Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles

History of the Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon

Immigration of Maronite faithful from the Middle East to the United States began during the latter part of the nineteenth century. When the faithful were able to obtain a priest, communities were established under the jurisdiction of the local Latin Bishops.

Pope Paul VI, with the Apostolic Constitution Cum supremi^[1] of January 10, 1966, established the Maronite Apostolic Exarchate for the Maronite faithful of the United States. The Most Reverend Francis Mansour Zayek was appointed the first bishop in a decree of the Sacred Congregation for the Eastern Churches dated January 27, 1966. The See city was Detroit, Michigan, with a Cathedral under the patronage of St Maron. At that time, the Exarchate was a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Detroit.

On November 29, 1971, Pope Paul VI, with the Apostolic Constitution Quae spes,^[2] the Exarchate was elevated to the status of an Eparchy, with the name of Eparchy of St Maron of Detroit. With a decree from the Sacred Congregation of the Eastern Churches dated June 27, 1977, the see of the Eparchy of St Maron was transferred to Brooklyn, New York, with the cathedral under the patronage of Our Lady of Lebanon. The name of the Eparchy was modified to Eparchy of St Maron of Brooklyn. On December 10, 1982, Pope John Paul II accorded the title of “Archbishop ad personam” to Bishop Zayek as recognition of his personal contributions to the Catholic Church.

With the Apostolic Constitution Omnium Catholicorum^[3] of March 18, 1994, a second Eparchy for Maronites in the United States was established: The Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles. The Most Reverend John George Chedid, formerly Titular Bishop of Callinicum for the Maronites and Auxiliary of the Eparchy of St Maron, was appointed the first Eparchial Bishop with the Cathedral under the patronage of Our Lady of Mt. Lebanon. Bishop Chedid was enthroned on June 24, 1994 by Archbishop Francis M. Zayek who represented the Maronite Patriarch His Beatitude Nasrallah Peter Sfeir. On December 5, 2000 The Holy Father accepted the resignation of Bishop John Chedid due to canonical age, and appointed Chorbishop Robert Shaheen as the second bishop of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon. Bishop Shaheen was ordained and installed Eparch on February 15, 2001 by His Eminence and Beatitude Patriarch Nasrallah Peter Sfeir in the Cathedral Basilica of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis, Missouri.

With a decree from the Sacred Congregation of the Eastern Churches dated July 10, 2001, the see of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon was transferred to St. Louis, MO with St. Raymond elevated to the rank of Co-Cathedral.^[4] The current eparch is Robert Joseph Shaheen.

The territory of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon comprises the following states, parishes and missions:

Alabama

Saint Elias Maronite Church (Birmingham)

Arizona

Saint Joseph Maronite Church (Phoenix)

California

Saint John Maron Maronite Church (Anaheim)

Our Lady of Lebanon-St Peter Maronite Cathedral (Los Angeles)

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church (Millbrae)

Saint Joseph Maronite Mission (Riverside)

Saint Ephrem Maronite Church (San Diego)

Saint Jude Maronite Mission (West Covina)

Saints Peter and Paul Maronite Mission (San Fernando Valley)

Colorado

Saint Rafka Maronite Church (Denver)

Illinois

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church (Lombard)

Saint Sharbel Maronite Church (Peoria)

Kentucky

Maronite Community (Louisville)

Louisiana

Maronite Community (Baton Rouge)

Michigan

Saint Maron Maronite Cathedral (Detroit)

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church (Flint)

Saint Rafka Maronite Mission (Livonia)

Saint Sharbel Maronite Church (Warren)

Minnesota

Saint Maron Maronite Church (Minneapolis)

Holy Family Maronite Church (Mendota Heights)

Missouri

Saint Raymond Maronite Cathedral (Saint Louis)

Nevada

Saint Sharbel Maronite Mission (Las Vegas)

Ohio

Saint Anthony of Padua Maronite Church (Cincinnati)

Saint Maron Maronite Church (Cleveland)

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Mission (Columbus)

Saint Ignatius Maronite Church (Dayton)

Our Lady of the Cedars of Mt. Lebanon Maronite Church (Fairlawn)

Our Lady of Lebanon National Shrine (North Jackson)

Saint Maron Maronite Church (Youngstown)

Oklahoma

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Mission (Norman)

Saint Therese Maronite Church (Tulsa)

Oregon

Saint Sharbel Maronite Mission (Portland)

Texas

Our Lady’s Maronite Church (Austin)

Saint Anthony of the Desert Maronite Mission (El Paso)

Our Lady of Cedars Maronite Church (Houston)

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church (Lewisville)

Saint George Maronite Church (San Antonio)

Utah

Saint Jude Maronite Church (Murray)

West Virginia

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church (Wheeling)

Maronites who do not reside within a convenient distance to a local Maronite Church are encouraged to attend other Catholic Churches, but they retain their membership in the Maronite Church.

The Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon is an entity pertaining to the Apostolic Maronite Patriarchal Church of Antioch and Bishop Robert J. Shaheen is a member of the Patriarchal Synod of Bishops. In conformity with the CCEO, the Eparchy is under the direct jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff.

Today, the Maronite Church in the United States is very much alive and well with a missionary zeal and an ecumenical spirit. Along with the other Eastern Catholics, the Maronite Church helps make the Catholic Community in the United States truly “catholic,” that is, universal.

References

1. ^ "Cum supremi"
2. ^ "Quae spes"
3. ^ "Omnium Catholicorum"
4. ^ Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady Lebanon, as of 9 Sep 2011, the history quoted here was a verbatim copy of the history page of the Eparchy Web Site.

External Links

Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon