Georges Bacouni, also transliterated Bakhouni or Bakouny (born 16 May 1962 in Aïn el-Roummaneh/

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

), is the Archbishop of the

Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Beirut and Byblos The Archeparchy of Beirut and Byblos (in Latin: Archieparchia Berytensis et Gibailensis Graecorum Melkitarum) is a metropolitan eparchy of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church since 1881, an Eastern Catholic church in communion with the Roman Catho ...

Biography

Bacouni attended the Saint Paul Institute in

Harissa Harissa ( ar, هريسة ''harīsa'', from Maghrebi Arabic) is a hot chili pepper paste, native to the Maghreb. The main ingredients are roasted red peppers, Baklouti peppers (), spices and herbs such as garlic paste, caraway seeds, coriander ...

, from where he obtained a license in

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, and the

Lebanese University The Lebanese University (LU) (, ) is the only public university in Beirut, Lebanon. It is ranked #701–750 worldwide in terms of education. The creation of the Lebanese University was an idea first mentioned in the speech of the former Minist ...

, where he earned a degree in

Business Administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

and

Accountancy Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "language ...

. Bacouni was consecrated by Archbishop

Habib Bacha Habib Bacha, SMSP (June 24, 1931 in Tyre, Lebanon – 23 November 1999) was Melkite Archbishop of the Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Beirut and Byblos. Priests and promotion Habib Bacha received his priestly ordination on 29 June 1956 leadi ...

, SMSP, of Beirut and Byblos on 30 July 1995 as diocesan priest. He subsequently held several positions at

Bikfaya Bikfaya ( ar, بكفيا, also spelled Bickfaya, Beckfayya, or Bekfaya) is a town in the Matn District region of Mount Lebanon. Its stone houses with red-tiled roofs resting amidst pine and oak forests make Bikfaya one of the most sought-after sub ...

Ballouneh Ballouneh ( ar, بلونة) is a town and municipality in the Keserwan District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. It is located 18 kilometers north of Beirut. It has an approximate area of 3.93 square kilometers and an average elevatio ...

, and Safra

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

. In 1998, he was admitted to the clerical patriarchate management in

Rabieh Rabieh () is a suburban area on the northern edge of Greater Beirut, Lebanon, about 13 kilometers driving distance from Beirut. It is located in the foothills of Mount Lebanon, on the road to Bikfaya. Rabieh saw its population increase sharply in ...

and served as general supervisor to the Beirut

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

. He became a member of the mission committee and coordinator for the youth diocese committee. On 22 June 2005 he was elected to be the successor to Jean Assaad Haddad as Archbishop at the

Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Tyre Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Tyre (Latin: Archeparchy Tyrensis Graecorum Melkitarum) is a metropolitan see of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. In 2009 there were 3,100 baptized. It is currently governed by an Apostolic Administrator, Ar ...

and after connfirmation ordanined on 27 November of that year by the Patriarch of Antioch

Gregory III Laham Gregory III Laham, B.S. ( ar, غريغوريوس الثالث لحام; la, Gregorius III Lahamus; born Lutfy Laham, December 15, 1933, in Darayya, Syria), Emeritus Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, of Alexandria and Jerusalem, is the for ...

, BS. His co-consecrators were his predecessor Haddad and Archbishop

Joseph Kallas Joseph Kallas, SMSP (born on September 24, 1931 in Fakiha, Lebanon) is Emeritus Melkite Archbishop of the Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Beirut and Byblos. Biography Joseph Kallas was ordained a priest on 13 August 1958 by the White Fathe ...

of Beirut and Byblos SMSP. On 21 June 2014 he was named by Patriarch

to be the Melkite Synod Archbishop of the

Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Akka Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Akka (in Arabic: أبرشية عكا وحيفا والناصرة وسائر الجليل للروم الملكيين الكاثوليك) is an Eastern Catholic diocese of Melkite Greek Catholic Church (Byzan ...

and installed in that office on August 5. On 8 November 2018, he was elected as the Archbishop of Beirut and

Byblos Byblos ( ; gr, Βύβλος), also known as Jbeil or Jubayl ( ar, جُبَيْل, Jubayl, locally ; phn, 𐤂𐤁𐤋, , probably ), is a city in the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. It is believed to have been first occupied between 880 ...

(Jbeil) and confirmed on the 24th of that month. However, it is not clear whether he has been installed yet.

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

named him a member of the

Congregation for the Oriental Churches The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches (also called Dicastery for the Oriental Churches), previously named Congregation for the Oriental Churches or Congregation for the Eastern Churches ( la, Congregatio pro Ecclesiis Orientalibus), is a dicaste ...

on 6 August 2019.

Opinion about lack of priests and celibacy

In an interview on the issue of the shortage of priests and celibacy Bacaouni expressed his surprise at the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, which had drawn from the experience of the Eastern Churches with married priests. His key message was: "Christianity survived in the Middle East because of married priests". On the situation in his diocese, he said that in his 10 parishes 12 priests are active, including eight married priests and four unmarried priests. His conclusion was that celibacy for priests in the Latin rite was always not defined as church discipline and theological or spiritual issue. Finally, the exemplary life of married or celibate priests in their communities, the knowledge of theology, preaching the gospel and the celebration of the sacraments became most important to him.

On the situation of Christians in Lebanon

In a conversation with "Asianews" Bacouni said as the archbishop of Tyre, that Christians have become a minority in their own country. Since 1970, he noted, had become steadily less the percentage of Christians in the Lebanese population. This has the effect that the pressure of the Muslims would lead to a permanent emigration among Christians. "They (the Christians) feel an ever increasing alienation to their own country," said Archbishop Bacouni. He therefore called on the Church "by a credible life according to the Gospels and the proclamation of the Word of God, to encourage the Christians."

Middle East

As a delegate to the Special Assembly of the

Synod of Bishops (Catholic) In the Catholic Church, the Synod of Bishops, considered as an advisory body for the pope, is one of the ways in which the bishops render cooperative assistance to him in exercising his office. It is described in the 1983 Code of Canon Law as "a ...

for the Middle East in October 2010, he commented in the final bulletin. He stressed that the problems of Christians in Jordan describe a difficult new situation. But, he stresses, we must be able to keep the young people in their home countries. And in order to achieve this, the clergy and the episcopate must make a massive effort.

References

External links

Archbishop Georges Wadih Bacouni (Bakouny) [Catholic-Hierarchy]

Eastern prelate: Latin Rite should consider married priests , News Headlines

Melkite :: Melkites
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacouni, George 1962 births Melkite Greek Catholic bishops Lebanese Melkite Greek Catholics Living people People from Keserwan District Lebanese University alumni