www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall history of melkites and marionite in USA

Does anyone know the history of the Melkite and the Marionite Rites here in the USA? The one thing I am interested in finding out is: Was their experience the same as the Ukrainian and Rusyn Eastern Rite Catholics in the USA? That is, did any of them turn Orthodox in the USA, due to the various decrees from Rome ? Where did they go? I know that for the Melkites the corresponding group is the Antiochian Orthodox Church, but as far as I know the Marionites have no corresponding group. Thank you very much for your help..

my understanding, and I could be wrong, is that the Maronites have always been in union with Rome and don't have and never have had a corresponding Orthodox branch. Also, they are not Byzantine but are their own unique rite.

Once again, I could be wrong on the above but from Maronite I know this is what they have told me.

Michael Cerularius

Shlomo Theodore,

Here is an online Article about the Maronites in America. I do have permission to post it to this forum.

Aspects of Maronite History- The Maronites in the United States

By Chorbishop Seely Beggiani

The Period Before World War I

It is difficult to pinpoint when the first Maronites arrived in the United States. With their entrepreneurial spirit, it would not be surprising if Maronites would have ventured forth to the "New World" as soon as it was known that it was being colonized. However, Maronites from Lebanon and Syria began immigrating in substantial numbers beginning in the 1880s and 1890s. Prior to this time, Maronites had immigrated to Egypt and other countries of the Middle East and the Mediterranean.

There were various reasons for leaving Lebanon. While religious issues might have been a factor, the principal causes were lack of economic opportunities and lack of living space. Life in the mountains of Lebanon was austere, and the land area of Mount Lebanon prior to 1920 was very constricted.

In the latter part of the 19th century, Lebanon was ruled by pashas appointed by the Ottoman sultan. While some pashas were moderate, others were repressive in their policy leading to political oppression and religious tension. Between 1900-1914, the population of Lebanon decreased by 100,000, or one-fourth. Besides coming to the United States, Maronites immigrated in significant numbers to Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Central America, Argentina, Australia and various parts of the African continent.

The early Maronite immigrants to the United States accepted whatever work they could find. Some worked in factories which produced textiles, steel, or automobiles; thus, Maronite communities sprung up all over New England, in Pittsburgh, PA, Birmingham, AL, Youngstown, OH, Cleveland and Detroit.

Being descendants of ancient traders, some Lebanese immigrants became peddlers in cities, towns and mining camps. Others opened dry goods stores and groceries. A few quickly became wealthy merchants.

Before 1914, Maronite communities were to be found all over the United States. Besides the places mentioned above, they were located all over the South, in Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas. In the Midwest, Maronite presence extended from Wheeling, WV. to St. Louis, MO. and from Detroit, MI to St. Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota. In the Far West, Maronites were already to be found in California and Oregon.

These early Maronite immigrants identified strongly with their religious heritage. Although they attended the local Roman Catholic churches at first, they were anxious to preserve their own tradition. Very quickly, they petitioned the Patriarch to send them priests. Many worthy priests were sent over as missionaries and were instrumental in founding a number of churches. Other Maronite priests came to visit their relatives in various American cities and took the opportunity to celebrate the Divine Liturgy and administer the mysteries, at least on a temporary basis. Maronite priests were already active in New York City, Boston and Philadelphia in 1890 and 1891. The Divine Liturgy was being celebrated at an early date in St. Louis.

The origins of the local parishes happened in a variety of ways. At times, leadership was provided by Maronite clergy. In some areas, the laity took the initiative, usually by forming clubs, primarily to raise enough money to purchase a building. In some places, the Latin bishops offered financial and material help. The first church buildings were often large houses which were purchased and remodeled, where the first floor would be the church and the second floor the rectory. At times, Protestant churches were bought and renovated.

