{"id":14,"date":"2018-02-23T12:13:45","date_gmt":"2018-02-23T12:13:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bi3a.com\/Catholics\/who-we-are\/"},"modified":"2021-05-22T00:09:47","modified_gmt":"2021-05-22T00:09:47","slug":"who-we-are","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/who-we-are\/","title":{"rendered":"Who We Are"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>About Us<br \/>\n<\/h2>\n<h2>Who We Are<\/h2>\n<p>The\u00a0<strong>Melkite (Greek) Catholic Church<\/strong>\u00a0is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catholic Church. The Melkites, Byzantine Rite Catholics of mixed Eastern Mediterranean (Levantine) and Greek origin, trace their history to the early Christians of Antioch, formerly part of Syria and now in Turkey, of the 1st century AD, where Christianity was introduced by Saint Peter.<\/p>\n<p>In 1724 the church split in two. The Antiochean Orthodox and the Melkite Greek Catholics loyal to Rome. The Melkite Catholic Church\u2019s origins lie in the Middle East, centered especially in Syria and Lebanon, headed by Patriarch Gregory III Laham.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"673\" src=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-1024x673.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-1024x673.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-300x197.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-768x505.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-1536x1009.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/interior_of_st_andrew_s_catholic_church_in_roanoke__virginia-2048x1346.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><br \/>\n                                    <button data-toggle=\"premium-modal\" data-target=\"#premium-modal-98c59a0\" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n                                                Read more<br \/>\n                                            <\/button><\/p>\n<h3>\n                                        Who We Are                                    <\/h3>\n<p>                                        <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\">&times;<\/button><\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0<strong>Melkite (Greek) Catholic Church<\/strong>\u00a0is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catholic Church. The Melkites, Byzantine Rite Catholics of mixed Eastern Mediterranean (Levantine) and Greek origin, trace their history to the early Christians of Antioch, formerly part of Syria and now in Turkey, of the 1st century AD, where Christianity was introduced by Saint Peter.<\/p>\n<p>In 1724 the church split in two. The Antiochean Orthodox and the Melkite Greek Catholics loyal to Rome. The Melkite Catholic Church\u2019s origins lie in the Middle East, centered especially in Syria and Lebanon, headed by Patriarch Gregory III Laham.<\/p>\n<p>The turn of the twentieth century, following the 1860 massacres of Damascus and the famine that accompanied World War I, witnessed heavy migration of the Melkite Greek Catholics who resided in the Middle East and seeked security and better living standards throughout the world. They were recognized for their achievements in different domains and fields, and earned the respect of the communities that embraced them.<\/p>\n<p>The imprints of Melkite Greek Catholics are today foreseen and acknowledged in the Middle East and the countries in which they lived and contributed to projects in cultural, educational, economic and social development.<\/p>\n<p>The purpose of a World Council for Melkite Greek Catholics is to reconnect all the Greek Catholics in the Middle East with those who have been living away from their homeland, disconnected from their roots and are seeking to trace back their origins.<\/p>\n<p>By becoming a member you will be periodically updated on our community social and religious life and its successes stories. Furthermore you will have the opportunity to participate in our community activities and events.<\/p>\n<p>Creating this data base will serve as a first milestone for a World Melkite Greek Catholic Lobby where we can have the opportunity to know and support each other sharing our religious and social principals.<\/p>\n<p>We rely on your support to make our mission a success. By sharing knowledge and organizing activities we will strengthen the bonds between Greek Catholics new generations, reach out to one another to improve the living standards of our community.<\/p>\n<p>                                <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\"><br \/>\n                                    Close                                <\/button><\/p>\n<style>\n                    <\/style>\n<h2>Council Status<br \/>\n<\/h2>\n<h4>STATUTS DE L\u2019ASSOCIATION<br \/>\n<\/h4>\n<h4>\n Le concile Mondial des Grecs Catholiques<br \/>\n<\/h4>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE PREMIER \u2013 NOM<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tIl est fond\u00e9 entre les adh\u00e9rents aux pr\u00e9sents statuts une association r\u00e9gie par la loi du 1<sup>er<\/sup>\u00a0juillet 1901 et le d\u00e9cret du 16 ao\u00fbt 1901, ayant pour titre\u00a0: Le Concile Mondial des Grecs Catholiques.<br \/>\nL\u2019association a pour sigle, le logo suivant\u00a0:<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bi3a.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/logo.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"171\" height=\"164\" \/> <br \/>\nElle a comme site internet, le lien suivant\u00a0:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.wgccouncil.com\/\">www.wgccouncil.com<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 2 \u2013 BUT OBJET<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tCette association a pour objet de r\u00e9pertorier les personnes d\u2019ob\u00e9dience grecque catholique vivant dans le monde, de faciliter les interconnections entre elles et de d\u00e9velopper des projets pour aider et faire \u00e9voluer la communaut\u00e9 grecque catholique, Pour y parvenir, le Concile Mondial des Grecs Catholiques usera\u00a0:<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>De diff\u00e9rents moyens techniques de communication, actuelle et future, pour cr\u00e9er cette base de donn\u00e9es r\u00e9pertoriant autant que possible les membres de cette communaut\u00e9 dans le monde entier.<\/li>\n<li>De l\u2019organisation d\u2019activit\u00e9 sociale dont les revenus b\u00e9n\u00e9ficieront au Concile.<\/li>\n<li>De l\u2019organisation de projets autour de la vie de la communaut\u00e9 grecque catholique et dont une partie des revenus alimentera le fonctionnement du Concile.<\/li>\n<li>De la collaboration avec la communaut\u00e9 eccl\u00e9siastique grecque catholique pour monter des projets en commun.<\/li>\n<li>De l\u2019octroi de subvention de la part des Etats, de personnes morales, de personnes physiques, d\u2019association, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Et de l\u2019exercice d\u2019activit\u00e9 \u00e9conomique.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 3 \u2013 SIEGE SOCIAL<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tLe si\u00e9ge social est fix\u00e9 au 14, rue Lincoin, 75008 Paris, France.<br \/>\nLe si\u00e9ge social pourra \u00eatre transf\u00e9r\u00e9 par proposition du Conseil\u00a0 d\u2019administration. La d\u00e9cision de ce transfert sera valid\u00e9e apr\u00e8s ratification par l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">Article 4 \u2013 DUREE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>La dur\u00e9e de l\u2019association est illimit\u00e9e.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 5 \u2013 COMPOSITION<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tL\u2019association se compose de\u00a0:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Membres actifs,<\/li>\n<li>Membres adh\u00e9rents,<\/li>\n<li>Membres bienfaiteurs,<\/li>\n<li>Membres fondateurs,<\/li>\n<li>Membres d\u2019honneur,<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>L\u2019organigramme du Concile Mondial des Grecs Catholiques est compos\u00e9 d\u2019un Conseil d\u2019administration central. Ce Conseil d\u2019administration central est form\u00e9 des postes suivants\u00a0:<br \/>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Le pr\u00e9sident<\/li>\n<li>Le vice \u2013 pr\u00e9sident<\/li>\n<li>Le secr\u00e9taire g\u00e9n\u00e9ral<\/li>\n<li>Le secr\u00e9taire g\u00e9n\u00e9ral adjoint<\/li>\n<li>Le tr\u00e9sorier<\/li>\n<li>Le tr\u00e9sorier adjoint<\/li>\n<li>Le responsable des jeunes<\/li>\n<li>Le responsable des relations ext\u00e9rieures<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Comme le champ d\u2019action de ce Concile est international, la repr\u00e9sentativit\u00e9 continentale, r\u00e9gionale, nationale, et locale est organis\u00e9e de la mani\u00e8re suivante\u00a0:<br \/>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Un repr\u00e9sentant pour chaque continent. Ils sont au nombre de cinq.