Pope Leo XIV will pray at the site of the Beirut port explosion during his visit to Lebanon. The Beirut port explosion, which occurred on August 4, 2020, was the largest nonnuclear blast in modern history, resulting in over 200 deaths and 6,000 injuries. The explosion caused widespread devastation, particularly in East Beirut's Christian neighborhoods, and crushed the morale of the population. The Vatican, under Pope Francis, provided significant support, including a donation of 250,000 euros for emergency relief and recovery efforts. Relatives of the Beirut port victims, including William Noun, have met with Pope Francis to seek justice and express their grief.
11 days ago
The August 4, 2020, explosion at Beirut's port, caused by 2,750 tons of improperly stored ammonium nitrate, remains one of the largest non-nuclear blasts in history.1 It killed over 200 people, injured thousands, and devastated neighborhoods, particularly in Christian areas of East Beirut, leaving a trail of collapsed buildings and economic ruin.1 3
The blast exacerbated Lebanon's crises, including political corruption and financial collapse, with witnesses describing the scene as apocalyptic.1 Five years later, the site symbolizes unresolved grief and impunity, as no officials have been held accountable despite global outrage.3 5
Pope Francis provided immediate aid after the explosion, donating 250,000 euros for relief efforts and later meeting victims' families in 2024.1 During that Vatican encounter, relatives like William Noun shared personal stories, humanizing the tragedy beyond statistics.1
Pope Leo XIV's visit continues this support, seen as a moral push for justice amid stalled investigations.1 3 Families view it as a revival of Vatican advocacy, potentially leveraging diplomatic influence to overcome political barriers.1
William Noun, who lost his brother Joe in the blast, expressed hope that Pope Leo's presence would counter political interference and revive the quest for truth.1 He highlighted Hezbollah's alleged obstruction, including pressuring judges and dismissing external involvement like Israel.1
Noun and his wife, also a victim's sibling, recalled Pope Francis blessing their unborn child, underscoring the Vatican's personal touch.1 Other families, facing arrests and assaults for activism, see the visit as resistance against impunity.1
On December 2, 2025, Pope Leo XIV concluded his Lebanon trip with a silent prayer at the port ruins, lighting a candle and laying a red flower wreath near the victims' monument.3 4 5 Accompanied by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, he appeared emotional, pausing amid rubble and the remaining grain silo.3 6
The pope then greeted families holding photos of the deceased, creating intimate moments of consolation.4 5 This act unfolded against the site's tattered silos, preserved as a memorial after protests against demolition.5
Families shared poignant stories during the pope's greetings, emphasizing ongoing pain and unity.4 Nada Abdelsater represented the youngest victim, two-year-old Isaac, presenting a scarf with victims' photos as a symbol of blessing the land stained by their blood.4
Cecile Rukoz, who lost her brother Joseph at the port, thanked the pope for amplifying calls for justice across religious lines.4 5 Tatiana Hasrouty, orphaned of her father, saw the visit as Vatican acknowledgment of their resilience and a message of interfaith hope.4
Mireille Khoury pointed to her son's fatal building across the port, insisting justice is essential for national healing.5 Nohad Abdou, mourning her nephew, voiced the collective demand to identify those responsible.4
Lebanon's probe, led by Judge Tarek Bitar, has faced repeated halts due to political challenges and immunity claims from officials.3 6 Though resumed in early 2025 with commitments from leaders like President Joseph Aoun, it remains obstructed, with some summonses ignored.3 5
Families accuse systemic interference, including from Hezbollah, of derailing progress to label the blast an accident.1 They urge international support, such as satellite imagery via Vatican diplomacy, to uncover the truth.1 4
No conclusive cause—accident, sabotage, or attack—has emerged, fueling theories and public frustration.1 Activists like Noun stress that without accountability, Lebanon's divisions deepen.1
In his final Mass homily along Beirut's waterfront, Pope Leo urged Lebanese to reject divisions and embrace justice as a path to peace.5 He acknowledged the explosion's scars alongside economic woes and war fears, calling Lebanon a prophetic sign of fraternity.5