By the beginning of World War I, there were already, at least twenty-two permanent Maronite parishes in the United States. At least four more parishes had permanent places of worship before the end of the war. Parochial schools were established in Buffalo, NY, in Wilkes-Barre, PA and, soon after, in Detroit, MI. Parishes were provided facilities to teach the new immigrants English, and organizations were formed to help those in need.

Post-World War I to the Establishment of the Maronite Exarchate

The period during and after World War I was a time of consolidation of the old parishes and the establishment of new ones. A substantial number of Maronite immigrants from Lebanon and the Middle East came to the United States after the war. However, the United States government imposed strict immigration quotas soon after that.

During this time, many of the parishes already in existence sought either new or larger facilities, and many churches were built. In the 1920s, at least seven new permanent churches were established, and at least two more were added in the 1930s. Parochial schools were started in Waterville, ME. and later in Olean, NY.

Maronites in the United States sought to preserve their identity in various ways. The principal vehicle was parish life and worship. The tendency among the first immigrants and their children was to preserve, almost untouched and unchanged, Maronite practice as it was when they had left the Middle East. Depending on the leadership and the abilities of the various priests who came from Lebanon through the years, changes were introduced in music and ritual as they were developed in Lebanon. Devotions and music were also sometimes borrowed from the Latin churches.

For these first and second generation Maronites, the Maronite tradition was the source not only of their religious, but also of their national and social identity. They cherished the cycle of religious feasts and practices. Many knew Arabic, the vernacular in Lebanon and Syria of the Maronite Church, and some laity even knew Syriac, the ancient liturgical language. The Maronite Church served as an agent of acculturation into the American way of life for recent immigrants.

Recent generations of American Maronites have related to their Maronite tradition in differing ways. The backbone of most parishes consists of those who seek to perpetuate the heritage handed down to them from their parents and grandparents. Among this group are those who strive to learn more about the spirit and essence of the Maronite tradition through books and other resources that have become available in recent decades.

Unfortunately, a large number of American Maronites have abandoned the Maronite tradition almost entirely. For some, this is due to their being in areas where there are no Maronite churches or organizations. Others who have married non-Maronites have found it convenient to attend the church of their spouse. In the early years, some Maronites sought to be completely assimilated into American society by joining the Latin Church, which they identified as American. On the other hand, the Maronite Church in the United States has been blessed by the addition of many non-Maronites, through marriage who have become very active and dedicated to their parishes. In recent years, a good number of non-Maronites have joined the Maronite Church, attracted to the power of its spirituality and the richness of its liturgy.

There were other factors that preserved the social bonds among Maronites and other peoples of the Middle East in the United States in the early decades. In many areas, social clubs were formed either as "Lebanese/Syrian Clubs" or named after the village from whence significant groups had immigrated. Later, many of these clubs were organized on a regional level, such as the Midwest and Southern Federation of Lebanese and Syrian Clubs. Similarly, parishes in different areas of the country organized mahrajans (local and regional celebrations) in conjunction with certain religious feasts, such as the Dormition [Assumption] of Mary, or with seasonal secular holidays. At these events on the parish, regional and national levels, Middle Eastern culture was preserved through the celebration of food, music, dance and sometimes even poetry and drama. Many young Maronites met their future spouses at these Federation conventions and parish mahrajans.
The Maronite Seminary

In the 1950s, some Maronite clergy and laity, among them the Maronite League, began to work actively for the establishment of a Maronite Seminary in the United States. In 1959, the Sacred Congregation for the Oriental Churches formed a committee of Maronite priests in the United States to collect funds for a seminary to be established in Washington, D.C. In addition to being the nation's capital, Washington was chosen especially to take advantage of the facilities of the Catholic University of America and its ability to grant pontifical degrees in theology and canon law. The University is also known for its department of Semitic and Oriental languages. Archbishop (later Cardinal) Patrick O'Boyle of Washington was asked to take responsibility for the seminary's establishment, and Chorbishop Mansour Stephan of Brooklyn was appointed as National Chairman of the building fund.

