On Tuesday December 3, 2013, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Faculty of Law at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK), a ceremony was organized in the presence of the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al Rai, the Apostolic Nuncio to Lebanon, Mgr. Gabriel Caccia, the Superior General of the Lebanese Maronite Order (LMO), Rev. Fr. Abbot Tannous Nehme, the President of USEK, Rev. Fr. Hady Mahfouz, Members of the University Council, the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Law, Rev. Fr. Talal Hachem, in addition to members of parliament, bishops, members of the military and security core, the president of the Lebanese Bar Association, and well known Lebanese and international judges.

Rev. Fr. Hachem, the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Law, took the floor and said: “I would like to thank you all for coming from Lebanon and abroad, from universities and national and international jurisdictions, to participate in this ceremony”. He added: “Dialogue within the society is one of the conditions for the social contract, and so is the responsibility of judges: reaching multiple dialogues through their own speech constituting a dialogue by itself”.

Then, a conference entitled: “The Dialogue of Judges” took place. It is noteworthy that this term is the subject of many conferences, forums and articles published in specialized legal magazines in France and throughout the world.

Following a documentary on the history of the Faculty of Law, Rev. Fr. Hady Mahfouz, President of the University, indicated that: “Contribution, harmony, right, exaltation and gratitude. These are the concepts inspired by a reflection of the past 25 years of the Faculty of Law at USEK.” He added: “Through contribution, the principle of harmony emerges. The more human beings serve good causes, the more they become in harmony with themselves, with the others and with God. As a result, a breathtaking symphony arises every time. The Faculty of Law is one of these symphonies. Truthfully, it is a Faculty built on steady pillars and a great tradition, following a certain system, and we can see its courage in switching its reality and system and its openness to the world, to modalities of governance, to technology and to a different logic related to the position of the professor and the position of the student…”

The Patriarch Al Rai, gave a speech on “Law and Justice”, dividing this subject into four parts: human beings as a basis for law and justice, the concepts of law and justice, answers to questions and what justice needs to become perfect. He opened his speech by raising the following question: What is a human? It is a living being having many relationships with the others, a social being.

Human beings have a sustainable relationship with the surrounding environment.” He stressed that: “Law guarantees the framework safeguarding and respecting the money, the values and the rights of individuals. The Patriarch concluded: “Our society needs justice far from politicization and bribery! Justice needs righteousness, love and compassion.”

A formal dinner followed the ceremony.