Speaking this week, the Pope claimed such fears are “created by those who oppose immigration & seek to keep out people who might come from another country, from another religion.”

He went on to praise Lebanon as an example of how “Christians and Muslims can live together and be friends,” a comparison that immediately sparked pushback from analysts and Christian leaders who say the pontiff is ignoring Lebanon’s disastrous demographic and political trajectory.

Critics argue that the Pope’s remarks reflect a troubling level of appeasement and naivety, overlooking the fact that Lebanon’s Christian majority collapsed within two generations. Higher Muslim birth rates and a massive influx of Palestinian, Syrian and Iraqi migrants reduced Lebanon’s Christian population from a majority in the early 1960s to about 25% today.