In June, 1960, Archbishop O'Boyle called the Maronite clergy of the United States to a meeting in Washington, where a goal of $500,000 was set as a minimum to be raised from among the Maronite faithful in the United States. This meeting was attended by twenty-four Maronite priests. In July, 1961, Archbishop O'Boyle, with the approval of the Maronite clergy, purchased a house on Alaska Avenue, N.W. The house was renovated, and a chapel, bedrooms and a recreation room were added. In 1964, the building next door was purchased and used for seminary bedrooms and a library.

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Seminary opened its doors on September 24, 1961. Its first rector was Reverend Elias el-Hayek, and the prefect of studies was Fr. Seely Beggiani. Fr. Beggiani was subsequently named rector in 1968.

The seminary held an open house for the Maronites living in the Washington area on St. Maron's Day, 1962, and this event marked the beginning of a Maronite parish community in Washington.

Patriarch Paul Cardinal Meouchi formally dedicated the seminary in 1962. Over two thousand Maronite clergy and laity, as well as nine Latin rite bishops, joined in the celebration at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The nationally known television speaker, Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, preached the homily. Cardinal Meouchi was accompanied by the future Patriarch and Cardinal Antoine Khoraiche.

In its 36 years of existence, the Maronite seminary has produced 57 priests. As the only diocesan Maronite seminary outside of Lebanon, it has provided an indigenous clergy, as well as clergy who come from Lebanon as seminarians to be trained and serve in the United States. The alumni of the seminary have been active in establishing new missions and churches. The Maronite seminary has become a center of research and publication in the fields of Maronite history, liturgy, theology and spirituality.

The National Apostolate of Maronites

In 1963, a group of Maronite laity in the United States formed what was then known as the National Association of Maronites. The purpose of the organization was to unite Maronite laity throughout the United States and to perpetuate the Maronite tradition. At the beginning, its immediate goals were to support the Maronite seminary and to work for the coming of a bishop to serve the Maronite people of the United States.

In 1968, Archbishop Francis Zayek reconstituted NAM as the National Apostolate of Maronites. Thus, it became the official lay apostolate of the Maronite Eparchies in the United States. As the years have progressed, NAM has increased its involvement and support in many areas, including youth, religious education, vocation awareness and recognition of the work of individual laity on the parish and eparchial levels. NAM's annual national and regional conventions have served to continue to strengthen the religious, cultural and social bonds of Maronite laity throughout the United States. While similar events are held by other Eastern Churches, the Latin dioceses have nothing to compare with these lay assemblies.

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon

In the early 1960s under the leadership of Msgr. Peter Eid of Youngstown, OH, and through the efforts of clergy and laity in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, a national shrine in honor of Our Lady of Lebanon was established in North Jackson, OH. It was formally dedicated in 1965, and was modeled on the famous shrine at Harrissa in Lebanon. It quickly became a popular place of pilgrimage for Maronites and other Catholics of the Eastern and Midwestern United States. In 1987, an impressive chapel dedicated to Christ the King was dedicated by Archbishop Zayek at the National Shrine.

During the early 1960s attempts were made to estimate the number of Maronites residing in the United States. This project proved to be near impossible because the majority of Maronites were to be found in states in which there were no established parishes. Also, through marriage and other types of assimilation one did not even know what family names to look for. After contracting clergy and lay leaders throughout the country, an estimate of 200,000 Maronites was made. This figure is probably extremely low. The task of estimating the number of Maronites today is even more difficult.

The Establishment of the Maronite Apostolic Exarchate and Eparchy

On January 10, 1966, Pope Paul VI established the Maronite Apostolic Exarchate in the United States. An exarchate is a church structure that is often created in a missionary territory to lay the groundwork for a definitive eparchy or diocese. Bishop Francis M. Zayek was appointed Exarch. Bishop Zayek had had long experience in the Vatican as a teacher of canon law, and on the staff of the Roman Rota. His recent experience as first Bishop of the Maronites of Brazil made him highly qualified for the same responsibility in the United States. Bishop Zayek was installed on June 11, 1966 in Detroit, MI where he was to establish his See. Detroit was chosen because it was home to the largest concentration of Maronites in the United States. The Exarchate at this time consisted of forty-three Maronite parishes.

