History
Immigration of the Syrians to Venezuela, and in particular of the Alepians, begun before the First World War, intensified after the end of this war, then slowed down from 1930, then resumed after the end of the war. Second world war, and this time massively. The new prosperity of Venezuela, thanks to the exploitation of oil, is one of the main causes of the phenomenon. Many families have settled in this country, with the intention of staying there. The number of immigrant Christians would be much higher than that of the Greek-Melkite Catholics who remained in Aleppo (where they form the largest Christian community).
In 1957, in agreement with the Latin Archbishop of Caracas, the Greek- Melkite Catholic Melkite immigrants of the Vnezuelan capital asked the Patriarch Maximos IV to give them a priest, also a native of Aleppo.
From 1957 to 1970, Father Gabriel Dick of the Society of the Missionaries of Saint Paul took care of this mission. He immediately bought a house, old but spacious enough, to serve as a temporary church; He attached to it a school which might have been more extensively developed had the place been larger.
As part of a reorganization of the missions of the Diaspora, the charge is entrusted by the Patriarch Maximos V to the order Basilian Alepian. From 1972 to 1989, Father Georges Kahhalé Zouhaïraty was the superior of this mission, assisted successively by Fathers Theophile Kabbabé, Gilbert Khawam and Élie Battikha.
On December 5, 1983, Archbishop Boutros (Pierre) Raï, titular archbishop of Edessa, was appointed by Pope John Paul II apostolic visitor to the Greek-Melkite Catholic faithful of Mexico, Venezuela and the Argentine Republic. On February 27, 1988 he was appointed first eparch (archbishop-bishop) of the eparchy of Mexico, and then, on February 19, 1990, first apostolic exarch for the Greek-Melkite Catholic faithful of Venezuela; But died suddenly on June 7, 1994. On October 12, 1995, Pope John Paul II appointed new Apostolic Exarch and titular Bishop of Abila of Lysanie HE Mons. Georges KahhaléZouhaïraty, BA.
Statistics
Approximate number of Greek-Melkite Catholics: 25,000
Priests: 4 (3 eparchies, one religious)
Apostolic Exarchate of Venezuela
H.E. Archbishop Georges Kahhale Zouhairaty
E-mail : georgeskahhale@cantv.net
Web site: www.catedralsanjorge.tripod.com
Catedral San Jorge
Address : Final Tercera Avenida de Montalban 2
Apartado 20120
Caracas 1020
Republica Bolivariana del Venezuela
Phone : +58 – 212 443 30 19
+58 – 212 472 39 55
+58 – 414 237 62 19
Fax : +58 – 212 443 01 31