fear, ghettos of hate and the ghettos of
  ignorance.
• the continual brain washing of all the citizens
  replaced the moderation

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1.2 The Emigration and its negative impacts on
the country demographic structure

• 10.8 of those who emigrate left Lebanon
  considered their emigration related to political
  or security problems, 8.5 willing to live
  abroad, 4.7 unavailability of education for
  children, etc.
• Economic advantage but religious minorities are
  demographically affected and we are witnessing a
  modification in the religious distribution of
  Lebanon and also the ME.

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• The wars leading to a significant Emigration.
• Christians and Sunnis mostly city dwellers- had
  a low average children per family.

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1.3 Radical groups attempt to rule the country
and establish their own political system

• The case of Hizbullah is a case to study in this
  field.
• Based on Joseph Alagha, in his book The Shifts in
  Hizbullahs Ideology (2006) this party has
  transferred from "extremism" to "moderation.
• Alagha in his optimism shows that Hizbullah drew
  notably on the following two maxims of Islamic
  jurisprudence to justify compromises the notion
  that "necessities permit what is forbidden"
  (al-darurat tubih almahdhurat) and that "what
  cannot be accomplished in its whole, cannot be
  left entirely" (ma la yudraku kuluhu, la yutraku
  kulluhu)

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• Guardianship of the Jurisconsult (wilayat faqih)
  as elaborated by Imam Khomeyni. The guardian must
  be obeyed.
• According to Prof. Richard Bulliet the
  Guardianship of Juriconsult has not make
  unanimity within the different shiaa leaders.

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• Imam Mohamad Mehdi Shamssedin who object the
  theory of guardianship of the Juriconsult has
  launched the the human guardianship over itself
  (wilayat el insan 3ala nafssihi)

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Some of the different faces of suffering in time
of crises in the Lebanese context the Suffering
as a common ground

• The deformed and incomplete image from other
  religious groups.
• Being absorbed by a majority. Majority/minority
  issues.
• Radicalist politico-religious movements
  (Guardianship of the Jurisconsult wilayat al
  faqih)
• Poverty, lack of job opportunities.
• The kidnapping of the lord wars to their own
  community in the ghettos of fear and the ghettos
  of ignorance.
• Injustice and deprivations of human needs in a
  system based on Clientelism (zabayiniyat) as the
  only way to get rights.
• More than 700 Lebanese detainee in Syrian jails
  since more than 10 to 20 years and Syrian
  authority continue denying their presence despite
  many proves (Cf. SOLIDA).
• Thousands of Lebanese went to Israel (running
  away from the revenge of Hezbollah) and they
  cant return back to Lebanon.
• National identity or religious identity

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• II. How university students evaluate the
  Spiritual and Humanitarian Aid in Times of
  Crises?

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• A study that I have conducted with a population
  of 600 university students we have asked them the
  following questions

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Overall what is the general percentage of those
who are satisfied and those who are not satisfied
with the spiritual support?
Percent
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Overall what is the general percentage of those
who are satisfied and those who are not satisfied
with the humanitarian support?
Percent
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Among those who practice their religion, what is
the percentage of those who are satisfied and
those who are not with the spiritual and
humanitarian support?
Percent
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Among those who do not practice their religion,
what is the percentage of those who are satisfied
and those who are not with the spiritual and
humanitarian support?
Percent
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Are you satisfied by the Spiritual support
offered by your religious group in times of
conflict and wars?
Percent
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Are you satisfied by the humanitarian support
offered by your religious group in times of
conflict and wars?
Percent
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Among the students who practice their beliefs
what is the percentage of those who are satisfied
by the spiritual and humanitarian care offered by
their religion?
Percent
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Among the students who practice their beliefs
what is the percentage of those who are satisfied
by the spiritual and humanitarian care offered by
their religion?
Percent
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• An important percentage of young persons who are
  not satisfied from the spiritual and humanitarian
  support. And this is due to
• The negative role conducted by some religious
  leaders and their relation with some lord wars.
• The corruption in the field of Humanitarian
  support.
• The disappointment of the young generations
• Discovering that the religious leaders dont have
  the solution for all kind of problems.
• A very complicated political situation in the
  country
• Another point might be added as a summary to
  this presentation is the fact that the level of
  satisfaction of the humanitarian support is very
  close to the level of satisfaction from the
  spiritual support (49.5 and 51.7 ). Which
  means that through the humanitarian support the
  civilians are judging their own religious groups.
  And this is the reason why different sects are
  using this approach to establish their groups in
  different locations especially in the poor areas.
  

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III- The requirements for the recovering process
in the after war

• 3.1 Culture of peace counters acting the culture
  of fear
• 3.2 Dialogue of life
• 3.3 Promotion of moral values
• 3.4 Truth telling and Reconciliation two
  conditions for sustainable peace
• 3.5 Purification of memory

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3.1 Culture of peace counter acting the culture
of fear

• Promote greater understanding, mutual respect,
  and cooperative action aiming at serving members
  of different communities. Promoting a sustainable
  peace as a common value to all religious
  cultures, and promoting communal living as the
  prime mission.