Pope Paul VI raised the Exarchate to the rank of Diocese or Eparchy on November 20, 1971. The Holy Father also appointed Bishop Zayek as the first bishop of the Diocese of Saint Maron U.S.A. Bishop Zayek was installed as such on June 4, 1972. The decision was made to move the location of the diocese from Detroit to Brooklyn, NY in 1977. In view of the serious crisis affecting the Maronites in Lebanon, a move to the East coast gave the bishop closer access to the United Nations, to Washington, D.C. and to New York, the port entry of many Lebanese Maronites coming to the United States. A move to the east also set the scene for the eventual division of the Eparchy. Bishop Zayek took possession of his new Cathedral on May 21, 1978.

To help with the responsibilities of the vast and expanding diocese, Chorbishop John Chedid was appointed Auxiliary Bishop in 1980. Bishop Chedid had distinguished himself as a pastor and in the holding of several diocesan offices. He was ordained bishop on January 25, 1981.

In recognition of his pioneering work in the United States, Bishop Zayek was given the title of Archbishop by the Holy Father on December 10, 1982.

The Maronite Exarchate and diocese was faced with many challenges. The original immigrant church had given way to second and third generation American-Lebanese, who had adapted quite thoroughly to the American milieu. Many Maronite parishioners were losing the knowledge of Arabic, the vernacular of the Middle East, and knew no Syriac, the liturgical language. Prior to the approval of English in the Liturgy, translations were published and books were printed where liturgical Arabic and Syriac were written in phonetics. Also, while the Maronite culture and liturgy had continued to develop in Lebanon and the Middle East, it had been "frozen in time" in the United States and in other countries of immigration. Some updating was introduced by the various pastors who came from the Middle East in the intervening years. However, in many American parishes, the liturgy and the music were identical to what was prayed sixty years before.

On the other hand, the tragic events in Lebanon beginning in 1975 had resulted in a large new class of immigrants who brought with them the Maronite way of life as it had continued to develop in the Middle East. This is especially true of the significant number of Maronite clergy and seminarians who immigrated over twenty years.

Therefore, the great challenge was to make all Maronites feel at home in their parish community and to be able to worship in the most fruitful way possible. Second and third generation American Maronites, recent Maronite immigrants and Maronites of no Lebanese background were encouraged to support each other's understanding of what it is to be Maronite.

Archbishop Zayek set as his priorities the spiritual progress and unification of Maronites in the United States, the establishment of new parishes and missions in areas that had no Maronite clergy, and the encouraging of the older parishes to expand and, if necessary, to replace their church buildings.

Through the efforts of Archbishop Zayek, Bishop Chedid and the clergy, much work was done to adapt the Maronite Liturgy to the needs of the Eparchy. An extensive Lectionary was published, as well as a Book of Ana-phoras and Book of Feasts. Several translations into English of the Divine Liturgy were put in the hands of the faithful. Translations of the Divine Office, the Mysteries (sacraments), and Maronite liturgical hymns were made available. A complete series of catechetical texts grounded in Maronite tradition and culture was published. Various members of the Eparchy have published books on Maronite theology, liturgy, spirituality, history and Eastern canon law.

A priority of the Eparchy was to organize the youth. In recent years annual national meetings of the Maronite youth have taken place, where youth from all over the country have attended in significant numbers. Besides the strengthening of social ties, the meetings are directed to developing youth leadership and attachment to the Maronite tradition.

A diocesan newspaper, The Challenge, was established in 1978. With the formation of two eparchies in 1994, it has been succeeded by The Maronite Voice in the Eparchy of Saint Maron, and Maronites Today in the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon.

