Passing of Mr. Albert Nasri Badawi

Passing of Subdeacon Oliver Crosby Sparks III

Reverend and Dear Monsignors and Fathers, Deacons and Subdeacons, Brothers, and Sisters;  

I am sorry that I have more sad news to share with you today: Subdeacon Oliver Crosby Sparks III, 80, of Wilkes-Barre, passed away peacefully Friday, June 10, 2022. 

Crosby was born in Sikeston, Missouri, moving to Wilkes-Barre at age 5. He graduated from GAR Memorial High School in 1959, lettering in football, wrestling and track and field. He was a District II wrestling champion, student council president and Gentleman Scholar Athlete Award winner. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout in 1958. After attending Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, he transferred to King's College. He graduated in 1964, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology. He began teaching biology later that year in New Castle, Delaware. In 1967, he returned home to Wilkes-Barre to teach biology and environmental sciences at GAR. Over the next 34 years, he taught, advised and coached thousands of students. He retired after the 2000-2001 school year, having spent 40 years at GAR as a student and teacher. He earned two Master of Science degrees. In 2006, he was ordained a subdeacon in our Maronite Church.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Jacqueline; his son, Travis and his wife Jennifer, and their twin daughters. He is also survived by his brother and many other relatives.

His wake will be held at St. Anthony + St. George Church in Wilkes-Barre from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday. The Funeral Divine Liturgy will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, with the interment to follow at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Carverton. Condolences may be sent by visiting Crosby's obituary at the following website:  www.natandgawlas.com.

On behalf of Bishop Gregory and all of our Eparchy, I extend sincere condolences to Jacqueline, and to all of Crosby’s family and friends. We also offer our sympathy to Father Adib and all of the parishioners of St. Anthony + St. George Church. May Crosby rest in peace!

Sincerely yours in Christ,
Chorbishop Michael G. Thomas,
Vicar General

Passing of Subdeacon Ronald Foster

Reverend and Dear Monsignors and Fathers, Deacons and Subdeacons, Brothers and Sisters;

 I am so sorry to inform you of the passing of Subdeacon Ronald Foster.

 Ernest “Ron” Ronald Foster, Sr., 76, passed away on Wednesday, June 8 in Fayetteville, NC. He was preceded in death by his mother, Verona Earl Dixon. He is survived by his wife, Wanda; sons, Ron, Jr., Randal, Ryan, and Robin; many grandchildren, and a great granddaughter.

Ron served 5 years in the US Army with one of those years in Vietnam. He graduated from the Physician Assistant school in 1978 and practiced in the Fayetteville area for many years. He founded the Methodist University PA program in 1993. In 2013, Ron was ordained as a subdeacon in our Maronite Church.

A Visitation will be held at Rogers and Breece Funeral Home on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at 6 to 8 PM. A Funeral Divine Liturgy will be held at 1:30 PM on Monday, June 13, at St. Michael the Archangel Church. Burial will follow at Lafayette Memorial Park.

Condolences may be sent to his wife Wanda: 3572 Gables Drive, Fayetteville, NC 28311.

On behalf of Bishop Gregory and all of our Eparchy, I extend sincere condolences to Wanda, their children, and to all of Ron’s family and friends. We also express our sympathy to Father Paul Damien and the parishioners of St. Michael’s Church. May Ron rest in peace.

Sincerely tours in Christ,
Chorbishop Michael G. Thomas,
Vicar General

Syriac Female Saints & Mary

The Maronite Servants of Christ the Light will be hosting Dr. Jeanne-Nicole Mellon Saint-Laurent, Associate Professor of Historical Theology and Syriac Patristics at Marquette University for a Zoom talk this Thursday May 19th at 8:00pm EST on Syriac Female Saints & Mary.

If you are interested in joining for this inspiring talk please click on the Zoom link below: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87090206476

No registration is required for this event. First-in-first serve basis. As we have a 100 person limit with the zoom account. Thank you.

Reach out to the sisters if you if you have any questions at maroniteservants.org.

Monthly Online Rosary

Angry? Need a Weapon?

Pray the Rosary!

Join us as we pray the rosary every 2nd Monday of the month at 8pm ET. To build a culture of life & to overcome evil in the world.

Led by Bishop Elias Zaidan, Bishop Gregory Mansour or their representative.

