The Byzantine Forum
Newest Members
Galumph, Leon_C, Rocco, Hvizsgyak, P.W.
5,984 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 238 guests, and 46 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Latest Photos
St. Sharbel Maronite Mission El Paso
St. Sharbel Maronite Mission El Paso
by orthodoxsinner2, September 30
Holy Saturday from Kirkland Lake
Holy Saturday from Kirkland Lake
by Veronica.H, April 24
Byzantine Catholic Outreach of Iowa
Exterior of Holy Angels Byzantine Catholic Parish
Church of St Cyril of Turau & All Patron Saints of Belarus
Forum Statistics
Forums26
Topics35,389
Posts416,722
Members5,984
Most Online3,380
Dec 29th, 2019
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 643
Likes: 1
T
Member
OP Offline
Member
T
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 643
Likes: 1
The Patriarch Bechara Rai in Antioch for the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul

He will celebrate the Mass of June 29 in a rock-hewn church that according to tradition was used by St. Peter. The trip serves to strengthen interfaith relations. The Maronite Church is hoping that the Turkish government will return some properties confiscated at the time of "secularism to the bitter end."

by Fady Noun
6/27/2012
http://www.asianews.it/news-en/The-...-feast-of-Sts.-Peter-and-Paul-25138.html

Beirut (AsiaNews) - The Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai left today for Turkey, for a pastoral visit that will take him to Adana, Tartous, Antioch (Antakya), Mersin and Iskenderun.

On June 29, the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, the patriarch will celebrate Mass at Antioch, in a roch-hewn church which tradition holds was carved into a hillside at the time of Peter (40-50 AD), and possibly used by that same prince of the apostles. It must be said that the patriarch of the Maronite Church carries the title "of Antioch," being linked to the apostolic tradition of Antioch.

Turkey ranks the cave church as a historic monument, but it allows Mass and prayers to be celebrated there occasionally, as on Christmas and the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The celebration of the Patriarch Rai will be the first of its kind; his pilgrimage to Antioch is unprecedented in the history of the Maronite Church.

The Acts of the Apostles tell us that it was precisely in Antioch that the disciples of Jesus, coming from Judaism and from paganism, were called "Christians" for the first time.

The Maronite patriarch bears the title of Patriarch of Antioch and All the East in reference to a time when from the cultural and demographic point of view, the city of Antioch was one of the most vibrant centers of the Roman Empire. At the time of the apostles, it had about half a million inhabitants and had become an important point of origin for the development of early Christianity.

The partriarch's delegation also includes his deputy, Msgr. Boulos Sayah. The group will also have meetings with the Turkish authorities.

Meanwhile, the Foundation of Maronites in the world rushed to prepare a special plane to transport to the scene several hundred Maronite personalities, along with a delegation of journalists. The Mass at Antioch will be celebrated at 11:30 (local time) and broadcast live by Télé-lumiere, the Catholic television station in Lebanon.

Some months ago, the patriarch went to Ankara to make contact with the religious and civil authorities of Turkey, who seems to be ever more open to interfaith dialogue.

From a demographic standpoint, the Maronite presence in the region is insignificant. In Antioch, there are only two Maronite families, one hundred in Mersin and thirty at Iskenderun. In Tarsus, the birthplace of St. Paul, there are signs of an economic boom which occurred in the 1920s, which led many Christians of Lebanon to work in the growing of wood and cotton. The order of Antonini monks had at that time a school and a convent.

Recently, the Turkish authorities have made some gestures of openness towards the Orthodox Church, returning to their rightful owners some buildings that had once been confiscated. The Maronite Church also hopes to be able to get back some property confiscated in the era of 'secularism to the bitter end', which marked the history of Turkey after the First World War.


Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119
A
Member
Offline
Member
A
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119
Originally Posted by Tomassus
The partriarch's delegation also includes his deputy, Msgr. Boulos Sayah.

Also the Maronite Archbishop of Aleppo Youssef Anis Abi-Aad and the Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus Joseph Soueif.


Photo gallery from Adana and Mersin:
https://picasaweb.google.com/112169770651060026668/AdanaMersinTurkey_Day1_2762012


Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119
A
Member
Offline
Member
A
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119

Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,665
Likes: 7
Member
Offline
Member
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,665
Likes: 7
Beautiful pictures!

Just a couple questions regarding Maronite praxis:

1) Do the patriarch or bishops have special vestments? The pictures show the bishop dressed as a Latin bishop, even to the cords of his pectoral cross.

2) Other than the cope style vestment and three bar hand cross, does the Patriarch wear any distinct regalia/vestment?

3)Why versus populum? The ad orientem was set up perfectly.

4)Iconography - why was the church so minimalist?

5)What about the icons of St. Mary and Sts Peter and Paul along with Pectoral cross for HB?


Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 40
S
Member
Offline
Member
S
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 40
This morning, Patriarch Beshara attended the Antiochian Orthodox liturgy for the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, presided by Metropolitan John of Aleppo, who oversees the Antiochian parishes in Turkey. Here's a link to an article about the event, that I translated from the Archdiocese of Aleppo's site:

http://araborthodoxy.blogspot.com/2012/06/feast-of-saints-peter-and-paul-in.html

Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119
A
Member
Offline
Member
A
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 119


Link Copied to Clipboard
The Byzantine Forum provides message boards for discussions focusing on Eastern Christianity (though discussions of other topics are welcome). The views expressed herein are those of the participants and may or may not reflect the teachings of the Byzantine Catholic or any other Church. The Byzantine Forum and the www.byzcath.org site exist to help build up the Church but are unofficial, have no connection with any Church entity, and should not be looked to as a source for official information for any Church. All posts become property of byzcath.org. Contents copyright - 1996-2024 (Forum 1998-2023). All rights reserved.
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5