<\/li>\n<li>Dans le cas ou la taille du continent l\u2019exige (par exemple\u00a0: le continent am\u00e9ricain), Il sera divis\u00e9 en trois r\u00e9gions\u00a0: l\u2019Am\u00e9rique du Nord, l\u2019Am\u00e9rique centrale et l\u2019Am\u00e9rique du Sud Cette subdivision sera d\u00e9velopp\u00e9e dans le r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur.<\/li>\n<li>Chaque pays est repr\u00e9sent\u00e9 de la mani\u00e8re suivante\u00a0:<\/li>\n<li>Un repr\u00e9sentant national<\/li>\n<li>Un vice \u2013repr\u00e9sentant national<\/li>\n<li>Un repr\u00e9sentant pour chaque d\u00e9partement ou \u00e9tat (cas des Etats Unis d\u2019Am\u00e9rique)<\/li>\n<li>Et un vice-repr\u00e9sentant pour chaque d\u00e9partement ou \u00e9tat (cas des Etats Unis d\u2019Am\u00e9rique)<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0Un repr\u00e9sentant pour chaque ville<\/li>\n<li>Et un vice-repr\u00e9sentant pour chaque ville<br \/>\n&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>La subdivision des continents en r\u00e9gions, en groupement de pays, en Etats et en villes d\u00e9pend essentiellement de la taille du pays, de l\u2019importance et du nombre des grecs catholiques dans chaque pays et de la charge de travail que repr\u00e9sentes la taille de cette communaut\u00e9.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nCes diff\u00e9rentes subdivisions sont d\u00e9cid\u00e9es par le Conseil d\u2019administration central au cours des Assembl\u00e9es g\u00e9n\u00e9rales.<br \/>\nLes repr\u00e9sentants continentaux, r\u00e9gionaux et nationaux doivent participer aux Assembl\u00e9es g\u00e9n\u00e9rales.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nLes membres d\u2019honneur doivent \u00eatre des personnes d\u2019ob\u00e9dience grecque catholique en priorit\u00e9, mais ils peuvent aussi appartenir \u00e0 n\u2019importe quelle ob\u00e9dience. Ils doivent au cours de leur parcours professionnel ou personnel avoir \u0153uvr\u00e9 au d\u00e9veloppement de la communaut\u00e9 grecque catholique. Leur candidature et propos\u00e9e par un membre actif et est soumise au vote au cours de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nLes membres bienfaiteurs sont des personnes physiques ou morales. Les personnes physiques participent directement en leur nom et font des dons directs au Concile. Alors que les associations, institutions, groupements, organisations ou structures similaires pourront adh\u00e9rer aussi en tant que membres bienfaiteurs. Ces derniers pourront \u00eatre repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s soit par leur pr\u00e9sident soit par leur secr\u00e9taire g\u00e9n\u00e9ral.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nLes membres adh\u00e9rents sont tous les membres qui ont adh\u00e9r\u00e9s au Concile mondial des grecs catholiques. Les membres adh\u00e9rents ne paieront pas de cotisations pour le moment\u00a0; ceci pourra \u00eatre modifi\u00e9 \u00e0 l\u2019avenir, d\u00e9cid\u00e9 au cours d\u2019une Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale et ajout\u00e9 au r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nEn tant que membres actifs ne pourront y adh\u00e9rer que des personnes physiques. Les membres actifs sont les membres qui forment le Conseil d\u2019administration central, les repr\u00e9sentants de chaque continent, les repr\u00e9sentants nationaux, r\u00e9gionaux et locaux. Ils doivent \u00eatre a jour de leur cotisation.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">Article 6 \u2013 ADMISSION<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tPour faire partie de l\u2019association, il faut \u00eatre agr\u00e9e par le bureau, qui statue, lors de chacune de ses r\u00e9unions, sur les demandes d\u2019admission pr\u00e9sent\u00e9es.<br \/>\nLes conditions d\u2019admission aux diff\u00e9rents postes de membres sont les suivantes\u00a0:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>En tant que membre d\u2019honneur, pourra postuler toute personne d\u2019ob\u00e9dience chr\u00e9tienne. La candidature doit \u00eatre pr\u00e9sent\u00e9e par un membre actif et il faut que cette personne ait, au cours de son parcours professionnel ou personnel, particip\u00e9 \u00e0 la vie et au progr\u00e8s de la communaut\u00e9 grecque catholique.\n<\/li>\n<li>Toute personne physique ou morale (association, groupement, institution, soci\u00e9t\u00e9, union, f\u00e9d\u00e9ration, etc&#8230;) pourra devenir membre bienfaiteur \u00e0 partir du moment ou elle effectue des dons au profit du Concile Mondial des Grecs Catholiques.<\/li>\n<li>Toute personne de quelle origine ou ob\u00e9diences qu\u2019elle soit pourra devenir membre adh\u00e9rent \u00e0 condition d\u2019exprimer son int\u00e9ressement \u00e0 la vie de la communaut\u00e9 grecque catholique. Sa candidature doit \u00eatre parrain\u00e9e par un membre actif ou un membre d\u2019honneur.<\/li>\n<li>Pour \u00eatre membre actif, il faut \u00eatre d\u2019ob\u00e9dience grecque catholique.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 7 \u2013 MEMBRES \u2013 COTISATIONS<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tLes membres actifs sont ceux qui ont pris l\u2019engagement de verser annuellement une somme de 100 \u20ac \u00e0 titre de cotisation. Les membres adh\u00e9rents sont exon\u00e9r\u00e9s de cotisation sauf si cela est d\u00e9cid\u00e9 \u00e0 l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale et ajoute au r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur.<br \/>\nSont membres actifs ceux qui accusent les postes au Conseil d\u2019administration central, les postes de repr\u00e9sentants continentaux, nationaux, r\u00e9gionaux et locaux. Seuls les membres du Conseil d\u2019administration, les repr\u00e9sentants continentaux et nationaux ont le droit d\u2019assister aux Assembl\u00e9es g\u00e9n\u00e9rales et de participer aux votes \u00e0 condition d\u2019\u00eatre \u00e0 jour de leur cotisation.<br \/>\nSont membres d\u2019honneur ceux qui ont rendu des services signal\u00e9s \u00e0 l\u2019association\u00a0; ils sont dispens\u00e9s de cotisations.<br \/>\nSont membres bienfaiteurs, les personnes ou les institutions qui versent un don annuel au Concile au moins de 5000 Euros. Ce montant pourra \u00eatre modifie aux cours des Assembl\u00e9es g\u00e9n\u00e9rales et pr\u00e9cise au r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur.<br \/>\nLe montant de la cotisation annuelle est stipul\u00e9 dans le r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur et peut \u00eatre modifi\u00e9 chaque ann\u00e9e par l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 8. \u2013 RADIATIONS<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tLa qualit\u00e9 de membre se perd par\u00a0:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>La d\u00e9mission\u00a0;<\/li>\n<li>Le d\u00e9c\u00e8s\u00a0;<\/li>\n<li>La radiation prononc\u00e9e par le Conseil d\u2019administration pour non-paiement de la cotisation ou pour motif grave, l\u2019int\u00e9ress\u00e9 ayant \u00e9t\u00e9 invit\u00e9 par lettre avec accus\u00e9 de r\u00e9ception ou courrier \u00e9lectronique avec accus\u00e9 de r\u00e9ception \u00e9lectronique \u00e0 fournir des explications orales devant le bureau et\/ou par \u00e9crit.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 9. \u2013 RESSOURCES<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tLes ressources de l\u2019association comprennent:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Le montant des cotisations et des dons\u00a0;<\/li>\n<li>Les subventions des Etats, des d\u00e9partements et des communes.<\/li>\n<li>Toutes les ressources autoris\u00e9es par les lois et r\u00e8glements en vigueur.<\/li>\n<li>Les versements provenant de membres bienfaiteurs ou d\u2019associations bienfaitrices.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 10. \u2013 ASSEMBLEE GENERALE ORDINAIRE<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tL\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire comprend les membres du conseil d\u2019administration, les repr\u00e9sentants continentaux et nationaux.<\/p>\n<p>Elle se r\u00e9unit chaque ann\u00e9e au mois de juillet.<br \/>\nQuarante cinq jours au mois avant la date fix\u00e9e, les membres de l\u2019association sont convoqu\u00e9s par les soins du secr\u00e9taire par courrier ordinaire avec accus\u00e9 de r\u00e9ception ou par courrier \u00e9lectronique avec accuse de r\u00e9ception \u00e9lectronique. L\u2019ordre du jour figure sur les convocations.<\/p>\n<p>Le pr\u00e9sident, assiste des membres du Conseil, pr\u00e9side l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e et expose la situation morale et l\u2019activit\u00e9 de l\u2019association. Le tr\u00e9sorier rend compte de sa gestion et soumet les comptes annuels (bilan, compte de r\u00e9sultat et annexe) \u00e0 l\u2019approbation de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e.