“Today there is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence. It is either nonviolence or nonexistence. I feel that we’ve got to look at this total thing anew and recognize that we must live together. That the whole world now it is one–not only geographically but it has to become one in terms of brotherly concern. Whether we live in America or Asia or Africa we are all tied in a single garment of destiny and whatever effects one directly, effects one in-directly.”
-Martin Luther King Jr.

Where does one begin…

We started a blog, but we can’t stop there. We were scrutinized for our motives yet we persevered, but we can’t stop there. We launched our project publicly in Montréal upon the invitation of an originally skeptic community, but we couldn’t stop there. It was just one thought inside the mind of a man that built the pyramids of Egypt, just one thought that started the revolutions that stained the long timeline in our historic existence in this world, and it can be one thought that can open the floodgates into a world of justice, equality, and dignity for all. Whether you’re a student in Beirut, a fisherman from Sidon, a baker from Tripoli, a farmer from Baalbeck, a mother mourning the loss of her son, or a father struggling to feed his children, our struggle is one and the same. Our people have been living in a deep trauma, and those shackles of sectarianism and exploitation under the guise of political fraternity or personal indignation are still the underlying premise behind the dire circumstances Lebanon is facing. To change Lebanon, we must change ourselves. It’s conducive to our future that we learn to reconcile and accept ourselves and each other before we rally our neighbors for peace and reconciliation.

We must not ponder on the past, and to answer the questions of the future we must accept the circumstances of today. For years we’ve been dealing with the question of war and peace, but the choice is ours, for it is no longer a matter of nonviolence or violence, it’s either nonviolence or nonexistence, and this is the fundamental question before us.

This project and its consequent manifestations into an embodiment of the Lebanon of yesteryear, the Lebanon of our grandparents nostalgia, the Lebanon of Khalil Gibran is the quintessence of the aspirations of tens of millions of our sons scattered around the world. Though the universal parallels can be assumed, the truth must be told. We need to call upon our leaders to straighten their backs up, because no ambassador can ride their back unless it is bent; we are the guardians of our future, and our salvation rests in the streets and suburbs of Beirut, in the hearts and minds of our children, nowhere else.

Our leaders don’t know history; they know a certain type of physics unrelated to the transphysics we’ve become heirs to, for we hold high in the altars of our dreams a burning fire that no water in the world can extinguish. This fire is eternal, and though we were considered naïve and idealistic in June 2006 when this blog was launched, in 2008 the deep slumber of spiritual death the world has became accustomed to will be addressed. We must reinvent human interaction.

We’re in search for an all-embracing and an unrestricted love for all of humanity, for only when it becomes dark enough will people see the light. Let us not stumble in the valley of anguish and despair, for the sun-drenched road of future security, justice, dignity, and religious tolerance lies within the hopes of each and every human being.

Let our cries be heard, from the halls of the Grand Serail to the Baabda Presidential Palace, let our cries be heard, from every village and every valley. Let our cries be heard in Parliament, let our cries be heard in every Church, Synagogue and Mosque in Lebanon. These broken cries reflect the deep anxiety within each and every one of us. Working together is not an impossibility, joining hands is not an opportunity but a responsibility, the countless interactions and almost flawless historical interaction between Lebanon’s Jews and non-Jewish citizens is noteworthy and still applicable today. Whether through this blog, inside Lebanon or outside Lebanon, the friendships are still existent. Even in South America, we witness the world’s wealthiest man, Carlos Selim Helou (Son of Lebanese immigrants) and the infamous Jewish billionaire-banking family who began in Beirut, the Safra’s, team up to rehabilitate impoverished regions of South America. They are both Lebanese, Jewish and Christian, nonetheless they reflect the countless contributions of Lebanese immigrants throughout the world. When will the day come when all the sons of Lebanon will once again rally behind the homeland and have a place to call home, a country they can be proud of that not only embraces them but is capable of receiving their support, whether moral or financial, away from the religious sensitivities and most importantly, from the flagrant corruption that has crippled Lebanese politics, and by default, the economy, for decades.

We must work harder than ever, so that we may incessantly march forward with this ceaseless and noble march towards the future of coexistence, towards that land they called Lebanon. Let us infuse light inside the dark and pessimistic chambers of reason; our work is already a manifestation of what was and what shall be again. Future generations will look upon the present circumstances and say this is not just, they will look upon the ISF (Internal Security Forces) while they ignore the legal and just appeals from Jewish community leaders asking for their buildings to be cleared of illegal squatters and say this is not just, they will look upon this generation while we refuse to separate religious affiliation to geo-political association and say this is not just, they will look upon this generation while we correlate every religious sect to a foreign sponsorship and say this is not just, they will look upon an impoverished middle-aged Jewish women still living alone in Beirut today, neglected and forgotten by her family merely because she was once in love with a man from a different sect and say this is not just, they will look upon us as we pillage the very foundation of Lebanon’s religious mosaic and say this is not just, and finally, they will look upon the religious clergy as they exploit and meddle in politics and say this is certainly, not just.

This work is a commission, beyond any political or religious affiliations and allegiances, for our brotherhood, for our unity, for our very existence. For we believe that Lebanon has a role to play in the region and the world, and a stable and prosperous Lebanon is a stable and prosperous Middle East, and a cohesive harmony between the various religious communities in Lebanon reflects the chance for a religious harmony throughout the world. Love is the foundation of genuine faith, far from the hollow externalities and trivial ideologies. Should we continue to threaten each other with death or must we not share with our forgotten Jewish brothers our life?

True compassion is more than writing a poem, flipping a coin at a beggar, or starting a blog. We must reinvent human interaction; we must reinvent the way we deal with each other. Change begins with changing ourselves, and while we are surprised the historic and beautiful stories of interaction on our blog are ignored by so many, as we witness people of various religious faith joining hands and working together, we understand that this work does not feed the stereotypes the purported media of the world claim to denounce. We posses something stronger than any media outlet, nor do I boast a PHD, but we have a truth, and we possess a conscience, which is more valuable than any material achievement.

Today, we must unite around vision and values; neither political ideology nor religious affiliation will scratch the surface of the new foundation the human family needs. Let this New Year be a year of togetherness, hope, and love. Your continued support, feedback, and increasing numbers in our registered membership are a source of pride and inspiration. We’re not seeking to start a revolt, and we still adhere to a mindset combining optimism and realism but we do believe that in the final analysis, grassroots initiatives are what will provide the results conducive to the future we seek to build. Neither the political elite nor the religious institutions possess the spiritual maturity necessary to pursue such an initiative, we must all reassess ourselves and our world, and to truly appreciate we’re all children of one God.

Aaron-Micael Beydoun

Mailing List Registration, Please Click Here

Filed under: Personal Statement by admin