The Order of Saint Sharbel was established in 1980. It is an association of laity and clergy whose main purpose is to offer spiritual and material support to the Eparchy. Its specific goal is to ensure the financial needs of the Maronite Seminary and seminarians. It also seeks to provide additional financial benefits to the retired clergy. The Order has been very successful, and this is a sign of the dedication of American Maronites to their clergy.

During the serious crisis in Lebanon in the 1980's a Commission for Lebanon was established by the Eparchy to rally support for the Maronites in Lebanon. The purposes of the Commission were: to provide information and education regarding the status and future of the Maronite Church and its people in Lebanon to Maronites and interested persons in the United States; to work actively on all levels of the American government so as to ensure the continuation of American ties with Lebanon and the perpetuation of Lebanon's pluralistic character; and to provide financial and material support to the needy in Lebanon. The Commission sought to keep Lebanon, its sovereignty and freedom on the American foreign policy agenda giving testimony to Congress and maintaining contacts with the White House and the States Department. Through pamphlets and articles, it has endeavored to keep people informed about the threats facing the Maronites and other religious communities in Lebanon. During the time of the fighting in Lebanon, it was able to raise over $200,000 to help the needy. The work of the now two Commissions for Lebanon of the two Eparchies continues, because complete sovereignty and freedom for Lebanon have not yet been achieved.

During the time of Archbishop Zayek, ten new parishes were established, bringing the total number of parishes to fifty-three. In addition, there were nine missions.

Religious life is also represented in the Eparchy. For over thirty-five years, the Antonine Sisters have performed an active ministry in Ohio and the surrounding states. Their work includes education, catechetics and nursing. In recent years, they have devoted much effort to the day care of the elderly.

Contemplative Orders of men and women who seek to live according to the Maronite tradition have been founded. These now include Most Holy Trinity Monastery in Petersham, MA, and Holy Nativity Monastery in Bethlehem, SD. The hermits of Jesus and Mary in Rutland, MA are nuns who are devoting their lives to prayer for the Maronite clergy.

The Formation of Two Eparchies

On March 1, 1994, Pope John Paul II announced the formation of two eparchies from the original Diocese of Saint Maron-USA. This action was in recognition of the growth of the Maronites in the United States, and to make the vast area of the United States a little more manageable. Because the vast majority of the Maronite parishes are to be found east of the Mississippi River, it was necessary to make the dividing line of the two eparchies at the Ohio-Pennsylvania border and points south. As a result, the Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn incorporates those states that border on the Atlantic coast. The newly formed Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles includes all the remaining states.

Bishop John Chedid was installed as the first Ordinary of the new Eparchy of June 23, 1994. Having distinguished himself as Auxiliary Bishop and Judicial Vicar for the Eparchy of Saint Maron for many years, and having been highly respected by the Maronite clergy and laity, Bishop Chedid was well prepared for his new responsibility. Bishop Chedid has responded to the challenges of forming a new Eparchy, and has sought to give it its own identity. He has endeavored to consolidate the work of the past and to found new parishes and missions.

Bishop Stephen Hector Doueihi

When Archbishop Francis Zayek reached retirement age, the Holy Father announced the appointment of Chorbishop Hector Doueihi as the second Bishop of the Eparchy of Saint Maron on November 23, 1996. He was ordained Bishop on January 11, 1997 and enthroned on February 5, 1997. Besides his pastoral experience, Bishop Doueihi had been responsible for much of the work done on the Maronite liturgy in the United States in recent years. While deeply attached to his Lebanese heritage, Bishop Doueihi has enthusiastically embraced all that is good in American culture. These qualities enable him to relate well to the varied clergy and laity that now constitute the eparchy.

The first hundred years of the Maronites in the United States have been marked by much progress and achievement. The original immigrants worked to see that their children and grandchildren received the best education available. As a result, Maronites have become prominent in all aspects of American life, whether political, professional, commercial or in the world of entertainment. The number of Maronite parishes and indigenous Maronite clergy in the United States far exceeds those of all of the other countries of immigration put together.