<\/p>\n<p>L\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale fixe le montant des cotisations annuelles \u00e0 verser par les diff\u00e9rentes cat\u00e9gories de membres.<\/p>\n<p>Ne peuvent \u00eatre abord\u00e9s que les points inscrits \u00e0 l\u2019ordre du jour.<\/p>\n<p>Les d\u00e9cisions sont prises \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9 des voix des membres pr\u00e9sents ou repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s.<\/p>\n<p>Il Est proc\u00e9d\u00e9, apr\u00e8s \u00e9puisement de l\u2019ordre du jour, au renouvellement des membres sortants du Conseil. Le renouvellement se fait \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9 des voix des membres pr\u00e9sents ou repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s.<\/p>\n<p>La majorit\u00e9 des voix correspond \u00e0 la moiti\u00e9 des membres pr\u00e9sents ou repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s plus un.<\/p>\n<p>Le quorum est consid\u00e9r\u00e9 attient si la moiti\u00e9 des membres du Conseil d\u2019administration et des repr\u00e9sentants continentaux et nationaux sont pr\u00e9sents. Dans le cas ou le quorum n\u2019est pas attient, l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire se r\u00e9unit de nouveau par les membres pr\u00e9sents qui constituent le quorum.<\/p>\n<p>Un membre pr\u00e9sent \u00e0 l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9ral ordinaire ne pourra repr\u00e9senter plus d\u2019un membre actif. Le Secr\u00e9taire g\u00e9n\u00e9ral doit recevoir du mandataire, au moins quinze jours avant la date de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire par courrier ordinaire recommand\u00e9 avec accus\u00e9 de r\u00e9ception ou par courrier \u00e9lectronique avec accus\u00e9 de r\u00e9ception \u00e9lectronique, le nom du mandat\u00e9. Ce dernier devra avoir en sa possession le jour de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire le mandat de repr\u00e9sentativit\u00e9 sign\u00e9 par le mandataire.<\/p>\n<p>Un membre du Conseil d\u2019administration, un repr\u00e9sentant continental ou national pourra se faire repr\u00e9senter \u00e0 l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale par n\u2019importe quel membre actif \u00e0 condition que le mandataire et le mandat\u00e9 solent \u00e0 jour de leur cotisation et que le mandataire ait d\u00e9sign\u00e9 officiellement et dans les r\u00e8gles le mandat\u00e9 comme son repr\u00e9sentant.<\/p>\n<p>Toutes les d\u00e9lib\u00e9rations sont prises \u00e0 main lev\u00e9e, except\u00e9 l\u2019\u00e9lection des membres du Conseil.<\/p>\n<p>Les d\u00e9cisions des Assembl\u00e9es g\u00e9n\u00e9rales s\u2019imposent \u00e0 tous les membres, y compris ceux qui sont absents ou repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 11 \u2013 ASSEMBLEE GENRALE EXTRAORDINAIRE<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tSi besoin est, ou sur la demande du quart des membres actifs, ou sur la demande des membres du Conseil d\u2019administration, le Pr\u00e9sident peut convoquer une Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale extraordinaire, suivant les modalit\u00e9s pr\u00e9vues aux pr\u00e9sents statuts et uniquement pour modification des statuts ou la dissolution.<\/p>\n<p>Les modalit\u00e9s de convocation sont les m\u00e9mes que pour l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire.<\/p>\n<p>Les d\u00e9lib\u00e9rations sont prises \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9 des membres pr\u00e9sents.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 12 \u2013 CONSEIL D\u2019ADMINISTRATION<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tL\u2019association est dirig\u00e9e par un conseil de 9 membres, \u00e9lus pour 3 ann\u00e9es par l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale. Les membres sont r\u00e9\u00e9ligibles.<\/p>\n<p>Le vote pour l\u2019\u00e9lection des membres aux diff\u00e9rents postes de Conseil d\u2019administration se fait \u00e0 bulletin secret et les membres sont \u00e9lus \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9 des membres pr\u00e9sents ou repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s.<\/p>\n<p>En cas de Vacances ou de d\u00e9mission de l\u2019un ou de plusieurs de ses membres, le Pr\u00e9sident du Conseil pourvoit provisoirement au remplacement du ou des membres en question. Il est proc\u00e9d\u00e9  \u00e0 leur remplacement d\u00e9finitif \u00e0 la plus prochaine Assembl\u00e9e qui suit par l\u2019organisation de vote. Les pouvoirs des membres rempla\u00e7ants prennent fin au moment de l\u2019\u00e9lection au cours de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e pourvue \u00e0 cet effet du ou des membres correspondants.<\/p>\n<p>Le Conseil d\u2019administration se r\u00e9unit au moins une fois tous les trois mois, sur convocation du Pr\u00e9sident ou du Secr\u00e9taire g\u00e9n\u00e9rale, ou \u00e0 la demande du quart de ses membres. Les r\u00e9unions pourront se faire aussi au travers des moyens \u00e9lectroniques \u00e9tant donn\u00e9 que les membres r\u00e9sident dans diff\u00e9rents pays.<\/p>\n<p>Les d\u00e9cisions sont prises \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9 des voix ; en cas de partage, la voix du Pr\u00e9sident est pr\u00e9pond\u00e9rante.<\/p>\n<p>Au cours des ses r\u00e9unions, le Conseil d\u2019administration discute le bon fonctionnement de l\u2019association et pourra d\u00e9l\u00e9guer un ou plusieurs pouvoirs, pour une dur\u00e9e d\u00e9termin\u00e9e, \u00e0 un ou plusieurs de ses membres.<\/p>\n<p>Pour le bon fonctionnement de l\u2019association, il faut noter que les fonctions de pr\u00e9sident et de tr\u00e9sorier ne sont pas cumulables.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 13 \u2013 INDEMNITES<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tToutes les fonctions, y compris celles des membres du Conseil d\u2019administration et du bureau, sont gratuites et b\u00e9n\u00e9voles. Seuls les frais occasionn\u00e9s par l\u2019accomplissement de leur mandat sont rembours\u00e9s sur justificatifs. Le rapport financier pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 \u00e0 l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e  g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ordinaire d\u00e9taille, par b\u00e9n\u00e9ficiaire, les remboursements de frais de mission, de d\u00e9placement ou de repr\u00e9sentation.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE 14 \u2013 REGLEMENT INTERIEUR<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tUn r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur peut \u00e9tabli par le Conseil d\u2019administration, qui le fait alors approuver par l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale. Tous changement apport\u00e9 au r\u00e8glement int\u00e9rieur par le Conseil d\u2019administration doit \u00eatre valid\u00e9 au cours de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale \u00e0 la majorit\u00e9.<\/p>\n<p>Ce r\u00e8glement \u00e9ventuel est destin\u00e9 \u00e0 fixer les divers points non pr\u00e9vus par les pr\u00e9sents statuts, notamment ceux qui ont trait \u00e0 l\u2019administration interne de l\u2019association.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE \u2013 15 DISSOLUTION<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tEn cas de dissolution prononc\u00e9e selon les modalit\u00e9s pr\u00e9vues \u00e0 l\u2019article 11, un ou plusieurs liquidateurs sont nomm\u00e9s, et l\u2019actif, s\u2019il  y a lieu, est d\u00e9volu conform\u00e9ment aux d\u00e9cisions de l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e g\u00e9n\u00e9rale extraordinaire qui statue sur la dissolution.<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\">ARTICLE \u2013 16 LIBERALITES :<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\tLe rapport et les comptes annuels sont adress\u00e9s chaque ann\u00e9e au Pr\u00e9fet du d\u00e9partement.<\/p>\n<p>L\u2019association s\u2019engage \u00e0 pr\u00e9senter ses registres et pi\u00e8ces de comptabilit\u00e9 sur toute r\u00e9quisition des autorit\u00e9s administratives en ce qui concerne l\u2019emploi des lib\u00e9ralit\u00e9s qu\u2019elle serait autoris\u00e9e \u00e0 recevoir, \u00e0 laisser visiter ses \u00e9tablissements par les repr\u00e9sentants de ces autorit\u00e9s comp\u00e9tentes et \u00e0 leur rendre compte du fonctionnement desdits \u00e9tablissements.<\/p>\n<h6>Fait \u00e0 Paris, le 1 d\u00e9cembre 2015<\/h6>\n<h6>Dr. Joseph Bakhack<\/h6>\n<h6>Pr\u00e9sident<\/h6>\n<h6>Mr. Pierre Noujeim<\/h6>\n<h6>Tr\u00e9sorier<\/h6>\n<h2> OUR ORIGIN<\/h2>\n<h3>\n                Greek Catholic Church<br \/>\n                                <\/h3>\n<p>The term\u00a0<strong>Melkite<\/strong>, also written\u00a0<strong>Melchite<\/strong>, refers to various Byzantine Rite Christian churches and their members originating from the Middle East.