Pastoral Message from Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay to the Clergy and Faithful of the Maronite Church
I refer to a story that was on a television program on Monday 25 March 2019 about a case involving Mrs Rose Elias, a Maronite parishioner, and Fr Pierre El Khoury, a priest of the Maronite Eparchy of Australia.
I acknowledge that Mrs. Elias and her family have expressed grievances to me in late 2016, which we attempted to mediate at the time. My mediation was necessarily limited as the family had commenced proceedings in the Lebanese civil courts, as is their right.
Contrary to the assertions made in the episode, I have met with the Elias family in the past in an attempt to assist them, but it became clear to me that the matter was beyond the scope of my authority and it was a matter for the civil courts. In addition, contrary to what was reported, I did not make any financial commitment to the Elias family. However, I committed to do my best to assist the family to resolve the matter. The family was and is always welcome to speak to me or meet with me.
I would like to indicate that the case and allegations are between the family and one priest, not against the Maronite Church nor any parish. The alleged actions are those of one person of the clergy. Parishioners need to be assured that our Eparchy is blessed with good priests who serve their parishes with loyalty, sacrifice and devotion. I am personally grateful for their efforts and work, and I am saddened that the story in the media is very embarrassing for our entire Maronite Church and tarnished the image of our clergy.
In correspondence and meetings with Fr Pierre El Khoury, I urged him to resolve the issues with the family in a proper Christian manner, worthy of a priest. As mentioned earlier, attempts at reconciliation were not successful. My decision to wait for the final decision of the civil court in Lebanon, before taking any further action, was not a matter of carelessness or insensitivity, but of prudence.
I have now asked Fr Pierre El Khoury to take personal leave until the matter is canonically investigated and finalised. This is not, however, to conclude that we have judged the matter adversely against Fr Pierre or for him.
It is important to note that the Elias family are members of our Maronite community, and I am concerned for their suffering and I will personally make every attempt to rebuild their trust in the Church.
I do acknowledge that many Maronites are hurting today because of this story and I share your pain. I apologise, if at any time, you have felt that a member of the clergy did not live up to your expectations or made mistakes. Never give up on Jesus or your faith because of human failures. We are not exempt from error or sin. But we are a pilgrim Church, looking to our Lord and Saviour and called in love to accompany one another in prayer.
We also ask Our Lady, the Mother of God and Mother of our Maronite Church, to pray with us and for us, that we may be faithful to her Son and attain our ultimate goal: eternal joy with Him in the Father’s Kingdom.
26 March 2019
Bishop Antoine-Charbel Taraby
Time Was Made For The Human Not The Opposite
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Twelve years of her life were gone while hemorrhaging and no one could help her. All the physicians of the city knew her very well; she had been their patient for years. They tried to treat her as much as they could or knew, but were unsuccessful. She exposed their weakness and limitation as she spent on them all her money without any benefit, until she became penniless. Yet she did not allow despair to creep into her heart. Instead, she crept behind the real physician, fully believing that all she needed was just to touch the fringe of his cloak to heal. A free remedy, finally, yet a very dear one; touching the Lord of glory!
This lady had no name. We only know her from her nickname, the “hemorrhaging woman”, as Saint Luke introduces her to us in his Gospel today! Her identity is linked to her illness, an ailment through which she knew how to glorify the name of God.
This woman could be any one of us! But do we know how to glorify God through our hemorrhage or pain? If you think that you are not hemorrhaging, stop and think again! What about the hemorrhaging in your faith, patience and needs? What about the constant hemorrhaging in your family, work and society? How many things are wasted in your life while trying to limit the loss but in vain?
Jesus was on his way to the house of a man called Jairus who was being tormented as his only daughter was dying. The hemorrhaging woman touched Jesus so he stopped and the heart of this poor man nearly stopped beating as he was so worried about his daughter. He thought that the Lord would be late and would not be able to save her. However, this
father would soon realise that he was in the presence of the Lord of time and life. Jesus does everything with calmness and serenity, never rushing out as if running out of time. He does not allow time to control him. He takes his time to introduce to the crowd the faith of the hemorrhaging woman. The Lord wanted to give that woman some of his time and reward her for her courage and faith. Do we know how to give each person in our life their right from our time? Aren’t our multiple preoccupations states of hemorrhaging in our lives? When would we realise that the time has been made to serve the human, not the human to serve the time?