The Maronite Church in the United States faces its second century with many reasons for hope. It also faces the challenge to preserve its identity and its heritage, while trying to relate to generations imbued with contemporary American culture. As the branch of a church with apostolic origins, it is called to preach and to witness to the Gospel of Christ in whatever place or culture it finds itself. Its history in the Middle East and in the United States has prepared it to carry out its mission.

Poosh BaShlomo,
Yuhannon

Melkites also had plenty of woe with the RC hierarchy; some of it was downright unbelievable but true nevertheless. As an obvious result, a substantial number of Melkites found shelter in the Antiochian Archdiocese.

Maronites likewise had a share of grief. In theory, of course, they have no corresponding Church not in communion with Rome. In fact, a few - at least - took refuge in Syrian non-Chalcedonian Orthodox parishes.

There was an entire parish - I'm not saying where - which for several months had the dubious distinction of being the only Maronite church anywhere in the world not in communion with Rome. The local RC bishop had placed them under interdict in a problem to do with a marriage (no, not the priest's marriage!). This bizarre situation lasted for several months, until a Maronite bishop happened to visit from Lebanon and managed to make peace.

Incognitus

It seems that some have confused theodore's question. The Maronites and the Marionites have been confused throughout the years. The Marionites are a non-Christian sect that began around the year 1880 in Collodi,Italy.

In the Marionite belief system there are many parallels to the ancient Creation stories of the Mediterranean civilizations. In the Marionite cosmology, the demigod, Geppetto, forms a creature from the pine tree, Pinocchio, (trans. "little pine" or "pine eyes"). In subsequent scribal notes it was revealed that as creator, Geppetto was powerless in bringing his creation to life. Pinocchio receives life from another deity of the Marionite pantheon, the Blue Fairy.

The exploits of the proto-marionette (hence the name of the sect, "Marionite") were originally published in the opus, Storia di un burattino, The Story of a Puppet . The devilish and mischievous acts of this marionite/marionette abrubtly come to an end when Pinnochio is caught and left dangling from a branch of the Great Oak, possibly hanged and dying.

In a subsequent work, la Avventura di Pinocchio, The Adventures of Pinocchio, editors of the Pinocchio myth revise the story so that Pinnochio's fate does not end in death. Instead Pinocchio the Marionite/Marionette receives the ultimate transformation-he becomes a real boy of flesh and blood.

Marionite catechumens are guided through their journey to initiation by a spiritual director known as il Grillo Parlante, the Talking Cricket. Liturgical scholars have characterized the Marionite worship as stiff, wooden, and lifeless. Marionite faithful do have a distinguishing mark- when not explicitly truthful, their noses begin to grow.

(With apologies to Carlo Lorenzini aka Carlo Collodi)

But are there strings attached?

And what about their female cenobitic off-shoots, the Marionettes...

Diak, true about the Maronettes. It was all set to go until a high school from Iowa sued. It seems Maronettes was the name of their international color-guard team. Soccer moms revolted and the Maronettes went bankrupt and lost Apostolic Succession via the court's discretion as part of said bankrupcy. They now exist soley on the internet and in Montana.

Theodore,

As my revered brother, Incognitus, has indicated

However, overall, the reasons for the conflict were different than those encountered by the Ukrainians and Ruthenians. The Melkite clergy who came to the US to serve the faithful were, for the most part, monastics and therefore celibate, so the issue of Rome's decrees vis-a-vis married clergy were not at issue (even among the patriarchal clergy who immigrated in the late 19th and early 20th century, I'm not aware of any who were married).