The pope's hospital visit earlier that day reinforced care for the vulnerable, criticizing societies that ignore fragility.5 Families hope his influence will pressure global leaders, ensuring the Christian presence endures amid emigration threats.1
Overall, the visit symbolizes hope, blending prayer with advocacy to keep the victims' memory alive.3 4 6
Assess Catholic advocacy for justice in post‑explosion Lebanon
The Catholic Church has long positioned itself as a steadfast advocate for justice in Lebanon, particularly in the aftermath of the devastating 2020 Beirut port explosion that claimed over 200 lives, injured thousands, and exacerbated the country's economic and political crises. This advocacy, grounded in the Gospel's call to righteousness and peace, manifests through papal messages, apostolic visits, and interfaith initiatives that emphasize truth, accountability, reconciliation, and the common good. Drawing from recent papal interventions by Popes Francis and Leo XIV, alongside scriptural foundations and historical precedents, the Church's efforts highlight a commitment to supporting victims, challenging systemic failures, and fostering a culture of mercy amid complexity. While progress remains elusive due to entrenched political interests, these actions underscore the Church's role as a prophetic voice urging transparency and equity in a nation striving for renewal.
In the years following the explosion, the Holy See has consistently expressed profound solidarity with the affected families, framing justice not merely as legal redress but as an essential step toward healing and societal restoration. Pope Francis, in a poignant 2024 address to the families of the victims, conveyed his ongoing prayers and shared tears, recalling the tragedy's human toll—from the "tiny face of little Alexandra" to the broader loss of life. He explicitly demanded "truth and justice, which have not yet arrived," acknowledging the "complex and difficult" issues influenced by "opposing powers and interests." Yet, he insisted that "truth and justice must prevail over all else," affirming the Lebanese people's right to "words and actions that manifest responsibility and transparency" after four years of unresolved grief. This message aligns with Catholic social teaching, which views justice as inseparable from compassion, urging accountability without descending into vengeance.
Pope Francis further connected this local injustice to regional turmoil, lamenting the "great number of innocent people daily losing their lives" in conflicts involving Palestine, Israel, and Lebanon itself. He decried war as "always a failure... a shameful capitulation... before the forces of evil," citing his encyclical Fratelli Tutti. In imploring peace for Lebanon and the Middle East, he echoed Saint John Paul II's vision of Lebanon as "a message... a project for peace," a land where diverse communities coexist in fraternity, prioritizing the common good over individual gain. This advocacy extends beyond rhetoric; it positions the Church as a bridge-builder, advocating for justice as a prerequisite for communal harmony in a multi-confessional society scarred by explosion and war.
Building on this foundation, Pope Leo XIV's apostolic journey to Lebanon in late November and early December 2025 marked a significant escalation in Catholic engagement, timed during Advent to evoke themes of hope and messianic justice. The visit's motto, "Blessed are the peacemakers" (Mt 5:9), encapsulated the Church's advocacy, portraying Lebanon's Catholic community as "responsible for hope" amid adversity. In a meeting with bishops, priests, consecrated persons, and pastoral workers at the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa on December 1, the Pope invoked Saint John Paul II's call to "create... a fraternal climate" through forgiveness and mercy, urging the Church to triumph over division with regenerative power. This gathering reinforced the Church's institutional commitment to justice, encouraging clergy and laity to embody Gospel values in addressing post-explosion reconstruction and ongoing instability.
The journey included multifaceted encounters that wove justice into ecumenical, interreligious, and youth-focused dialogues, recognizing Lebanon's diversity as a strength for equitable recovery. At the Ecumenical and Interreligious Meeting in Beirut's Martyrs’ Square on December 1, Pope Leo XIV described Lebanon as a "blessed land" exalted by Old Testament prophets, where the "echo of the Logos" calls people to open their hearts to God. This setting, symbolic of sacrifice and resilience, highlighted interfaith collaboration as vital for justice, countering the explosion's legacy of neglect and corruption through shared advocacy for the vulnerable.