Zoom link: https://tinyurl.com/ofslmonthlyrosary

New England MYA Event ⁠— Honor Mary

13th Annual Eparchy Benefit Event — Thursday, October 6, 2022

Please join

Bishop Gregory John Mansour

For this important fundraising event
As the Eparchy continues to serve its people

Our Maronite Seminarians on Hosanna Sunday, 2022, with Bishop Gregory and Clergy at Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral

We look forward to this first
in-person gathering in three years.

Thursday, October 6, 2022

The Water Club
New York, NY

MYA Conference Boston, March 25-27

Cir. 22.23 Dear Brother Priests, Deacons and Subdeacons, Consecrated Men and Women,

The MYA Conference in Boston is looking good so far, we have about 70 people registered, and the numbers keep climbing. The deadline for registration has been extended, please see the new details below. Attached please find again the flyer and schedule.

The price is $100 and until March 6, 2022, one can sign up on this website https://www.maroniteyoungadults.org/eparchy-st-maron

After March 6, the registration is $125. The Conference deadline is March 11 for both the Hotel discounted rate and the Conference registration fee. For any questions, please email the Conference coordinators at mya.eparchystmaron@gmail.com

+ Gregory

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MYA Conference Schedule

Friday - 03/25

Time		Activity
6:45		Arrival to Our Lady of the Cedars of Lebanon, 61 Rockwood St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
7:00		Welcome from Bishop Gregory and MYA Board
7;30		Dinner
8:30		Rosary

Saturday - 03/26

Time		Activity
8:45		Arrival at Our Lady of the Cedards of Lebanon
9:00		Morning Prayer
9:30		Breakfast
10:00		Introductions / icebreaker
10:30		Speaker — Lauren Gentry
11:00		Breakout Session #1
12:00		Adoration/Confession - Worship leader Gilbert Rodriguez
1:00		Lunch
2:00		Speaker & Prayer Experience — Lauren Gentry
2:30		Breakout Session #2
3:15		Witness & Vocation Panel
4:00		Stations of the Cross
4:30		Icebreaker / Re-energizer
5:00		Divine Liturgy / Closing / Group Photo

Saturday - 03/26

Time		Activity
7:00		Dinner & Dancing at Byblos Restaurant – Norwood

Sunday - 03/27

Time		Activity
11:00		Divine Liturgy at Our Lady of the Cedars of Lebanon Church followed by brunch with the parish
		Optional: Tour Boston!

MYO Eparchial Board Seeking to Expand!

To continue serving our parishes and Eparchy, our Eparchial MYO Board is looking to expand! We are seeking skillsets to aid in our ministry work, and we need your help!

Below are a few roles we are looking to fill. We kindly ask for you to review these and consider members of your community (especially young adults) that may have these skills and would be a good fit to join our team!

If you have any recommendation or suggestions from your parish community, please email Sr. Therese Maria at myyaoffice@gmail.com.

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GRAPHIC DESIGN AND/OR VIDEOGRAPHY

This individual would be supporting the graphic and video marketing of the Board’s events and initiatives. This work would include, but is not limited to, designing event flyers, creating engaging social media posts, and producing video segments to engage our parishes and youth leaders.

Skills Requested:

• Familiarity with Canva, Photoshop and other Adobe Products (if not familiar with these then there needs to be competencies in something similar)
• Serve as primary content creator for the creative needs of the MYO Board
• Basic graphic design skills
• Conversant with both Mac and PC platforms
• Ability to shoot, edit and produce audio/visual projects
• Creativity and attention to detail
• Exhibits a dedication to their faith, especially as a frequent churchgoer and participant in the Mysteries
• Exhibits strong commitment, reliability, and communication skills
• Able to work collaboratively on a team

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WEBSITE DESIGN

This individual would be creating and maintaining the Eparchial MYO website. He/She would routinely update the website and relevant webpages with necessary information, as directed by the team, including but not limited to event flyers and formational resources. This individual would also be responsible for creating and maintaining registration systems for all MYO retreats and events.

Skills Requested:

• Familiarity with website programming and coding languages, such as HTML and CSS, JQuery, and JavaScript
• Familiarity with Wix, WordPress, Squarespace, or similar website design platform
• Conversant with both Mac and PC platforms
• Creative visual design skills and an attention for detail
• Exhibits a dedication to their faith, especially as a frequent churchgoer and participant in the Mysteries
• Exhibits strong commitment, reliability, and communication skills
• Able to work collaboratively on a team

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SPIRITUAL COORDINATOR

This individual would play a vital role on the Board by supporting the creation of Spiritual content for use by our youth leaders and youth. He/She would help design youth ministry programs that can be implemented and used at our parishes. He/She would possess a sufficient spiritual formation and a solid understanding of Church traditions and teachings.