Some of the resistence encountered was undoubtedly a consequence of "racial"/ethnic discrimination - for lack of a better way to describe it. Like the East Europeans, our peoples had a language barrier but, unlike them, they also "looked different" and there was no rush to see that their pastoral needs be met. When our priests were accepted, the Latin ordinaries were quick to push for latinization. Saint George Melkite Church (Milwaukee) has a piece on its website [melkite.org] regarding this - the litany of latinizations there is familiar, nothing new or different from that which afflicted all the Eastern Catholic Churches of the time.

I would differ with Incognitus though in that I don't think that these issues had as much to do with Melkites going to the Antiochian Orthodox as did the availability (or non-availability) of our own clergy to serve them. Arabs, be they Melkite, Maronite, or Syriac Catholic, or Antiochian or Syriac Orthodox, like other ethnic immigrant groups, clustered together geographically. If their own Church or clergy was not readily available to meet their spiritual needs, they tended to look to the "next best thing" - which to their minds was another Arabic parish. And they weren't usually hard-nosed in differentiating between Catholic and Orthodox. To understand, one has to consider that, by the late 19th and early 20th centuries, there was neither a lot of Catholic-Orthodox hostility among these groups back home - nor any recent history of the kind of persecutions that East European Catholics and Orthodox had sometimes waged against one another.

So, as a consequence, there was not uncommonly movement between and among these Churches - often it was temporary and once their own Church was established locally, the "visitors" would "go home", with smiles all around. I recently read a program book published by a Melkite parish in the mid-West on the occasion of its anniversary of foundation. It was the type of booklet in which congratulatory ads are typically purchased. In this particular instance, the Melkite parish had been the sole Byzantine church in the city for some years and its history indicated that, during those years, it served all the Easterners in the area. Among the ads in the back of the book were two - both from local Orthodox parishes - in which they expressed gratitude to the Melkite parish, both describing their own parish community as a "daughter" of the Melkite parish. The reverse happened also and probably is a factor (together with the high rate of intermarriage) in the particularly open relationships between Melkite and Antiochian parishes in the Northeast.

Syriac Catholics had no churches of their own in the US for a long time and definitely suffered losses to their Orthodox counterpart, as well as to their Melkite brothers. Shortly after Mar Joseph (Younan) was first appointed Eparch for the Syriac Catholics in the US, he celebrated the Holy Qurbono at the Melkite Cathedral and remarked on the number of families in the parish community whose surnames were historically and traditionally exclusively Syriac (at least three of our eparchial clergy are of Syriac ancestry, but are now second or third-generation Melkites as a consequence of shifts due to being unserved by their own Church).

So, yes there was migration but it happened in both directions, as well as laterally within the Catholic and Orthodox communities. Clearly, we also suffered some losses to the Latins in places where there were no Eastern Churches available as alternatives. It isn't addressed in the piece that my brother, Yuhannon, posted, but my gut feeling is that overall Maronites were more commonly lost to the Latins than anywhere else, since they were able to identify more closely with them liturgically.

In charity, one has to acknowledge that there were Latin ordinaries and presbyters who did everything they could to help our peoples during those early years and well into the first 3 quarters of the 20th century, until we had our own hierarchy. Archbishop Joseph (Tawil), of blessed memory, in his first pastoral address as Exarch of the Melkites said:

Cardinal Cushing was extraordinary; in a more paternalistic time, he'd likely have been formally designated "Protector of the Rite" and it would not have been without cause or merit. But, he wasn't the only one - in reading parish histories, several speak with emotion of Latin priests who served a community for years when we had no priest of our own to attend it - Latin priests who bothered to learn to serve our Liturgies and, within the limits of their knowledge, tried to make our temples at least somewhat appropriate to our heritage.

I guess it would be safe to say that we suffered most from not having our own hierarchs here for better than a half-century after the Ukrainians and Ruthenians did. So, we had no champions to ride into battle for us and we were left to the vagaries of the Latin ordinaries, for better or worse. We were blessed though, when the time finally came, to have as our second Exarch (and, later, first Eparch) a man who wasn't afraid to take us forward and make up, as best he could, for those lost years.

