His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai Presides Over the Ordination Mass of Father Michel Al Jalakh as Titular Archbishop of Nisibis for the Maronites
The Middle East Council of Churches Participates in the Service and Congratulates His Eminence
You can find some photos at the end of the text.
His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, presided over the Divine Mass and the Episcopal Ordination of Father Michel Al Jalakh as Titular Archbishop of Nisibis for the Maronites. Father Al Jalakh is the Secretary of the Dicastery of the Eastern Churches in the Vatican, Advisor to the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity in the Holy See, and Honorary Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC). The service was held on Saturday 8 June 2024, at the Patriarchal Edifice in Bkerke - Lebanon.
His Beatitude Patriarch Al-Rai was assisted in the service by His Eminence Archbishop Paul Abdel Sater, Archbishop of Beirut, and His Eminence Archbishop Antoine Bou Najem, Pastor of the Diocese of Antelias. As well as, participants were His Beatitude Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Head of the Dicastery for Eastern Churches, His Beatitude Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, Catholicos Patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Church of Cilicia, and MECC President for the Catholic Family, His Beatitude Patriarch Youssef Al-Absi, Greek Melkite Catholic Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and MECC Honorary President, His Beatitude Patriarch Mor Ignatius Youssef III Younan, Syriac Catholic Patriarch of Antioch, and MECC Honorary President, His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church, and MECC Honorary President, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and MECC Honorary President, represented by His Eminence Bishop Shahan Sarkissian, and the Apostolic Nuncio to Lebanon His Excellency Monsignor Paolo Borgia.
Participants were also Their Eminences Archbishops Francisco Brunaro and Andrés Gabriel Ferrada Moreira, Bishops, Fathers of the Maronite Church’ Synod, Superiors General, Priests, brothers and sisters, Monks and Nuns. The Ordination Mass which was served by the Antonine University Choir, headed by Maestro Father Toufic Maatouk and the Chorister Joumana Medawar, was also attended by current and former Ministers and Deputies, and also political, security, diplomatic, judicial, religious, media, educational and social figures, the family of Archbishop Al Jalakh and the relatives of his village.
The celebration was also attended by the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Dr. Michel Abs, at the head of an MECC delegation, extending their warmest congratulations to His Eminence Archbishop Al-Jalakh, wishing him continued success in his new mission, and many years of goodness, blessings and holiness.
His Beatitude Patriarch Al-Rai
After the Holy Bible, His Beatitude Patriarch Al-Rai delivered a Sermon in which he said: “Christ asks you, our new Archbishop Michel, the two essential questions: “Who do you say that I am?” The Lord requires a personal answer, not an answer from books. An answer you live through your service and living out your vocation. In your Monastic life, and today in your new service as Archbishop of Nisibis, and as Secretary of the Dicastery of the Eastern Churches, who is Christ to you today and every day? Who is Christ to you in the difficulty of your mission, the monotony of life, and its daily difficulties? Who is Christ to you when you are facing the difficulties of the Eastern Catholic Churches, and you are called to give an answer and an example. You cannot bear witness to Christ without listening daily to the voice of the Father.
He added, "The Lord Jesus asks you His second question three times: 'Michel, do you love me?' And deep down in your soul, can you answer three times like Simon-Peter: “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you” (John 21:17). He asks you this question because He wants to grant you His love for the sheep, so that His love for souls passes through your heart, personality, work, and knowledge. Do not forget that you are called to this mission in your new journey.”
Episcopal Ordination
During the Ordination, Father Al Jalakh declared his faith publicly, recognizing the Holy Trinity, one God in three hypostases. Then he announced his recognition of the first seven Ecumenical Councils, and mentioned his obedience to the See of Peter, which was first established by the same Apostle in Antioch and subsequently transferred to Rome.
Afterwards, the ceremony of Ordination took place for Father Al Jalakh, with the laying on of the hand of His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai. He was clothed with the pontifical insignia, declaring him a new Archbishop before the Lord. On this occasion, the Apostolic Nuncio Monsignor Borgia read out the Papal Acquittal that had been sent by His Holiness Pope Francis.
His Eminence Archbishop Al Jalakh
At the end of the Ordination, His Eminence Archbishop Michel Al Jalkh delivered a speech in which he said, “If I review my childhood, I say that I got to know, and I learned, thanks to my father and mother, to love God first and last, and to work according to His good pleasure. With my entry into the Monastic Order and the phase of formation, I got to know, and learned, thanks to my teachers, to love my monasticism, its mission, generosity, spirituality, fathers, hermits, and Saints. During my studies in Italy, I came to know and learned to love the Universal Church, with its diversity, richness, civilization, and the greatness of its various arts. At the beginning of my Priestly life in Rome, I came to know and learned to love the other Maronite Orders, including the Greek Catholic and Armenian. This is because of our interaction and our responsibilities for our communities and Monasteries.”
He continued, "At the Antonine International School, Ajaltoun, I got to know and learned to love and serve my environment, family, teachers, and students. At the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), I got to know and learned to love my Orthodox and Evangelical brother because of my relations with them and our work together. At the Antonine University, I came to know and learned to love and serve my Shiite, Sunni, and Druze brother. In all of this, I got to know and learned to love my Maronite Church and be proud of it, its history, openness, legacy, and sacrifices.
Then, His Eminence Archbishop Michel Al Jalakh received congratulations in an atmosphere of joy and love.
Photos: Facebook Page of the Maronite Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East.
