Who are the Maronites?
Question: I understand that Maronites are Lebanese Christians of an Eastern rite, but what is their background?
Answer: The history of the Maronite Church, which historically has close ties with Rome, goes back to the late 4th and early 5th century, with a Syriac monk named St Maron, who converted many people in regions of what is now Syria, Lebanon and southern Turkey. When he died in 410 AD, his followers built a monastery in the city of Apamea, in modern-day Syria. This was the beginning of the Maronite Church.
This group soon became embroiled in theological disputes with other Christian sects, particularly after the council of Chalcedon of 452. That helped strengthen their identity and make them well-known, enabling missionary activities in surrounding regions, including Lebanon.
In 609, the Maronites elected Bishop John Maron as patriarch of Antioch and all the East, the Church’s oldest see. The Church authorities in Constantinople (the future Orthodox Church) saw that as an usurpation of its powers, but the election was supported by Pope Sergius I. This helps explain why the Maronites became close to Rome and its pope. The Muslim conquest of Syria — meaning the region covering modern Syria, Israel, Palestine and parts of Jordan — from 634–638 resulted in large-scale emigration of Maronites to Lebanon.
During the Crusades, the Maronites strengthened their relationship with the Latin Church, and that persisted even during the many centuries of Ottoman rule.
When global emigration became more common in the 19th century, the Maronites were widely dispersed globally. The first Maronites arrived in Johannesburg (which has two Maronite churches, in Woodmead and Mulbarton) by 1892. Today, it is believed, two-thirds of the world’s 3 million Maronites live outside Lebanon, where the remaining members make up about 20% of the population — but that number is dropping fast due to more emigration from a depressed country.
The Maronite rite has its own patriarch, missal and disciplines — for example married priests are possible. The most famous Maronite saint is St Charbel Makhlouf.
• See www.maronitechurch.co.za
Asked and answered in the July 2022 issue of The Southern Cross magazine
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