<\/p>\n<p>                                    <button data-toggle=\"premium-modal\" data-target=\"#premium-modal-68df15e\" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n                                                Read more<br \/>\n                                            <\/button><\/p>\n<h3>\n                                        Greek Catholic Church                                    <\/h3>\n<p>                                        <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\">&times;<\/button><\/p>\n<p>The term\u00a0<strong>Melkite<\/strong>, also written\u00a0<strong>Melchite<\/strong>, refers to various Byzantine Rite Christian churches and their members originating from the Middle East.\u00a0<strong>Melkite<\/strong>\u00a0has a Syriac origin &#8211;\u00a0<em>malkoyo<\/em>\u00a0(\u0721\u0720\u071f\u071d\u0710\u200e) &#8211; and in Arabic\u00a0<em>Malak\u012b \u2013<\/em>\u00a0\u0644\u0643\u064a\u0645 &#8211; means royal and by extension imperial. When used in an ecclesiastical sense, it refers specifically to the Eastern Rite Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch.<\/p>\n<p>Melkites view themselves as the first Christian Community, dating the Melkite Church back to the time of the Apostles. This first community is said to have been a mixed one made up of individuals who were originally Greek, Roman, Syriac and Jewish. After the Islamic conquests of the Levant in the 7th century, the Melkite community started incorporating Arabic language in the liturgical traditions as the Middle East became gradually Arabized.<\/p>\n<p>The term\u00a0<strong>Melkite<\/strong>\u00a0was originally used as a pejorative term after the acrimonious division that occurred in the Eastern Christianity after the Council of Chalcedon \u00a0hold in 451 AC. It was used by non-Chalcedonians to refer to those who backed the council and the Byzantine Emperor (<em>malko<\/em>\u00a0or king). It was only towards the end of the fifth century that it took the name of Melkite.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0The Melkites were generally Greek-speaking city-dwellers living in the west of the Levant and in Egypt. The Melkite Church was organized into three historic patriarchates \u2014 Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem\u2014 in union with the Patriarch of Constantinople. After the Council of Chalcedon, over the ensuing centuries those Churches which rejected this council recognized different patriarchs in Alexandria (Coptic Orthodox Church) and Antioch (Syriac Orthodox Church). The Nubian kingdom of Makuria (in modern Sudan) in contrast to their Non-Chalcedonian Ethiopian Orthodox neighbours, was also Chalcedonian, from c. 575 until ca. 710 and still had a large Melkite minority until the 1400s.<\/p>\n<p>From 1342, Roman Catholic Clergy were based in Damascus and other areas, and worked toward a union between Rome and the Orthodox. At that time, the nature of the East-West Schism, normally dated to 1054, was undefined, and many of those who continued to worship and work within the Melkite Church became identified as a pro-Western party. In 1724, Cyril VI (Seraphim Tanas) was elected in Damascus by the Synod as Patriarch of Antioch. Considering this to be a Catholic takeover attempt, Jeremias III of Constantinople imposed a deacon, the Greek monk Sylvester to rule the patriarchate instead of Cyril. After being ordained a priest, then bishop he was given Turkish protection to overthrow Cyril. Sylvester&#8217;s heavy-handed leadership of the church encouraged many to re-examine the validity of Cyril&#8217;s claim to the patriarchal throne.<\/p>\n<p>The newly elected Pope Benedict XIII (1724\u20131730) also recognized the legitimacy of Cyril&#8217;s claim and recognized him and his followers as being in communion with Rome. From that point onwards, the Melkite Church was divided between the Greek Orthodox (Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch), who continued to be appointed by the authority of the Patriarch of Constantinople until the late nineteenth century, and the Greek Catholics (Melkite Greek Catholic Church), who recognize the authority of the Pope of Rome. However, it is now only the Catholic group who continue to use the title\u00a0<em>Melkite<\/em>; thus, in modern usage, the term applies almost exclusively to the Arabic-speaking Greek Catholics from the Middle-East.<\/p>\n<p>Some typically Grecian &#8220;Ancient Synagogal&#8221; priestly rites and hymns have survived partially to the present, notably in the distinct church services of the Melkite and Greek Orthodox communities of the Hatay Province of Southern Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. Members of these communities still call themselves R\u00fbm which literally means &#8220;Roman&#8221; or &#8220;Asian Greek&#8221; in Arabic (that is, those of the Eastern Roman Empire, what English speakers often call &#8220;Byzantine&#8221;). The term &#8220;R\u00fbm&#8221; is used in preference to &#8220;Ionani&#8221; or &#8220;Y\u0101v\u0101ni&#8221; which means &#8220;European-Greek&#8221; or Ionian in Classical Arabic and Biblical Hebrew.<\/p>\n<p>                                <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\"><br \/>\n                                    Close                                <\/button><\/p>\n<style>\n                    <\/style>\n<h4>\n                Origins of the Melkite Greek Catholics<br \/>\n                                <\/h4>\n<p>Melkite, from the\u00a0<a title=\"Syriac language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Syriac_language\">Syriac<\/a>\u00a0word malk\u0101 meaning &#8220;King&#8221; was originally a\u00a0<a title=\"Pejorative\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pejorative\">pejorative<\/a> term for Middle Eastern Christians who accepted the authority &#8230;..<\/p>\n<p>                                    <button data-toggle=\"premium-modal\" data-target=\"#premium-modal-1b13dd3\" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n                                                Read more<br \/>\n                                            <\/button><\/p>\n<h3>\n                                        The Origin of the Greek Catholic Community                                    <\/h3>\n<p>                                        <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\">&times;<\/button><\/p>\n<p><strong>Origins of the Melkite Greek Catholics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Melkite, from the\u00a0<a title=\"Syriac language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Syriac_language\">Syriac<\/a>\u00a0word malk\u0101 meaning &#8220;King&#8221; was originally a\u00a0<a title=\"Pejorative\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pejorative\">pejorative<\/a>\u00a0term for Middle Eastern Christians who accepted the authority of the\u00a0<a title=\"Council of Chalcedon\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Council_of_Chalcedon\">Council of Chalcedon<\/a>\u00a0(451) and the\u00a0<a title=\"List of Byzantine emperors\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_Byzantine_emperors\">Byzantine Emperor<\/a>, a term applied to them by non-Chalcedonians. Of the Chalcedonian churches, Greek Catholics continue to use the term, while Eastern Orthodox do not.<\/p>\n<p>The Greek element signifies the\u00a0<a title=\"Byzantine Rite\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Byzantine_Rite\">Byzantine Rite<\/a>\u00a0heritage of the church, the liturgy used by all the\u00a0<a title=\"Eastern Orthodoxy\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eastern_Orthodoxy\">Eastern Orthodox Churches<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The term\u00a0<a title=\"Catholic\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Catholic\">Catholic<\/a>\u00a0acknowledges communion with the Church of Rome and implies participation in the universal Christian church. According to Church tradition, the Melkite Church of Antioch is the &#8220;oldest continuous Christian community in the world&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>In\u00a0<a title=\"Arabic language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arabic_language\">Arabic<\/a>, the official language of the church, it is called al-R\u016bm al-Kath\u016bl\u012bk (<a title=\"Arabic language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arabic_language\">Arabic<\/a>: \u0627\u0644\u0631\u0648\u0645 \u0627\u0644\u0643\u0627\u062b\u0648\u0644\u064a\u0643\u200e). The Arabic word &#8220;<a title=\"R\u00fbm\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/R%C3%BBm\">R\u016bm<\/a>&#8221; means Greek from the Greek word &#8220;<a title=\"Romioi\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Romioi\">Romioi<\/a>&#8221; by which the Byzantine Greeks identified themselves, deriving from the name of their land which they called\u00a0<a title=\"\u03a1\u03c9\u03bc\u03b9\u03bf\u03af\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/%CE%A1%CF%89%CE%BC%CE%B9%CE%BF%CE%AF\">Romania<\/a>\u00a0(meaning &#8220;the land of the Romans&#8221;, Greek: \u03a1\u03c9\u03bc\u03b1\u03bd\u03af\u03b1). The name literally means Roman Catholic.