Upon this logic, we live in our parish the season of the blessed lent with the Lord through many spiritual and liturgical activities, especially with the evening prayer and the reflections on the way of the cross every Friday, from the perspective of the Maronite Spiritual Year and under the theme of “living the Christian values”. You can also experience another
encounter with the Lord, any time you wish, before the 14 stations of the cross at the top of the carpark. In these stations, we reflect on the glory of the Lord’s passion. In addition, you can pray at the Lourdes grotto at the Cathedral entrance. Take your time as it was made for your service, not the other way around.
Do not also forget, dear faithful, the act of mercy during this blessed lent by contributing in the work to stop the hemorrhage of others through supporting the activities of Heaven on Earth which are aimed at the poorest of the poor in the country of the cedars, Lebanon. More information are available at both entrances of the Cathedral.
Sunday of the Haemorrhaging Woman
Bishop’s Corner - Year of Maronite Spirituality
Sunday of the Haemorrhaging Woman
Dearly beloved,
On this third Sunday of the Lent, we read the gospel of Jesus healing the haemorrhaging woman. Moved by her faith, the woman dared to touch Jesus knowing that He is able to heal her with one simple touch of the hem of his garment.
In many ways, we are like this haemorrhaging woman: as individuals, as a community, and as a church. We are bleeding and suffering because of our sins, our selfishness, our division and our mistakes. We are bleeding because we do not always live up to our role as true witnesses to Christ, to His love, His mercy and His compassion. If we seek Him with the faith of that woman, He is offering us much more than just the hem of his garment. When we accept to be “touched” by His Living Word and His Body and Blood in the Eucharist, we can be transformed. We can also be healed.
Faith and healing are necessary for us now, as a Church, especially as we read the news of Cardinal George Pell’s conviction and sentencing. This case has no doubt shocked many of us across Australia and all over the world. We believe that everyone should be equal under the law, and we respect the Australian legal system. As the legal process is not yet complete, we will not draw any conclusions. We pray that justice is served and that the truth is upheld.
At the forefront of our thoughts and in our prayers are the individuals who have suffered from abuse and their families. We pray for them and commit ourselves to doing everything possible to help them heal and to ensure that the Church is a safe place for all, especially the young and the vulnerable.
The courage and audacity of the woman always strike me in this passage of the Bible. She was considered unclean and was ostracized from society. Yet, she did not lose hope or faith. In her example, we need to get out of our comfort zones, and come to Jesus, and allow him to heal us and make us whole again.
+ Antoine-Charbel Tarabay
Bishop’s Corner
Year of Maronite Spirituality
Sunday of the Haemorrhaging Woman
Dearly beloved,
On this third Sunday of the Lent, we read the gospel of Jesus healing the haemorrhaging woman. Moved by her faith, the woman dared to touch Jesus knowing that He is able to heal her with one simple touch of the hem of his garment.
In many ways, we are like this haemorrhaging woman: as individuals, as a community, and as a church. We are bleeding and suffering because of our sins, our selfishness, our division and our mistakes. We are bleeding because we do not always live up to our role as true witnesses to Christ, to His love, His mercy and His compassion. If we seek Him with the faith of that woman, He is offering us much more than just the hem of his garment. When we accept to be “touched” by His Living Word and His Body and Blood in the Eucharist, we can be transformed. We can also be healed.
Faith and healing are necessary for us now, as a Church, especially as we read the news of Cardinal George Pell’s conviction and sentencing. This case has no doubt shocked many of us across Australia and all over the world. We believe that everyone should be equal under the law, and we respect the Australian legal system. As the legal process is not yet complete, we will not draw any conclusions. We pray that justice is served and that the truth is upheld.
At the forefront of our thoughts and in our prayers are the individuals who have suffered from abuse and their families. We pray for them and commit ourselves to doing everything possible to help them heal and to ensure that the Church is a safe place for all, especially the young and the vulnerable.
The courage and audacity of the woman always strike me in this passage of the Bible. She was considered unclean and was ostracized from society. Yet, she did not lose hope or faith. In her example, we need to get out of our comfort zones, and come to Jesus, and allow him to heal us and make us whole again.
+ Antoine-Charbel Tarabay
