“May He be prayed for continually; day by day shall they bless Him. May there be an abundance of grain upon the earth; On the tops of the mountains the crops shall rustle like Lebanon” (Ps 72:15-16).
Miriam, 17, and her family, have lived in Furn El Chebbak, Lebanon, all of their lives. Although they had to “change houses” due to the bombing, they have never considered leaving Lebanon because it is home and they are “proud to be here.” And despite the turmoil, Miriam, her parents and her two younger sisters “have never missed a Sunday Mass.” Yet as solid as her Catholicism was, war would soon bring Miriam’s conviction to another level.
“Our youth group, the University Christian Outreach (an organization authorized by Lebanese Cardinal Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir), had planned a mission trip before the bombing began, but when the war started, we then decided to turn it into an intercession time for Lebanon,” Miriam stated, adding that Pope Benedict’s call for prayer and fasting for the situation later confirmed their intentions. And so when they found the UCO retreat center in Southern Lebanon (sponsored by Bishop Georges Bakouni) surrounded by soldiers, the group of 51 Catholics, four Orthodox and one Evangelical Christian were not deterred but even more determined, instead settling on a Carmelite Convent in Raachine, Lebanon, in which to wage their war of prayer.
For eight days, starting with the Feast of the Transfiguration, Sunday August 6th, the group fasted, attended daily Mass, said communal prayers, and, with few exceptions, prayed the Rosary on their own. Despite the fact the war seemed to be worsening that week, the group never wavered. And against all odds, just as they were preparing to leave the convent on August 13th, news of the cease-fire came.
“Did you ever doubt your prayers would bring, well, such instant results?” I asked Miriam.
“No, because prayer is powerful,” she stated simply. “Fasting saved a country in the Bible and will save ours also.”
“But was there something, perhaps a word you received in prayer, that raised your confidence?”
Miriam paused, then proceeded, “Before we went on our mission trip, I had a vision of Our Blessed Mother covering Lebanon with her dress, and we became sure she was watching over us and will give us peace if we ask.”
“But will it (the cease-fire) last?” I wondered.
“We know Jesus don’t turn down any request for Our Mother!” she shot back in imperfect English but perfect understanding. “Yes we are still meeting every Wednesday to continue praying for a whole peace. We hope and pray ‘your kingdom come, your will be done!’ All we ask of everyone is prayer and to give us (the Lebanese people) equality.”
“And what should be done with Hezbollah?” I asked.
“The majority of Lebanese do not think that Hezbollah is terrorist,” Miriam confided. But [most] think they should give their weapons to the government in a peaceful way through dialogue. War is not the answer.”
“But are you, given the circumstance, afraid of what the future might bring to your country?” I again inquired.
“For the future, I give it all to God. For fear, ‘fear not from those who kill the body but from those who kill the souls,’” Miriam summarized.
Knowing time was growing short, I asked if our young defender of faith and freedom had any advice for our worldwide Catholic Exchange audience.
“Yes. Pray without ceasing. This will remove time for Satan to work,” she declared.
And while he might have said it a bit more eloquently, Pope Benedict XVI couldn’t have said it any better.
© Copyright 2006 Catholic Exchange
Tom O’Toole is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and lives in Elmhurst, Illinois. His book Champions of Faith: Catholic Sports Heroes Tell Their Stories is available through Amazon.com. To purchase an autographed copy, or to have Mr. O’Toole speak at your function, contact him at [email protected].
