Brothers and sisters, how to live in the world, where there are so many things that are not right? I think we have some good examples. Not only of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph, but also Saint Sharbel. Who made it his aim to change the world by changing his interior life. To make it a proper dwelling place for God. May silence, love for the Virgin Mary, love for the Holy Eucharist and love for others keep us on that road that leads us, by way of Sharbel, to the kingdom of God.
Maronite League USA app is a valuable resource for Maronite information
The Maronite League USA is a Non Profit Organization to mobilize the resources of the Maronite diaspora in all 50 States and unify their voice in order to spread the Lebanese heritage with its various facets, whether ethical, cultural, political, spiritual, economical, educational or pertinent to public affairs, under the instructions of The Maronite League in Lebanon and the auspices of The Maronite Church in Bkerke.
Maronite Synod 2023
Lebanon’s Love for the Blessed Mother
Resources about the Canonization of the Massabki Brothers, Martyrs
Consecration of the Holy Oils
Protocol #121/1/23 -- "The World is a mess!", second installment
Recent Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria
The recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria have caused terrible loss of life, countless injuries, and irreparable damage to housing and structures of safety for thousands. For many years our Eparchy has been helping the three Maronite Eparchies of Damascus, Aleppo and Latakia, (Bishops Samir Nassar, Joseph Tabchi and Antoine Chbeir respectively).
The 9 Ornaments of Christmas -- Christmas Novena with Bishop Gregory
It brings me great joy to accompany you during this Christmas Novena. What a beautiful way to prepare our hearts for Christ’s coming. The Christmas novena, as you know, is nine days in which we focus on a different aspect of the mystery of Christ’s life, his humanity, and we prepare ourselves to adore and worship him in the Blessed Sacrament exposed before our very eyes, In other words, we are living in front of the very Christ who walked this earth in sacramental mystery before us. So that’s what Eucharistic adoration is. That’s what this Christmas Novena of nine days is. To prepare us for Christmas.
Maronite Young Adults meeting, Tampa, FL
What a great JOY to have 137 young adults in Tampa, Florida. What a great job the board did and what a beautiful hospitality the parish did.
God Bless You
+ Gregory
A beautiful diaconate retreat with seminarians and members of the order of St. Sharbel from Atlanta
Bishop Gregory speaks of Lebanon on "Conversations with Cardinal Dolan", SiriusXM Radio
Answering Lebanon's call for help
Bishop Gregory here. Asking you to continue, perhaps even redouble your efforts to assist Lebanon during these difficult days. The schools will be starting pretty soon so any Catholic school, any Catholic institution, any way that you can support the service of the Lebanese people to their homes, to the poor -- would be of great help.
International Religious Freedom Summit 2022 — Bishop Gregory Mansour's speech
The IRF Summit 2022 held in Washington D.C., from June 28 to 30, featured 106 plenary speakers from 26 countries representing every major faith, and 40 unique traditions.
Here you can see Bishop Gregory's speech.
Steadfast Wonder: The Liturgical Spirituality of Jacob of Serugh
Our seminarian Vincent Michael has written an inspiring essay about the spirituality, letters and homilies of Jacob of Serugh. The beliefs we hold today and the melodies we sing at Divine Liturgy each Sunday were in a large part informed by Jacob. By studying the spirituality of Jacob, we can deepen and grow our own spirituality.
Jacob of Serugh (451-521) is one of the most important Patristic authors for the West Syriac tradition, contributing to their liturgies through his poetry. In addition to these works, well known to those in the pews even if they do not know their author, he also wrote about the liturgy in his many homilies which he gave in his career. Given his importance to these traditions, it is worthwhile to examine his thought on what can be called liturgical spirituality. This liturgical spirituality is based on inspiring single-minded wonder, drawing from Jacob’s commitment to keeping theology the handmaiden of awe, particularly in regards to his views on Christology and the return to Paradise.
Read more of his article at the Hidden Pearl
Vincent Michael is subdeacon and seminarian at Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Seminarian in Washington DC for the Maronite Eparchy of St Maron of Brooklyn. Hailing from Center Township Pennsylvania, Vincent studied History at Grove City College and is currently studying Theology at the Catholic University of America.
American Freedom: Gift and Task
Brothers and Sisters, I’d like to call your attention to Fr. Richard Landry’s recent message on American Freedom.
Holy Spirit Activate! Subdeacon Christian Hbaiter appears on A Message of Hope
Seminarian Subdeacon Christian Hbaiter discusses his personal relationship and experiences with the Holy Spirit on the “A Message of Hope” youtube channel. Click below to watch.
A Message of Hope was founded to encourage and inspire high school and college young adults to live out their Catholic faith in a secular world. We are dedicated to providing useful tools and sharing wisdom and insight from real experiences to aid young adults in taking ownership of their faith, upholding their morals, and grounding their identity in the Truth.
p.s. Here is a clip from Christian’s ordination to the Subdeaconate, August 14, 2021 at the Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon.
Help build the new Ave Maria on-campus Maronite chapel
Ave Maria University is building a Maronite Chapel that truly will be a home away from home for Eastern Catholic students. At the same time, this small jewel of a chapel will help to educate western Latin Catholic students about the Church’s rich heritage from the east.
The Maronite Chapel will be constructed of stones in many shades of cream and tan, reminiscent of the colors found at the Cave of the Monks where Saint Maron took refuge and at the Monastery in Annaya where Saint Sharbel lived as a hermit.
Please see the donor brochure, below, for more information. Or go to the Chapel Project web page to help them in this endeavor.
The beatification of Leonardo Melki and Thomas Saleh, Lebanese Capuchin Martyrs
Two Lebanese priests will be beatified today in Beirut.
Capuchin Fathers Leonardo Melki (1881-1915, pictured right) and Thomas Saleh (1879-1917, pictured left), both born in Baabdath, Lebanon, outside of Beirut, were martyred in Turkey during World War I, defending their faith and fellow Christians. Please see news articles and web pages such as these to learn more about their lives:
Photo from Fides.org
Father Leonard Melki ofm. cap. during his last visit to his native village Baabdath (Lebanon) where he came to rest for a few months in 1911.
Image By CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