<\/p>\n<p>The origins of the Melkite Catholic Church go back to the establishment of Christianity in the Near East. As Christianity began to spread, the disciples preached the Gospel throughout the region and were for the first time called &#8220;Christians&#8221; in the city of\u00a0<a title=\"Antioch\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Antioch\">Antioch<\/a>\u00a0the historical\u00a0<a title=\"Episcopal See\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Episcopal_See\">See<\/a>\u00a0of the Melkite Catholic Patriarchate. By the 2nd century, Christianity was widespread in Antioch and throughout Syria. Growth of the church did not stop during periods of persecution, and by the end of the 4th century Christianity became the official state religion.<\/p>\n<p>The Melkite Greek Catholic Church traces its origins to the Christian communities of the\u00a0<a title=\"Levant\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Levant\">Levant<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Egypt\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Egypt\">Egypt<\/a>. The church&#8217;s leadership was vested in the three Apostolic Patriarchates of the\u00a0<a title=\"Pentarchy\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pentarchy\">ancient patriarchates<\/a>:\u00a0<a title=\"Alexandria\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Alexandria\">Alexandria<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Antioch\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Antioch\">Antioch<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Jerusalem\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jerusalem\">Jerusalem<\/a>. The church&#8217;s history and relation to other churches may be summarised in four defining moments.<\/p>\n<p>In the Fifth-century Middle-Eastern Christian society became sharply divided between those who did and those who did not accept the outcome of the council. Those who accepted the decrees of the council, the\u00a0<a title=\"Chalcedonian\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chalcedonian\">Chalcedonians<\/a>, were mainly\u00a0<a title=\"Greek language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Greek_language\">Greek<\/a>-speaking city-dwellers, and were called\u00a0<a title=\"Melkite\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Melkite\">Melkites<\/a>\u00a0by the anti-Chalcedonians. These latter were predominantly\u00a0<a title=\"Syriac language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Syriac_language\">Syriac<\/a>\u2013<a title=\"Arabic\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arabic\">Arabic<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0<a title=\"Coptic language\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Coptic_language\">Coptic<\/a>-speaking provincials.<\/p>\n<h3>Fusion with Arabic Language and Culture<\/h3>\n<p>The\u00a0<a title=\"Battle of Yarmuk\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Battle_of_Yarmuk\">Battle of Yarmuk<\/a>\u00a0(636) took the Melkite homeland out of Byzantine control and placed it under the occupation of the Arab invaders. Whereas the Greek language and culture remained important, especially for the Melkites of Jerusalem, Antiochene Melkite tradition merged with the Arabic language and culture. Indeed there was\u00a0<a title=\"Arabic poetry\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arabic_poetry#Pre-Islamic_poetry\">Arabic Christian poetry<\/a>\u00a0before the arrival of\u00a0<a title=\"Islam\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Islam\">Islam<\/a>, but the Antiochene blending with Arabic culture led to a degree of distancing from the\u00a0<a title=\"Patriarch of Constantinople\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Patriarch_of_Constantinople\">Patriarch of Constantinople<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the Arab invasion, the Melkites continued to exercise an important role in the Universal Church. The Melkites played a leading role in condemning the\u00a0<a title=\"Iconoclasm\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Iconoclasm\">iconoclast<\/a>\u00a0controversy when it re-appeared in the early 9th century, and were among the first of the Eastern churches to respond to the introduction of the\u00a0<a title=\"Filioque\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Filioque\">filioque<\/a>\u00a0clause in the West.<\/p>\n<h3>Communion with the Roman Catholic Church<\/h3>\n<p>In 1729 the Councils of Reunion in which the Orthodox hierarchs accepted communion with the\u00a0<a title=\"See of Rome\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/See_of_Rome\">See of Rome<\/a>\u00a0after a long period of\u00a0<a title=\"Schism (religion)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Schism_(religion)\">schism<\/a>. In 1054, Patriarch\u00a0<a title=\"Michael Kerularios\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Michael_Kerularios\">Michael Kerularios<\/a>\u00a0and Cardinal\u00a0<a title=\"Humbert of Silva Candida\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Humbert_of_Silva_Candida\">Humbert of Silva Candida<\/a>\u00a0had\u00a0<a title=\"Excommunication\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Excommunication\">excommunicated<\/a>\u00a0each other, thus formalizing a schism that had been developing for many years. The Melkite Patriarch Peter III of Antioch rejected the quarrel of the Latin Cardinal and the Patriarch of Constantinople. In 1965,\u00a0<a title=\"Pope Paul VI\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pope_Paul_VI\">Pope Paul VI<\/a>\u00a0and Patriarch\u00a0<a title=\"Athenagoras I\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Athenagoras_I\">Athenagoras I<\/a>\u00a0&#8220;consigned these excommunications to oblivion.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>However, during the\u00a0<a title=\"Crusades\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Crusades\">Crusades<\/a>\u00a0the Crusaders introduced Latin prelates into the apostolic sees of the East, and the\u00a0<a title=\"Fourth Crusade\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fourth_Crusade\">Fourth Crusade<\/a>\u00a0saw the sack of the great city of Constantinople and its domination by the Crusaders for fifty-seven years. These developments brought the East-West quarrel home to everyone but there was no declaration of schism. Since there had never been any formal division from\u00a0<a title=\"East-West Schism\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/East-West_Schism\">East-West Schism<\/a>\u00a0these &#8216;converts&#8217; of the Latin missionaries simply became a pro-Western, pro-Catholic party within Eastern Orthodoxy. Throughout the 17th century\u00a0<a title=\"Jesuits\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jesuits\">Jesuits<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Order of Friars Minor Capuchin\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Order_of_Friars_Minor_Capuchin\">Capuchins<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Carmelites\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Carmelites\">Carmelites<\/a>\u00a0established missions with the consent of the local Orthodox bishops in the\u00a0<a title=\"Ottoman Empire\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ottoman_Empire\">Ottoman Empire<\/a>. The\u00a0<a title=\"Dominican Order\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Dominican_Order\">Dominicans<\/a>\u00a0had been in\u00a0<a title=\"Iraq\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Iraq\">Iraq<\/a>\u00a0since the 14th century.<\/p>\n<p>At the\u00a0<a title=\"Council of Florence\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Council_of_Florence\">Council of Florence<\/a>\u00a0(1439) the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Emperor accepted union with the West hoping for aid to save Constantinople from Islam. Neither of these unions lasted, nor was any significant aid forthcoming from the warring kingdoms of a soon to be torn-apart Europe.