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Date:         Fri, 22 Jan 1993 10:34:13 PST
From:         "Greg Wolff, MISG, MSO1-1/J50,
              dtn 223-0855 22-Jan-1993 1333" <wolff@WAYHIP.ENET.DEC.COM>
Subject:      FAITH AND COURAGE: The Story of Maronite Catholics

    Because we are all interested in the various Rites of the Church, and
    because John Covert mentioned the Maronites, I'm posting this message
    about the Maronite Rite Catholic Church to tell a little bit about it.

                                                    In Christ the Savior

                                                    Greg Wolff
                                                    wolff@ics.enet.dec.com


<begin quoted text: a short history of the Maronites... >

                            FAITH AND COURAGE

                     The Story of Maronite Catholics

                                    by
                   Virginia Rohan and Claudia McDonnell

            [photograph of a stained glass window of St. Maron
             in monastic garb.]
            {Sorry I can't reproduce the pictures for you! pgw}

    In the fourth century A.D. a devout monk living in Syria became known
    for his holiness and for the miracles he worked.  A friend of St. John
    Chrysostom, he fought the heresies which were rampant in his time,
    particularly Arianism, Monophysism, and Nestorianism.  On the banks of
    the Orontes River in Syria he converted an old pagan temple into a
    monastery, and there spent the rest of his life teaching about God.
    The monk's name was Maron.

    Maron's fame quickly spread through the countryside, and by the time he
    died he had brought the Word of God to hundreds of Syrians.  His
    monastery became the principal center of pastoral and spiritual care
    for the area, and at one time 800 monks were living and working there.

    The followers of Maron - the monks and the country people whom they
    converted - came to be known as Maronites.  Their history, it has been
    said, "is the story of a people who were continually willing to
    sacrifice their lives and possessions for religious conviction and
    human liberties."

    In spite of many hardships, the Maronites have always remained loyal to
    the Roman Catholic Church.  The Most Reverend Francis M. Zayek, first
    bishop of the Maronites in the United States, proudly says, "We were
    never separated from the Holy Father."  Because of this unwavering
    fidelity, Maronites have been called "the Irish of the East."  Unlike
    all the other eastern rites of the Church, they have no Orthodox
    counterpart.

    The history of the Maronites actually begins long before the time of
    Maron.  The Maronite Church has its origins in ancient Syria, a country
    which embraced many cultures.  Antioch in west Syria was a hellenistic
    city, while Edessa, to the northeast, was a center of Semitic culture
    and Syriac tradition.  The Maronites, living in the countryside not far
    from Antioch, resisted the hellenistic influence and retained the
    Syriac-Aramaic culture and language.  Thus Maronite theology and
    liturgy developed according to Biblical thought forms rather than Greek
    philosophy.

            [picture of a Mass of Holy Orders.  The candidate is lead
            around the church by his stole while carrying the Gospels.
            He is lead around by other priests.  The caption reads:
            "During Maronite ordination, the candidate carries the Gospel
            among the people as a sign of his call to teach the Word of
            Salvation."]

    It was in Antioch that the followers of Christ were first called
    Christians, although the name was intended as an insult.  The
    Christians of Antioch welcomed St. Peter when he fled the persecution
    in Jerusalem after the martyrdom of St. James.  According to tradition,
    Peter founded the Church at Antioch and became its first bishop.  Early
    Maronites were the direct descendants of the people who received the
    faith from the apostle Peter.

    The Maronite Church became a formal entity with the institution of the
    Maronite Patriarchate in the seventh century.  The first Patriarch was
    St. John Maron, who was chosen in 685.  But those years brought tragedy
    as well: conflicts with heretics and the start of the Arab invasions.
    Faced with the certain destruction of their faith, the Maronites
    migrated to the mountains of Lebanon.  By the tenth century, most of
    them were settled there.

    The Maronites welcomed the Crusaders when they came, fighting alongside
    them and serving as guides through the Lebanese countryside.  The
    association with the Crusaders was to have a long-lasting influence on
    Maronite history, liturgy and practice: ties with Rome became closer,
    some Western practices were adopted, and certain Latinizations were
    incorporated into the rite.

