Education and Politics in the Levant:
The Case of Saint-Joseph University of Beirut (1875-1914)

Rafael Herzstein

This article deals with the establishment and activities of Saint-Joseph University of Beirut, the first great French-speaking Jesuit institution in the Levant during the years 1875-1914. The establishment of the University was a response to the aspirations of several parties to overcome their ideological differences and political disagreements and to collaborate in this joint project. These parties were the Jesuits, long banished and asked to return to their former glory; the Vatican, which defended the presence of the most ancient Catholic community in the East; France, whose interest was in maintaining its stature as a colonial power, officially protecting the existence of the Catholic minorities in the Ottoman Empire; and the Maronite leadership, who wanted to ensure its authority in the community and the continued loyalty of the educated young people.
This historical episode of Saint-Joseph University reveals aspects, relatively neglected in the research literature, of the correlation between education, religion, and imperialism in the Levant.