<\/p>\n<p>From 1342,\u00a0<a title=\"Roman Catholic Church\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Roman_Catholic_Church\">Roman Catholic<\/a>\u00a0<a title=\"Friar\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Friar\">friars<\/a>\u00a0opened\u00a0<a title=\"Mission (Christian)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mission_(Christian)\">missions<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0<a title=\"Eastern Mediterranean\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eastern_Mediterranean\">Eastern Mediterranean<\/a>, particularly in\u00a0<a title=\"Damascus\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Damascus\">Damascus<\/a>\u00a0and their teaching had important influence over the Melkite clergy and people. Yet, in the Melkite tradition it was the Jesuits, founded only in 1534, who were really decisive in the formation of the Catholic party in the Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch. The Jesuits were not friars but something like the highly educated priests of the Patriarchal Chancery, which made them more acceptable.<\/p>\n<h3>Election of Cyril VI<\/h3>\n<p>In 1724\u00a0<a title=\"Cyril VI Tanas\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cyril_VI_Tanas\">Cyril VI Tanas<\/a>\u00a0was elected by the Melkite\u00a0<a title=\"Bishop\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bishop\">bishops<\/a>\u00a0of Syria as the new\u00a0<a title=\"Patriarch of Antioch\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Patriarch_of_Antioch\">Patriarch of Antioch<\/a>. As Cyril was considered to be pro-Western, the\u00a0<a title=\"Patriarch Jeremias III of Constantinople\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Patriarch_Jeremias_III_of_Constantinople\">Patriarch Jeremias III of Constantinople<\/a>\u00a0feared that his authority would be compromised. Therefore, Jeremias declared Cyril&#8217;s election to be invalid, excommunicated him, and ordained the deacon\u00a0<a title=\"Sylvester of Antioch (page does not exist)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=Sylvester_of_Antioch&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1\">Sylvester of Antioch<\/a>, a Greek\u00a0<a title=\"Monk\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Monk\">monk<\/a>\u00a0a priest and bishop, then appointed him to the patriarchal See of Antioch.<\/p>\n<p>Five years after the election of\u00a0<a title=\"Cyril VI Tanas\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Cyril_VI_Tanas\">Cyril VI<\/a>, in 1729,\u00a0<a title=\"Pope Benedict XIII\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pope_Benedict_XIII\">Pope Benedict XIII<\/a>\u00a0recognized Cyril as the legitimate Patriarch of Antioch and recognized his followers as being in\u00a0<a title=\"Full communion\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Full_communion\">full communion<\/a>\u00a0with the\u00a0<a title=\"Roman Catholic Church\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Roman_Catholic_Church\">Roman Catholic Church<\/a>. From this time onwards, the Melkite Greek-Catholic Church has existed separately from and in parallel to the\u00a0<a title=\"Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Greek_Orthodox_Church_of_Antioch\">Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0<a title=\"Western Asia\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Western_Asia\">Western Asia<\/a>; the latter is no longer referred to as Melkite.<\/p>\n<p>The Melkite Greek Catholic Church has played an important role in the leadership of\u00a0<a title=\"Arab Christians\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arab_Christians\">Arabic Christianity<\/a>. It has always been led by Arabic-speaking Christians, whereas its Orthodox counterpart had Greek patriarchs until 1899. Indeed, at the very beginning of her separate existence, around 1725, one of her most illustrious lay leaders, the savant and theologian,\u00a0<a title=\"Abdallah Zakher\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Abdallah_Zakher\">Abdallah Zakher<\/a>\u00a0of\u00a0<a title=\"Aleppo\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Aleppo\">Aleppo<\/a>\u00a0(1684\u20131748) set up the first\u00a0<a title=\"Printing press\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Printing_press\">printing press<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0<a title=\"Arab world\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Arab_world\">Arab world<\/a>. In 1835,\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos III Mazloum\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_III_Mazloum\">Maximos III Mazloum<\/a>, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch, was recognized by the\u00a0<a title=\"Ottoman Empire\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ottoman_Empire\">Ottoman Empire<\/a>\u00a0as the leader of a\u00a0<a title=\"Millet (Ottoman Empire)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Millet_(Ottoman_Empire)\">millet<\/a>, a distinctive religious community within the Empire.\u00a0<a title=\"Pope Gregory XVI\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pope_Gregory_XVI\">Pope Gregory XVI<\/a>\u00a0gave\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos III Mazloum\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_III_Mazloum\">Maximos III Mazloum<\/a>\u00a0the triple-patriarchate of Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem, a title that is still held by the leader of the Melkite Catholic Church.<\/p>\n<h3>Expansion of the Church<\/h3>\n<p>In 1847,\u00a0<a title=\"Pope Pius IX\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pope_Pius_IX\">Pope Pius IX<\/a>\u00a0(1846\u20131878), reinstituted the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in the person of the young, 34-year-old, zealous\u00a0<a title=\"Giuseppe Valerga\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Giuseppe_Valerga\">Giuseppe Valerga<\/a>\u00a0(1813\u20131872), whom the indigenous hierarchs nicknamed &#8220;The Butcher&#8221; because of his fierce opposition to the\u00a0<a title=\"Eastern Orthodoxy\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eastern_Orthodoxy\">Eastern Orthodox<\/a>\u00a0churches of the Holy Land. When he arrived in Jerusalem in 1847, there were 4,200 Latin Catholics and when he died in 1872, the number had doubled.<\/p>\n<p>Under pressure from the Roman curia to adopt\u00a0<a title=\"Latin Church\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Latin_Church\">Latin Church<\/a>\u00a0practices, Patriarch\u00a0<a title=\"Clement Bahouth\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Clement_Bahouth\">Clement Bahouth<\/a>\u00a0introduced the Gregorian calendar used by the Latin and Maronite Churches in 1857; that act caused serious problems within the Melkite church, resulting in a short-lived schism.<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Melkite_Greek_Catholic_Church#cite_note-Dick_2004.2C_p._38-16\"><sup>[16]<\/sup><\/a>\u00a0Conflicts in the Melkite church escalated to the point where Clement abdicated his position as patriarch.<\/p>\n<p>Clement&#8217;s successor, Patriarch\u00a0<a title=\"Gregory II Youssef\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gregory_II_Youssef\">Gregory II Youssef<\/a>\u00a0(1864\u20131897) worked to restore peace within the community, successfully healing the lingering schism. He also focused on improving church institutions. During his reign Gregory founded both the Patriarchal College in Beirut in 1865 and the Patriarchal College in Damascus in 1875 and re-opened the Melkite seminary of\u00a0<a title=\"Ain Traz\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ain_Traz\">Ain Traz<\/a>\u00a0in 1866. He also promoted the establishment of Saint Ann&#8217;s Seminary, Jerusalem, in 1882 by the\u00a0<a title=\"White Fathers\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/White_Fathers\">White Fathers<\/a>\u00a0for the training of the Melkite clergy.<\/p>\n<p>Following the\u00a0<a title=\"Hatt-\u0131 H\u00fcmayun of 1856\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hatt-%C4%B1_H%C3%BCmayun_of_1856\">Hatt-\u0131 H\u00fcmayun of 1856<\/a>, decreed by Sultan\u00a0<a title=\"Abd\u00fclmecid I\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Abd%C3%BClmecid_I\">Abd\u00fclmecid I<\/a>, the situation of Christians in the Near East improved. Gregory took an interest in ministering to the growing number of Melkites who had emigrated to the Americas. In 1889 he dispatched Father Ibrahim Beshawate of the Basilian Salvatorian Order in Saida, Lebanon to New York in order to minister to the growing Syrian community there.