    During the fifteenth century, with the agreement of the Maronite
    Patriarchs, the Holy See established various missionary orders in
    Lebanon to give religious instruction to the people.  The teaching of
    the missionaries helped to bring about the high level of Maronite
    culture and literacy.  In 1854, Pope Gregory XIII established the
    Maronite College in Rome.  Graduates of the college helped to spread
    knowledge of the East in Europe and improved the education of the
    clergy at home in Lebanon.  Through the years, scholarly and devout
    members of the Maronite hierarchy participated in synods held in
    Lebanon to bring about liturgical, pastoral and monastic reform, and to
    establish ecclesiastical law.  The Maronite Church continued to grow
    and develop.

    The Maronites, however, bore untold sufferings because of political
    unrest and persecution.  Thousands died in the revolution of 1860
    against Turkish rule, and nearly half the population perished at the
    time of the First World War.  With characteristic courage the Maronites
    endured tragedy, and many chose to emigrate to countries around the
    world, including the United States.  Wherever they settled they
    established strong communities, building churches and preserving intact
    the heritage of their ancient rite.  Although many people do not
    realize it, "Maronite" is not synonymous with "Lebanese": the Mother
    Church of the Maronite rite is in Lebanon, but the Diaspora or
    "migrant" Church of the Maronite rite is in Mexico, Africa and
    Australia as well as North and South America.  The sons and daughters
    of St. Maron carried their faith with them as they became citizens of
    many nations.  and that faith is expressed through a spirituality that
    is prayerful and rich in symbolism.

            [photograph of a Priest administering the sacraments of Baptism
            and Chrismation to an infant in a home ceremony.  The caption
            reads: "Maronite priest administers baptism and chrismation
            (confirmation) to an infant in a home ceremony."]

    One of the cornerstones of Maronite beliefs is the Old Testament
    teaching that God is mysterious and unknowable in Himself.  But God
    does not remain hidden: He is revealed through Christ, the "Lover of
    Mankind," who brings the Father's mercy to His children.  The Maronites
    profound adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, seeing in the Holy
    Eucharist the Risen Christ who sends to men the sanctifying Spirit.
    They are also deeply devoted to Mary, the Mother of the Light, hailing
    her strength and fidelity in the title "Cedar of Lebanon."  It is said
    that the first altar in her honor was erected in Lebanon.

    Because flight, resettlement and the fight to survive are so large a
    part of Maronite history, the idea of the Christian as a pilgrim bound
    for heaven is deeply rooted in Maronite spirituality.  The members of
    this rite have called many lands "home," yet they know these are but
    resting places on the way to their real home.  Equally important in the
    Maronite tradition is the spirit of austerity, of "traveling light."
    St. Maron and his monks impressed upon their people the need for
    simplicity and readiness for the Lord, and Maronites have always tried
    to follow this monastic counsel, which flourishes today in the spirit
    of St. Sharbel, the Maronite monk who was canonized on October 9, 1977.

            [photograph of Bishop Zayek and two children with another
            priest.  The caption reads:  "Bishop Francis M. Zayek,
            spiritual leader of the Maronites in the U.S., with two young
            friends."]

    The Maronite Liturgy, which is derived in part from the Judaic
    tradition of St. James, also expresses the spirit of Eastern
    monasticism.  The cup used in the Divine Service was originally made
    not of precious metal but of wood.  At the Consecration, the priest
    tips it in the four directions of the compass to symbolize Christ's
    shedding His blood for the entire universe.  This practice recalls the
    Judaic custom of sprinkling the four corners of the altar with the
    blood of the sacrificial lamb.  The Maronite rite is also the only one
    in which the words of Consecration have traditionally been spoken in
    the same language Our Lord used at the Last Supper: Aramaic.

    The many Latin usages which were introduced into the Maronite rite over
    the centuries were removed following Vatican Council II.  The Divine
    Service and the celebration of the Mysteries (sacraments) are being
    returned to the austere beauty of their original Eastern form.
    Although Maronite priests use the vernacular today, many of the prayers
    and hymns retain the traditional Syriac or Arabic languages.

    In order to care for the spiritual needs of the Maronites in the United
    States, the Church established an exarchate in 1966.  It became the
    Diocese of St. Maron in 1971 under the guidance of Bishop Zayek, whose
    offices are in Brooklyn, New York.

    The 150,000 Catholics of the Maronite rite in the United States
    continue to cherish and renew the spiritual heritage of their
    ancestors, and their valiant faith recalls the prophecy of Isaiah: "It
    shall bud forth and blossom, and shall rejoice with joy and praise: the
    glory of Lebanon is given to it: the beauty of Carmel and Sharon."

<end quoted text>
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