Paul Bassim, OCD, (14 November 1922 – 21 August 2012) was a Lebanese

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

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 ...

Biography

Bassim was born in

Zgharta Zgharta ( ar, زغرتا, syc, ܙܓܪܬܐ), also spelled Zghorta, is a city in North Lebanon, with an estimated population of around 50,000. It is the second biggest city in Northern Lebanon after Tripoli. Zgharta is about 150 metres above sea ...

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 ...

and as a young man became a

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ol ...

of the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

Roman Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

on 29 June 1946. Bassim was appointed

Vicar Apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of the

Apostolic Vicariate of Beirut The Apostolic Vicariate of Beirut (Latin: Vicariatus Apostolicus Berytensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church in Lebanon, where Eastern Catholics are far more numerous. In 2010, there were ...

for which he was appointed as the

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Laodicea ad Libanum Laodicea ad Libanum ("Laodicea by Mount Lebanon") ( el, Λαοδίκεια ἡ πρὸς Λίβανου), also transliterated as Laodiceia or Laodikeia; also Cabrosa, Scabrosa and Cabiosa Laodiceia – was an ancient Hellenistic city on the O ...

on 8 September 1974, and

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

on 23 November 1974, by Archbishop

Alfredo Bruniera Alfredo Bruniera (30 September 1906 – 26 March 2000) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who spent his career in the diplomatic service of the Holy See. Biography Alfredo Bruniera was born in San Pelagio, Italy, on 30 September 1906 an ...

. He would hold the position of Vicar Apostolic until his retirement on 30 July 1999. Bassim was a member of the

Conference of the Latin Bishops of the Arab Regions The Conference of the Latin Bishops of the Arabic Regions (CELRA) ( French: Conférence des Evêques Latins dans les Régions Arabes) is an episcopal conference of the Catholic Church which gathers the Latin Church bishops in the Arab States of t ...

. He was also responsible for the Pastoral Care of Afro-Asian migrants (PCAAM) living as migrant workers in the Arab regions. Bassim died on 21 August 2012.

References

External links

Catholic-Hierarchy

Order of Discalced Carmelites
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bassim, Paul 1922 births 2012 deaths People from Zgharta Discalced Carmelite bishops 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Lebanon 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Lebanon 20th-century Roman Catholic titular bishops Lebanese Roman Catholic bishops