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editReligion in Lebanon is characterized by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. Throughout Lebanon's history, religion has been an important part of the country's culture and the Middle East is the birthplace of three of the world's major religions, namely Islam, Christianity, and Judaism which represents 4.3 billion people in the world's population.[1]
Lebanon officially recognizes 18 religious sects: Islam(Sunni, Shia, Alawites, and Isma'ili), Druze, Christianity (the Maronite Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, evangelical Protestantism, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian Catholic Church, the Latin Church, the Syriac Catholic Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church, the Assyrian Church of the East, the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church) and Judaism.[2]
Besides Lebanese citizens in Lebanon, a large proportion of the country's population are displaced refugees, accounting for 2 million out of 6 million in 2025, which affects statistics[3]. The refugees, who are mostly of Syrian or Palestinian origin, are predominantly Sunni Muslims, but include Christians and Shia Muslims.[3]
Aspects
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Religion plays a major role of many everyday lives in Lebanon. Rituals, worship, and other religious activities are very prominent in an individual's daily life; it is also a principal organizer of social life.[4] The degree of religiosity varies among individuals; in recent decades, religious households are becoming more connected through interreligious marriages.[5]
Pilgrimages and Sacred Sites
editLebanon holds a historical significance in religious pilgrimages due its rich history of sacred sites admired by multiple faiths. Over the centuries, the shared religious sites have fostered a natural dialogue between the faithful from different religious communities.[6] In May 1997, Pope Jean Paul II proclaimed Lebanon as the Holy Land for its place in the Bible and its sacred sites.[6]
Our Lady of Mantara is a Melkite Greek Catholic Marian shrine and sanctuary which is shared by many different religious communities.[6] The sanctuary is in the Maghdouché village of South Lebanon, which overlooks the city of Sidon and the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain-el-Hilweh. Saydet El Mantara attracts pilgrims from all over Lebanon and the world. For Christians and Muslims, the shrine is regarded as a miraculous and blessed site.[6] The Virgin of Maghdouche is visited particularly for eye problems, protection of children, and miracles are attributed to her like protecting the village from invaders and enemies.[6] She is called ‘Umm el Kol’ (‘the mother of all’) who reaches out to all pilgrims from different denominations.[6]
The Maqâm of Shamoun Al Safa is a Shi’ite Islamic shrine and mosque located in the Shamaa village in Tyre district in southern Lebanon. The shrine was built or renovated by the Fatimids in 1097.[6] The shrine is dedicated to Shamoun Al Safa, identified as the Apostle Peter (Simon) who preached in the area in the 1st century.[6] He is considered as a saint by the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches under the name of Saint Peter, but also under the name of Shamoun El Safa by followers of Islam.[7] On 15 November 2024, the shrine was heavily damaged during the 2024 Israeli invasion of Lebanon.[7]
Figures
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Saint Sharbel Makhlouf (1828-1898), born as Yousef Antoun Makhlouf, in the village of Bkaakafra (North Lebanon). Saint Sharbal belonged to the Maronite community which he became Lebanon's first saint canonized by the Roman Catholic Church in 1977.[8] Though there are little to none primary sources authored by himself, his younger life is lightly documented.[8] Makhlouf was the youngest in a family of five children, which his family lived in a rural mountain village.[8] On 25 February 1950, his tomb was re-opened and his body remained still intact after 52 years. In the second investigation, files indicated that 2,200 miraculous events were recorded over a two-year period.[8] By 1955, the Monastery of Saint Maron received more than 300,000 letters and thousands of pilgrims visiting the site.[8] In December 2025, Pope Leo XIV becomes the first Pope to visit Saint Sharbel Makhlouf in the Mount Lebanon region.[9]
- ↑ Dalia Fahmy, Conrad Hackett, Marcin Stonawski, Yunping Tong, Stephanie Kramer, Anne Shi (2025-06-09). "How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020". Pew Research Center.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ↑ Ṭarābulsī, Fawwāz (2007). A history of modern Lebanon. London ; Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto. ISBN 978-0-7453-2437-1.
- 1 2 "Lebanon Refugee Crisis | USA for UNHCR". www.unrefugees.org.
- ↑ Faour, Muhammad A. (2007-11-01). "Religion, demography, and politics in Lebanon". Middle Eastern Studies. 43 (6): 909–921. doi:10.1080/00263200701568279. ISSN 0026-3206.
- ↑ Deeb, Lara (2024). Love across difference: mixed marriage in Lebanon. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-1-5036-4005-4.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Farra-Haddad, N., Raj, R.; Griffin, K. (eds.), "Pilgrimages toward South Lebanon: holy places relocating Lebanon as a part of the Holy Land.", Religious tourism and pilgrimage management: an international perspective (2 ed.), UK: CABI, pp. 279–296, doi:10.1079/9781780645230.0279, ISBN 978-1-78064-523-0
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link) - 1 2 Noun, Fady (2024-12-08). "Near Tyre, a Shiite Maqam Dedicated to Saint Peter". This is Beirut.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Heyberger, Bernard (2023). Girard, Aurélien; Santus, Cesare; Kontouma, Vassa; Sanchez-Summerer, Karène (eds.). Middle Eastern and European Christianity, 16th-20th century: Connected Histories. Edinburgh studies in Middle Eastern Christianity. Translated by Robitaille-Ibbett, Mary. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 245–257. ISBN 978-1-3995-0353-2.
- ↑ "Pope Leo: A pilgrim at the tomb of St. Charbel - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va. 2025-12-01.