Many years,

Neil

Back in the early 1900's, there were many Syrian/Lebanese immigrants who settled in Johnstown (Cambria Co.) PA and Windber (Somerset Co.) PA. While in Johnstown, these Arab Christians chartered St. Mary Antiochian Orthodox parish (now located in Westmont Boro) and also a Syrian Orthodox paish in Johnstown's ethnic neighborhood of Cambria City. Well, there were "Arabians" who settled in Windber, PA where in the early 1900's there was no Orthodox Church established, only the
"United Greek-Rite Slavish Church of St. Stephen"
(name changed later to the Rusin Greek Catholic Church of the Dormition). These Syrian/Lebanese could not always attend the Arab Orthodox churches in Johnstown because of the distance and lack of transportation. So these Arab Christians just simply joined St. Mary Uniate Church. Later on in the 1930's when the Rusin Greek Catholics began a schism, some of these Syrian/Lebanese Christians helped form the Rusin Orthodox-Greek Catholic Church of SS. Peter and Paul. But what is interesting, some of these Syrian/Lebanese Orthodox Christians stayed with the Uniate-Greek Catholics. Some even ended up in Roman Catholic parishes. I have always asked my father what ever happened to these Arab Eastern Christians of Windber. It is ironic that some of their descendants are now Roman Catholics.

Ungcsertezs

Back to the Marionites - this has been determined to be a mis-spelling of Marianite. It would be useful to have a thorough investigation of possible links between the Marianites (or Marionites) and the Mariavites - possibly the Mariavites were descended from some Lost Tribes of Marionites.

A Niall, a chara,
I'm most edified. Now shall we discuss Saint George's, Rector Street, New York?

Incognitus

Dear Neil,

We Ukies, Catholic and Orthodox, have a history of not liking one another . . . We're liking each other more, since we've really few non-Ukie friends when churches are involved!

It SEEMS to me that Melkites and Antiochian Orthodox have always been on good terms with one another, no problem with inter-marriage, rites etc.

And then all the sensational talk about reunion . . .

Apart from the obvious "Rome is the true Church, the Rock of Peter" etc., why have these two Churches not reunited?

What really keeps you apart since you like each other?

Alex

Incognitus,

I am most grateful to have had the honor of edifying you, my revered brother , who has so often edified me (who is he kidding, I wrote not a word that he didn't already know ).

Are you talking about the discontent that arose when Father Kandilaf (?sp) was appointed to replace the recently reposed and much-beloved Father Ibrahim Beshawate, of blessed memory, but was ill-received because the faithful wanted instead to be pastored by a Father Khalif, who had assisted Father Beshawate for the year or so prior to the latter's death?

Or, about the effort by Cardinal Hayes, the Archbishop of NY, to placate the faithful and hopefully thus get control over Saint George's property by replacing Father Kandilaf with Father Bernard Ghosn, of blessed memory (who, on arrival in NYC, had been scheduled to travel on to Birmingham)?

My understanding is that these events did result in some parishioners leaving our Church - not sure how many, but the parish still was able to report something like 100 families on its rolls a year or so after Father Ghosn's arrival. I never meant to suggest that there haven't been times when we had dissension and consequences. My point was only that we suffered nothing on the scale of what happened to our Byzantine brothers and sisters of the Slavic Tradition.

Many years,

Neil

So tell me, A Niall a chara dhil, has Saint George's, New York been opened again?

Incognitus

Alex - when it comes to Melkites we can't forget the visits of the Patriarch of Antioch to Kyiv - both recently and throughout history.

We also can't forget the great service the Melkites have done to the Russian Catholic Church starting with Fr. Nicholas Tolstoy.

Do the Maronites have any married clergy in the US? I was thinking not (with the exception of a married former Lutheran RC priest who also has Byzantine faculties and who assisted them in Oklahoma until a year or so ago).