<\/p>\n<p>Gregory was also a prominent proponent of Eastern ecclesiology at the First Vatican Council. In the two discourses he gave at the Council on May 19 and June 14, 1870 he insisted on the importance of conforming to the decisions of the Council of Florence, of not creating innovations such as papal infallibility, but accepting what had been decided by common agreement between the Greeks and the Latins at the\u00a0<a title=\"Council of Florence\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Council_of_Florence\">Council of Florence<\/a>, especially with regard to the issue of papal primacy. He also defended the rights and privileges of the patriarchs according to the canons promulgated by earlier ecumenical councils. Speaking at the Council on May 19, 1870, Patriarch Gregory asserted:<\/p>\n<p>The Eastern Church attributes to the pope the most complete and highest power, however in a manner where the fullness and primacy are in harmony with the rights of the patriarchal sees. This is why, in virtue of and ancient right founded on customs, the Roman Pontiffs did not, except in very significant cases, exercise over these sees the ordinary and immediate jurisdiction that we are asked now to define without any exception. This definition would completely destroy the constitution of the entire Greek church. That is why my conscience as a pastor refuses to accept this constitution.<\/p>\n<p>Patriarch Gregory refused to sign the Council&#8217;s dogmatic declaration on papal infallibility. He and the seven other Melkite bishops present voted non placet at the general congregation and left Rome prior to the adoption of the dogmatic constitution Pastor Aeternus on papal infallibility. Other members of the anti-infallibilist minority, both from the Latin church and from other Eastern Catholic churches, also left the city.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0After the First Vatican Council concluded an emissary of the Roman Curia was dispatched to secure the signatures of the patriarch and the Melkite delegation. Patriarch Gregory and the Melkite bishops subscribed to it, but with the qualifying clause of the used at the Council of Florence attached: &#8220;except the rights and privileges of Eastern patriarchs.&#8221;. He earned the enmity of Pius IX for this; during his next visit to the\u00a0<a title=\"Pontiff\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pontiff\">pontiff<\/a>\u00a0Gregory was cast to the floor at Pius&#8217; feet by the papal guard while the pope placed his foot on the patriarch&#8217;s head. Despite this, Patriarch Gregory and the Melkite Catholic Church remained committed to their union with the Church of Rome. Relationships with the Vatican improved following the death of Pius IX and the subsequent election of\u00a0<a title=\"Leo XIII\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Leo_XIII\">Leo XIII<\/a>\u00a0as pontiff. Leo also confirmed that the limitations placed on the Armenian Catholic patriarch by Pius IX&#8217;s 1867 letter Reversurus would not apply to the Melkite Church; further, Leo formally recognized an expansion of Patriarch Gregory&#8217;s jurisdiction to include all Melkites throughout the\u00a0<a title=\"Ottoman Empire\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Ottoman_Empire\">Ottoman Empire<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Conflicts over Latin and Melkite traditions<\/h3>\n<p>Patriarch\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos IV Sayegh\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_IV_Sayegh\">Maximos IV Sayegh<\/a>\u00a0took part in the\u00a0<a title=\"Second Vatican Council\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Second_Vatican_Council\">Second Vatican Council<\/a>\u00a0where he championed the Eastern tradition of Christianity, and won a great deal of respect from Orthodox observers at the council.<\/p>\n<p>Following the Second Vatican Council the Melkites moved to restoring traditional worship. This involved both the restoration of Melkite practices such as administering the\u00a0<a title=\"Eucharist\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eucharist\">Eucharist<\/a>\u00a0to infants following post-baptismal\u00a0<a title=\"Chrismation\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Chrismation\">chrismation<\/a>\u00a0as well as removal of\u00a0<a title=\"Liturgical latinisation\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Liturgical_latinisation\">Latin-rite elements<\/a>\u00a0such as communion rails and confessionals. In the pre-conciliar days, the leaders of this trend were members of &#8220;The Cairo Circle&#8221;, a group of young priests centered on the Patriarchal College in Cairo. This group included Fathers\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos V Hakim\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_V_Hakim\">George Selim Hakim<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Joseph Tawil\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joseph_Tawil\">Joseph Tawil<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Elias Zoghby\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Elias_Zoghby\">Elias Zoghby<\/a>\u00a0and former Jesuit\u00a0<a title=\"Oreste Kerame (page does not exist)\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/w\/index.php?title=Oreste_Kerame&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1\">Oreste Kerame<\/a>; they later became bishops and participated in the Second Vatican Council, and saw their efforts vindicated.<\/p>\n<p>These reforms led to protests by some Melkite churches that the de-latinisation had gone too far. During the Patriarchate of\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos IV Sayegh\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_IV_Sayegh\">Maximos IV<\/a>\u00a0(Sayegh), some Melkites in the United States objected to the use of the vernacular in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, a movement that was spearheaded by the future archbishop of Nazareth, Father\u00a0<a title=\"Joseph Raya\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Joseph_Raya\">Joseph Raya<\/a>\u00a0of Birmingham, Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>In 1960, the issue was resolved by Pope John XXIII at the request of Patriarch Maximos IV in favour of the use of vernacular languages in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. Pope John also consecrated a Melkite priest, Father\u00a0<a title=\"Gabriel Acacius Coussa\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gabriel_Acacius_Coussa\">Gabriel Acacius Coussa<\/a>, as a bishop, using the Byzantine Rite and the papal tiara as a crown. Bishop Coussa was almost immediately elevated to the cardinalate, but died two years later. His cause for canonization was introduced by his religious order, the\u00a0<a title=\"Basilian Alepian Order\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Basilian_Alepian_Order\">Basilian Alepian Order<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Further protests against the de-latinisation of the church occurred during the patriarchate of\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos V Hakim\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_V_Hakim\">Maximos V Hakim<\/a>\u00a0(1967\u20132000) when some church officials who supported Latin traditions protested against allowing the ordination of married men as priests. Today the church sees itself as an authentic Orthodox church in communion with the Roman Catholic Church. As such it has a role as a voice of the east within the western church, a bridge between faiths and peoples.<\/p>\n<h3>Attempts to unite the Melkite diaspora<\/h3>\n<p>Due to heavy emigration from the Eastern Mediterranean, which began with the\u00a0<a title=\"1860 Lebanon conflict\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/1860_Lebanon_conflict\">Damascus massacres<\/a>\u00a0of 1860, in which most of the Christian communities were attacked, the Melkite Greek Catholic Church today is found throughout the world and no longer made up exclusively of faithful of Eastern Mediterranean origin.<\/p>\n<p>The Patriarchate of Maximos V saw many advances in the worldwide presence of the Melkite Church, called &#8220;the Diaspora&#8221;:\u00a0<a title=\"Eparchies\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eparchies\">Eparchies<\/a>\u00a0(the Eastern equivalent of a diocese) were established in the United States, Canada,\u00a0<a title=\"Brazil\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Brazil\">Brazil<\/a>, Australia,\u00a0<a title=\"Argentina\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Argentina\">Argentina<\/a>\u00a0and Mexico in response to the continued emptying of the Eastern Mediterranean of her native Christian peoples. Some historians statethat after the revolution in\u00a0<a title=\"Egypt\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Egypt\">Egypt<\/a>\u00a0in 1952, many Melkites left Egypt due to the renewed Islamic, nativist and socialist policies of the\u00a0<a title=\"Nasser\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nasser\">Nasser<\/a>\u00a0regime. In 1950, the richest Melkite community in the world was in Egypt. In 1945 the most populous single diocese was\u00a0<a title=\"Akko\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Akko\">Akko<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Haifa\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Haifa\">Haifa<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Nazareth\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nazareth\">Nazareth<\/a>\u00a0and all\u00a0<a title=\"Galilee\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Galilee\">Galilee<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In 1967, a native Egyptian of Syrian-Aleppin descent, George Selim Hakim, was elected the successor of Maximos IV, and took the name\u00a0<a title=\"Maximos V Hakim\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Maximos_V_Hakim\">Maximos V<\/a>. He was to reign until he retired at the age of 92 in the Jubilee Year of 2000. He reposed on the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, June 29, 2001. He was succeeded by Archbishop Lutfi Laham, who took the name Gregory III.