Skills Requested:

• Great creativity skills in designing new and entertaining ways for youth to learn about the Catholic Faith, Maronite Church, Maronite Traditions and Life in Christ
• Ability to deliver talks to youth or youth leaders, if called upon, about a variety of faith-based topics
• Exhibits a dedication to their faith, especially as a frequent churchgoer and participant in the Mysteries
• Exhibits strong commitment, reliability, and communication skills
• Able to work collaboratively on a team

Great Lent Virtual Series 2022

Dear Brother Priests, Deacons and Subdeacons, Consecrated Men and Women:Cir. 22.08

Our Maronite Sisters will be hosting a Great Lent Virtual Series from February 24 to March 17. See the attached flyer to view the four topics, speakers, and dates.

We are blessed to have our own clergy presenting these workshops via Zoom on Thursdays 8:00-9:00pm.

Please share the flyer with your parishioners and invite them to benefit from this excellent formation opportunity.

One may register through the following link, or through the attached flyer.

For any questions, please reach out to the sisters via their website maroniteservants.org or email sister@maroniteservants.org.

Thank you.
+Gregory

Flyer & Registration Information for the MYA Conference Boston, March 25-27

January 17, 2022 Cir. 20.05

Dear Brother Priests, Deacons/ Subdeacons, Consecrated Men and Women,

A blessed feast of Saint Anthony of the Desert!

We are pleased to announce that we have established a Maronite Young Adult (MYA) Eparchial Board to better strengthen and activate our local and regional MYA (ages 18-35). The first MYA Eparchial Conference that the Board is organizing will be held March 25-27th at Our Lady of the Cedars Church in Boston, MA. The goal is to bring our young adults together for prayer, social networking and inspiring presentations. Our theme will focus on Restoration in Christ, taking the Healing of the Paralytic as our point of reflection: “Arise and Walk.” (Mark 1:1-12)

The fee for the Conference is $100 (includes meals, transportation and speakers). About 40 rooms have been blocked at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Boston/Cambridge. There is also discounted parking available at $20/car/night. Please note: the hotel cost ($159/night plus taxes) is not included in the fee and each young adult will need to reserve their own room through this booking link. The booking deadline is March 4th.

Please find below the tentative schedule and flyer attached, which you can share in your announcements, bulletins and on your social media platforms. We appreciate your help in personally inviting and spreading the word with your young adults. This is going to be an amazing weekend for all those present and the Board is very excited to welcome young adults from all of our parishes. To register and to see the payment options for the Conference click on this link.

I look forward to being with our young adults for the weekend. I hope some of our clergy can join us and help with hearing confessions. Thank you for your ministry with our young adults.

+Gregory

Opportunity for education related to authentic women's health and Fertility Care in March 2022

Dear Beloved Women of the Eparchy, Cir. 22.03

Now, more than ever, our world needs authentic women's health and fertility care that are consistent with Church teaching. The primary way towards this is through continuing education for women, couples and medical professionals.

The Gianna Creighton Model Education Program Phase One, a modern, scientific and natural approach to family planning, will be held at the Notre Dame Retreat House in Canandaigua, NY in March of 2022 and April of 2022. Phase Two will be in November 2022.

I hope you will consider this invitation to learn more of this beautiful and faithful approach to the health and well-being of women. Please also share this with friends, family and coworkers.

Program, tuition and curriculum details are available online, and please see the flyer attached. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jamey Hutchinson (email below) .

Sincerely,
Bishop Gregory John Mansour, and the
Gianna Education Program Educators and Supervisors

• Alicia Crete, CFCP, CFCE
• Anne CJ Olek RN, MSN, FNP-BC, CFCP, CFCE
• Jamey Hutchinson BSN, CFCP, CFCE jamey.d.hutchinson@gmail.com
• Marise Frangie OFS, CFCP, CFCE

Circular on the passing of Monsignor William Bonczewski (Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles)

Circular on the passing of Monsignor Asmar

Circular letter regarding the passing of Mrs. Aqila Nairn Abi-Sleiman Mikahel, the mother of Father Elie Mikhael.