Similarly, in a meeting with young people at the Maronite Catholic Patriarchate in Bkerké on the same day, the Pope greeted them with "Assalamu alaikum"—"Peace be with you"—fostering a sense of unity and empowerment among the youth, who bear the brunt of Lebanon's crises. These events, alongside the Holy Mass at the Beirut Waterfront on December 2 and meetings with authorities and the diplomatic corps on November 30, amplified calls for systemic change. Though specific content from the press conference and authority meeting is limited in available records, the journey's overall thrust—peacemaking as justice—aligns with the Church's post-explosion role in pressuring for accountability, such as investigations into the port negligence that caused the disaster.
Catholic advocacy in Lebanon draws deep inspiration from Scripture, particularly Advent readings that envision a just messiah and a reconciled creation. Isaiah 11:1-10 prophesies a shoot from Jesse's stump endowed with the Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and fear of the Lord, who will judge the poor with righteousness and equity, striking down the wicked while ushering in harmony where "the wolf shall live with the lamb." This imagery resonates with Lebanon's post-explosion context, portraying justice as transformative—restoring balance not through violence but divine equity, filling the earth with "the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." The passage's promise of a "root of Jesse" as a signal to nations underscores the Church's universal call to advocate for marginalized peoples, like Beirut's victims.
Complementing this, Psalm 72 prays for a kingly figure to "judge your people with righteousness" and deliver "the needy when they call," ensuring righteousness flourishes and peace abounds. It envisions dominion extending "from sea to sea," with the ruler's name blessing all nations—a fitting lens for Lebanon's Mediterranean vocation as a peace project. In the Gospel of Luke 10:21-24, Jesus rejoices that God hides truths from the wise and reveals them to "infants," blessing the disciples for witnessing what prophets longed to see. This humility-driven revelation informs Catholic advocacy: justice emerges not from elite machinations but simple faith, empowering ordinary Lebanese to demand transparency against powerful interests.
The Church's contemporary efforts echo longstanding papal guidance on Lebanon's challenges, emphasizing dialogue and mercy over rigid retribution. In addresses to Lebanese ambassadors, Pope John Paul II repeatedly urged rebuilding through a "free and independent State" guaranteeing rights, economic growth, and solidarity for the underprivileged. He stressed education and cultural formation to equip youth for communal service, with Catholics actively contributing via social institutions. In 1983, amid conflict, he distinguished justice from reconciliation, noting that overcoming disputes requires renouncing perceived rights for mercy's sake, invoking the Holy Year to rebuild fraternity and peace. By 2000, during the Great Jubilee, he called Lebanon's faithful to renew in Christ, strengthening ties with other Christians and Muslims to build a "new Lebanon" focused on prosperity for all. These teachings frame post-explosion advocacy as continuous: justice demands dialogue, forgiveness, and witness to Gospel values, preventing the explosion's injustices from perpetuating cycles of division.
Evaluating the Church's advocacy reveals a robust moral framework but tempered by practical hurdles. Papal visits and messages have elevated victims' voices globally, pressuring Lebanese authorities and international actors for investigations—yet, as Pope Francis noted in 2024, justice remains elusive four years on, hindered by political paralysis. The 2025 journey under Pope Leo XIV invigorated local Church networks, fostering interfaith coalitions that advance equitable aid and reconstruction, aligning with Fratelli Tutti's vision of fraternity. Biblically, this mirrors Isaiah's equitable judgment and the Psalm's care for the needy, while historically, John Paul II's emphasis on mercy ensures advocacy avoids bitterness.
Challenges persist: Lebanon's confessional system and external influences complicate transparency, and while the Church excels in spiritual and humanitarian support, it lacks coercive power. Nonetheless, its advocacy—through prayer, dialogue, and prophetic witness—sustains hope, embodying peacemaking as beatitude. In a nation where Catholics form a vital minority, this positions the Church as an indispensable force for justice, urging all toward a Lebanon where truth heals and peace endures.