ACN ramping up its aid to Church in Lebanon

By Lisa Zengarini

In response to the deepening humanitarian crisis in Lebanon, the Pontifical Foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) is stepping up its support to the Lebanese Church, offering food, medicine, education and other desperately-needed assistance for displaced families.

ACN's emergency campaign to raise 1 million dollars

The Catholic charity dedicated to the pastoral and spiritual support of persecuted Christians across the world, has announced an emergency campaign to raise at least 1 million dollars to assist the Church in Lebanon as it strives to cope with the new challenges caused by the recent dramatic  escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

700,000 internally displaced people

According to UN sources, the fighting has caused a wave of nearly 700,000 internally displaced people in various parts of the country, with Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and Northern Lebanon bearing the brunt of the massive influx from the south.  

In all these locations the Church has sprung into action, also opening its facilities to displaced families, regardless of religious or ethnic affiliation.

ACN, which has been funding around 200 projects in the country, has already reached out to the seven dioceses and five religious congregations that are most directly involved in relief efforts, and is now trying to raise the money required to address their needs, which in most cases include food, sanitary products, mattresses and covers, medication, and other essentials.

Christians directly affected by the fighting

Although the crisis is affecting the whole country, the worst areas are in the border regions between Israel and Lebanon where Christians make up a significant part of the population.

ACN has reported that on 9 October, a Melkite Greek Catholic church sheltering displaced people was hit in a missile attack killing at least eight people in Derdghaya, in the southern district of Tyre. According to local Church sources, another missile hit a priest’s house and a three-storey building housing parish offices, completely destroying them.

Thousands of Christians have been forced to flee their homes, which in most cases leads to family separation, as the mother and children seek shelter in Church facilities or houses of relatives in safer areas, and the father remains in the family house, to prevent property theft, despite the danger. Christian villages in the south have been nearly emptied of their population.  

In recent months  the Catholic charity’s aid has included food parcels for thousands of families and medical help for 1,200 people who have stayed in southern Lebanon despite the risks.

Many of the Christians in this area are farmers, who have lost all source of income due to the destruction of their land and crops.

Catholic schools, most of which have opened for online classes, are likely to also require assistance as parents in the regions most affected by the war will find themselves unable to work and will struggle to pay tuition.

ACN standing by the Church in Lebanon

Regina Lynch, Executive President of ACN International said that the charity will continue to stand by the Lebanese Church at this new critical moment of need. “We will not abandon and are confident that our benefactors will understand the urgency of supporting the Church in Lebanon,” she said.