Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association honoured the president of the union of the boards of friends of Al-Mabarrat, the late Dr. Mohammad Wajih Fanous, at the Lady Khadija Al-Kubra Mabarra - Bir Hassan, in the presence of the president of Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association Allama Sayyed Ali Fadlallah, the Minister of Social Affairs Dr. Hector Hajjar, the association's Director General Dr. Mohammad Baqer Fadlallah, the adviser to the president of the republic Mr. Naji Khoury, and educational, social and media figures, in addition to the deceased's family.
The scholar Fadlallah
Allama Fadlallah delivered a speech on the occasion in which he said: “There are people whose record you do not need to open in order to know the extent of the role they played and the presence they had, because their striking and distinguished presence is clear, having taken root in hearts and minds and in the fields of work, and having come to be passed on by those near and far… Among these is the dear brother and friend Dr. Wajih Fanous, who saw that he must be in every place he could reach, and so worked in many fields. He had his academic, cultural and scholarly position, took part in the Islamic and dialogue field, and was keen to express his humanity and the driving spirit of goodness within him when he boarded the ship of Al-Mabarrat and chose to be its friend - indeed to be foremost among its friends and among the first of them. He raced against time so that the distillate of his life might be abundant, and so as not to pass through life fleetingly or ordinarily but for his presence in it to take root - and that is what he achieved.”
He added: “Dr. Fanous found in Al-Mabarrat what he sought, because he saw it as according with his thought, his aspirations and his humanity - he who always crossed sects and denominations and all the walls that others wanted to be raised between the homeland's components. Dr. Wajih Fanous's dream was a great one: that this homeland be a model in this region and at the level of the world. Despite the difficult circumstances this country has suffered and still suffers, he continued to pursue this dream and did not despair or grow discouraged; rather he saw that he must work harder in the face of those who want the people of this country to flounder and to be divided into sects, denominations, parties and factions..”.
He continued: “We miss him today at Al-Mabarrat, as he is missed by the Islamic arena in its breadth and the national arena in its expanse, and by the fields of dialogue, knowledge and culture. We feel that the void he left can be filled only by someone with his store of high culture, beautiful patience, great sense of responsibility and constant readiness to give - even at the expense of self, family, home and kin, because he reckoned that fatherhood cannot be confined to the folds of the family home, especially when the father carries all this legacy of love, refinement, knowledge and continuous readiness to give.”
Fadlallah affirmed that the deceased saw in Al-Mabarrat the eye of the homeland embracing all the weary, the oppressed and the stricken, and always repeated that it is the example in this homeland because it is open to society as a whole, describing it as an Islamic humanitarian institution for good. From this position, therefore, we feel that the loss is doubled, because we are in a stage in which we miss this mission-driven spirit and this personality whose void will be hard for anyone to fill.
He held that “fidelity to the departed is that we draw inspiration from his journey, and that we walk in the procession of the sincere that his companions on the road established at Al-Mabarrat, at the Islamic Cultural Centre, in his university giving, and in the pen that poured encyclopaedic knowledge, heritage and letters into the newspapers and all social media sites. Wherever he wrote and set down his lines, it echoed all our pains, our sorrows and our aspirations in building the homeland and awakening the nation, or in moving the elements of good and stirring the spirit in every field of knowledge and learning…”.
Minister Hajjar
After that came the speech of the Minister of Social Affairs Dr. Hector Hajjar, in which he praised the deceased's qualities, saying: “We gather today at the ceremony honouring the late Dr. Mohammad Wajih Fanous - a man of letters and a literary critic, a teacher of professorial rank, a director and a responsible head, a lover of society keen to lead it by the best means so that it might reach the shore of truthfulness, culture and patriotism. He was eloquent in his letters and capable in his thought, eloquent in his giving and able in his care for his society. He believed in openness and trusted in brotherhood, partnership and positive, constructive interaction among all segments of society. He trusted in God and made Him the guide of his steps, worked by His will, and loved everyone he met.”
He added: “And is there anything in humanity better than love? He supported the weak and gave great attention to social institutions, holding for this purpose comprehensive national conferences. He embraced literature and culture and soared with them so as to be unique in his contemporary, refined, humane thought that distinguishes neither religion nor denomination. He saw in religion a person's relationship with their Creator and respected the uniqueness of this relationship through his respect for human freedom. He saw the human being within it, and did not look upon them as an individual or a number.”
Naji Al-Khoury
Then came a speech by the adviser to the president of the republic for Islamic-Christian dialogue Naji Khoury, in which he said: “I was bound to the deceased by a kind of spontaneous friendship. He draws you in without your knowing why and becomes your friend from the first moment - he, the transparent, the frank, the spontaneous and the close to the heart.”
He added: “It was natural that our roads should meet so that we might cooperate and contribute to building the homeland of the message and show the world that we are one people, one will, in one homeland.. Lebanon deserves men like Wajih and his like.”
He continued: “I thank my friend Dr. Antoine Toameh, who gave us the opportunity to know Dr. Wajih the cultured, the academic, the man of deep thought who possessed the pen, the mind and the way of conveying the message with smoothness, simplicity and depth, and who contributed strongly to making a team diverse in thought, sect and age into a group of friends - indeed of brothers - who love one another and build together.”
The family's speech
Ramzi Fanous, the deceased's son, also delivered the family's speech, in which he said: “Wajih Fanous was in harmony with the thought and approach of the founder of Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association, the Marja Allama Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, may God's pleasure be upon him - the thought of modernity, renewal and contemporaneity in religious discourse; the thought of openness, coexistence and complementarity with all members of society whatever their religions and sects, and of keeping far away from fanaticism and rigidity.”
He added: “Wajih Fanous has departed - yes, it is the destiny from which there is no escape. But our consolation as his family is in the good legacy he left us, and especially his legacy at Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association.”
He concluded: “In my name and in the name of Dr. Wajih Fanous's family, I extend sincere thanks, praise and appreciation to Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association for its fidelity, its sincerity and its appreciation of my dear father. We are all confident, in God Almighty, in Allama Sayyed Ali Fadlallah, and in the administrators and officials of Al-Mabarrat Charitable Association and the union of the boards of friends of Al-Mabarrat, that it will continue to carry out its humanitarian mission in the service of the human being.”
The ceremony featured testimonies from the friends of the Imam Al-Khoei Mabarra delivered by Mr. Youssef Hamdan; the women friends of the Lady Khadija Mabarra delivered by Ms. Loubna Al-Husseini; the women friends of the Imam Al-Rida Mabarra delivered by Ms. Sahar Saleh; a speech from the friends of the Al-Mabarrat Graduates Association delivered by Dr. Shehab Kanaan; and a speech from the friends of the Imam Zein Al-Abidin Mabarra delivered by engineer Hisham Matar..
At the close of the ceremony Allama Fadlallah and Minister Hector Hajjar presented Al-Mabarrat's commemorative shield to the family of the late Dr. Fanous.