<\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0<strong>Melkite Church<\/strong>\u00a0has a high degree of ethnic homogeneity and the church&#8217;s origins lie in the\u00a0<a title=\"Near East\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Near_East\">Near East<\/a>, centered especially in\u00a0<a title=\"Syria\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Syria\">Syria<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Lebanon\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lebanon\">Lebanon<\/a>, but Melkite Greek Catholics are present throughout the world due to migration. Outside of the Near East, the Melkite Church has also grown through inter-marriage with, and the conversion of, people of various ethnic heritages. At present there is a worldwide membership of approximately\u00a0<strong>1.6 million<\/strong>. The Melkite Catholic Church&#8217;s Byzantine roots and liturgical practices are rooted in those of\u00a0<a title=\"Eastern Orthodox Church\" href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eastern_Orthodox_Church\">Eastern Orthodoxy<\/a>, while the Church has maintained communion with the Catholic Church in Rome since its reaffirmation of its union with the Rome in 1724.<\/p>\n<p>                                <button type=\"button\" data-dismiss=\"premium-modal\"><br \/>\n                                    Close                                <\/button><\/p>\n<style>\n                    <\/style>\n<h3>Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchs of Antioch<br \/>\n<\/h3>\n<p>\t\t\t<!-- start Card Post Carousel -->\n\t\t<link id='owl-carousel-css' href='https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/plugins\/unlimited-elements-for-elementor\/assets_libraries\/owl-carousel\/assets\/owl.carousel.css' type='text\/css' rel='stylesheet' >\n\t\t<link id='uc_ac_assets_file_uc_card_post_carousel_css_2030-css' href='https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-content\/uploads\/ac_assets\/uc_card_post_carousel\/uc_card_post_carousel.css' type='text\/css' rel='stylesheet' >\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\/* widget: Card Post Carousel *\/\n#uc_uc_card_post_carousel_elementor16526\n{\n  -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased;\n}\n#uc_uc_card_post_carousel_elementor16526 .uc_image_carousel_content{\n  padding:10px;\n  background-color:#ffffff;\n  display: flex;\n  align-items: center;\n}\n#uc_uc_card_post_carousel_elementor16526 .owl-item:nth-child(2n) .uc_image_carousel_content{\n  background-color:#fff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/youssef-i-absi-2017-present\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/youssef-i-absi-2017-present\/\">Youssef I Absi (2017 &#8211; Present)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/gregory-iii-laham-2000-2017\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/gregory-iii-laham-2000-2017\/\">Gregory III Laham (2000\u20132017)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-v-hakim-1967-2000\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-v-hakim-1967-2000\/\">Maximos V Hakim (1967\u20132000)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-iv-sayegh-1947-1967\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-iv-sayegh-1947-1967\/\">Maximos IV Sayegh (1947\u20131967)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-ix-moghabghab-1925-1947\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-ix-moghabghab-1925-1947\/\">Cyril IX Moghabghab (1925\u20131947)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/demetrius-i-qadi-1919-1925\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/demetrius-i-qadi-1919-1925\/\">Demetrius I Qadi (1919\u20131925)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-viii-geha-1902-1916\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-viii-geha-1902-1916\/\">Cyril VIII Geha (1902\u20131916)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/peter-iv-geraigiry-1898-1902\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/peter-iv-geraigiry-1898-1902\/\">Peter IV G\u00e9raigiry (1898\u20131902)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/gregory-ii-youssef-sayur-1864-1897\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/gregory-ii-youssef-sayur-1864-1897\/\">Gregory II Youssef-Sayur (1864\u20131897)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/clement-bahouth-1856-1864\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/clement-bahouth-1856-1864\/\">Clement Bahouth (1856\u20131864)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-iii-mazloum-1833-1855\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-iii-mazloum-1833-1855\/\">Maximos III Mazloum (1833\u20131855)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/ignatius-v-qattan-1816-1833\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/ignatius-v-qattan-1816-1833\/\">Ignatius V Qattan (1816\u20131833)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/macarius-iv-tawil-1813-1815\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/macarius-iv-tawil-1813-1815\/\">Macarius IV Tawil (1813\u20131815)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/athanasius-v-matar-1813\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/athanasius-v-matar-1813\/\">Athanasius V Matar (1813)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/ignatius-iv-sarrouf-1812\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/ignatius-iv-sarrouf-1812\/\">Ignatius IV Sarrouf (1812)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/agapius-ii-matar-1796-1812\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/agapius-ii-matar-1796-1812\/\">Agapius II Matar (1796\u20131812)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-vii-siaj-1794-1796\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-vii-siaj-1794-1796\/\">Cyril VII Siaj (1794\u20131796)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/athanasius-iv-jawhar-1788-1794\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/athanasius-iv-jawhar-1788-1794\/\">Athanasius IV Jawhar (1788\u20131794)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/theodosius-v-dahan-1761-1788\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/theodosius-v-dahan-1761-1788\/\">Theodosius V Dahan (1761\u20131788)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-ii-hakim-1760-1761\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/maximos-ii-hakim-1760-1761\/\">Maximos II Hakim (1760\u20131761)<\/a>    <br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-vi-tanas-1724-1760\/\"><\/a><br \/>\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/cyril-vi-tanas-1724-1760\/\">Cyril VI Tanas (1724\u20131760)<\/a>    <br \/>\n\t\t\t<!-- end Card Post Carousel --><a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php\/\">1<\/a><br \/>\n2<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php\/page\/3\/\">3<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php\/page\/4\/\">4<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php\/page\/5\/\">5<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>About Us Who We Are The\u00a0Melkite (Greek) Catholic Church\u00a0is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catholic Church. The Melkites, Byzantine Rite Catholics of mixed Eastern Mediterranean (Levantine) and Greek origin, trace their history to the early Christians of Antioch, formerly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"page-builder","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-14","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"campaignId":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14"}],"version-history":[{"count":55,"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3135,"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14\/revisions\/3135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melkitecouncil.com\/Catholics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}