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• We encounter God in the face of a stranger God
  creates difference therefore it is in one
  who-is-different that we meet God... God makes
  every person in the same image His image- and
  each is different. The supreme religious
  challenge is to see Gods image in one who is not
  in our image. (J. Sacks, the Dignity of
  Difference, 2002)

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• Counter acting the culture of fear
• Through common projects joining different members
  from different religious groups
• By facilitating the work of different groups (NGO
  or others)
• Through investing with youth generations in
  schools and universities etc. (summer camps,
  Music, Sports, etc.)
• Creating alternatives.

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3.2 Dialogue of life

• Day-to-day basis dialogue of life goes on in all
  situations of religious diversity.
• Leonard Swidler talked about such dialogue
  describing it as dialogue of the Head, dialogue
  of the Heart and the dialogue of the Hands
  (which will lead to the dialogue of the whole).
• Such dialogue allows us to understand through our
  lives what we cant understand theoretically
  (Paul Knitter, One earth many religions, 1995).
• Dialogue of life is fragile
• One of the limit of such dialogue the
  Imperialism or colonialism of any language.

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• Pierre Claverie wrote Learning to live together
  and to go out beyond oneself allows those who
  share intensive experiences, to give the weight
  of flesh, the weight of their experience, to the
  words they use. In order that the words may
  express the same things, it is necessary to live
  together, to share an experience, the experience
  of human life with birth, living, suffering, love
  and death. Giving words the weight of flesh, for
  me, that's dialogue. (Pierre Claverie, 1997).

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• The challenge that the post-conflicts generations
  are facing is to rediscover the value and the
  importance of the dialogue of life in all
  situations and to cross the psychological or
  sociological and political boundaries.

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3.3 Promotion of the moral values

• Joining the different opportunities to Promote
  the moral values and working for justice, peace,
  human dignity and developing a national (global)
  ethic. The common struggle against unemployment,
  poverty, radicalism and terrorism is a priority
  in this regard.

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3.4 Truth telling and Reconciliation conditions
for sustainable peace

• The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (The e.g.
  of South Africa)
• The process of truth telling allows to find words
  and explore all what happened. It is the way of
  healing, and no reconciliation without healing.
  The truth telling has the power to identify and
  acknowledge what happened not in a way to forget
  (nobody can forget), neither judge or condemn
  (nobody is perfect) but to define and recognize
  (and limit) the responsibilities.
• Truth-telling is the condition for peace.
  Without truth, no peace. Without truth-telling,
  no peacemakingWhen we lie, we die (W.
  Brueggemann, 1998).
• Truth-telling is dangerous and costly.

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Conditions to process toward a truth telling
process as can bee leaded by a National community
to progress in the healing process

• Conditions to process toward a truth telling
  process as can bee leaded by a National community
  to progress in the healing process
• Create proper and adequate committees that can
  facilitate and inspire trust.
• Sit the rules and the right process to reach the
  healing and liberate while taking into
  consideration the limits and difficulties of such
  process.
• Honor the stories of everyone and allow everyone
  to say them and say them again and again if
  needed.

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• Allow non-destructive expressions of anger toward
  the others.
• Provide reassurance. As issues arise, inform the
  candidate of the consequences of his/her acts.
• Assist in crossing the pain and offer option for
  solutions.
• Help every one in his way to find his own answers
  and way of understanding.
• Work for finding basic needs for everyones
  family.

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3.5 Purification of memory

• The purification of memory is a dynamic process
  through which a person or a group identifies
  determine the acts and responsibilities should
  lead to a firm decision to not repeating such
  errors in the future. The purification of memory
  in the Lebanese context aims at liberating the
  personal and collective conscience.

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• Forgiveness breaks the chain It represents a
  decision not to do what instinct and passion urge
  us to do. It answers hate with a refusal to hate,
  animosity with generosity Forgiveness means that
  we are not destined endlessly to replay the
  grievances of yesterday. It is the ability to
  live with the past without being held captive by
  the past at the heart of the concept of
  forgiveness is the idea of love Love
  distinguishes between the person and the deed I
  honor the past not by repeating it but by
  learning from it by refusing to add pain to
  pain. (Sacks J., 2002)

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Conclusion

• The Lebanese new public is marked by the years of
  wars. This is why it is important to see how can
  the purification of memory have an effective
  role.
• The Lebanese new public is marked by (the new
  reality which is) the radical modification of the
  percentages and the size of the most
  representative religious groups. Those who were
  majority yesterday are minority today and vice
  versa. And the increasing number of emigrants
  confirm this reality.
• The Lebanese new public is also marked by the
  radicalism of some religious-political movements
  this is why it is important to readopt (rebuild)
  the social contract which is based on the
  preservation of a country of common power
  sharing, offering guarantees and prosperity to
  all the groups including the minorities.

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Conclusion

• Moving from a division of power among the
  different sects to a real power sharing in a
  spirit of building one nation.
• Could the civil society group start gaining power
  and mobilize the population or at least the young
  generations to create a national sense of
  identity instead of the current secterianism?
• Reconciliation, forgiveness and Purification of
  memory are conditions for achieving the desired
  peace not only in Lebanon.
• The post-wars Lebanese national suffering could
  be a possibility to call for national and
  courageous responsibilities.
• To move forward in building a sustainable peace
  instead of the actual pacification (and cease
  fire).

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• Improving the level of satisfaction and of
  assistance in times of crises.

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• http//fr.youtube.com/watch?vTYIxBRA5qjA
• Guy Nattive and Erez Tadmor