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Gabriel of Blaouza

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Gabriel II
(جبرائيل الثاني)
Patriarch of Antioch
Church Maronite Church
See Patriarch of Antioch
Elected May 12, 1704
Term ended October 31, 1705
Predecessor Estephan El Douaihy
Successor Jacob Awad
Orders
Consecration 1663 (Bishop)
by George Rizqallah Beseb'ely
Personal details
Born c. 1625
Blaouza, Lebanon
Died October 31, 1705
Qannubin Monastery, Kadisha Valley

Gabriel II of Blaouza (or Jibra'il al-Bluzani, Gabriel of Blawza, Arabic: جبرائيل الثاني, Latin: Gabriel Belusani, born in 1625, Blaouza, Lebanon - died on October 31, 1705, Qannubin Monastery, Kadisha Valley), was the 58th Maronite Patriarch of Antioch from 1704 to his death in 1705.

Life

Gabriel of Blaouza was born in Blaouza, Lebanon in about 1625, the son of an archdeacon. He entered young in the monastery of St. Anthony of Qozhaya in the Kadisha Valley.[1] Here, he was ordained priest on an unknown date.

Gabriel of Blaouza was appointed and consecrated Maronite bishop of Aleppo by Patriarch George Rizqallah Beseb'ely in 1663.[1] He left his monastery and went to Aleppo, and served here as bishop for forty-one years till his election to Patriarch. During his service in Aleppo, he supported and helped Patriarch Estephan El Douaihy many times.

In 1672, he was chosen by Pope Clement X to deliver the pallium to the new patriarch Estephan El Douaihy, whom he became a valuable employee.

In 1673, while continuing to administer his diocese, he founded a monastery north of Beirut, where he lived most of the rest of his life.

Gabriel of Blaouza, after a previous attempt failed because of the opposition of the Druzes, succeed to found a religious order, the Antonin Maronite Order, characterized by a centralized organization with its proper hierarchy. The first Mass was celebrated in the newly erected church of his order at the Monastery of Mar Chaya on August 15, 1700.[2] His order would be approved by Pope Clement XII in 1740.

After the death of Patriarch Estephan El Douaihy, Gabriel of Blaouza was elected Patriarch on May 12, 1704, and his election was confirmed by Pope Clement XI on April 27, 1705.[3] Blaouza, however, received the pallium only in October 1705 and died suddenly on the eve of the Solemnity of All Saints' Day of the same year.[4]

See also

References

  1. Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 "Gabriel of Blawza". Antonin Maronite Order. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
  2. Back to citation "Mar Chaya". Antonin Maronite Order. Archived from the original on 25 June 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
  3. Back to citation Dib, Pierre (2001). Histoire des Maronites: L'église maronite du XVIe siècle à nos jours, Volume 3. Librairie Orientale. p. 142. ISBN 978-9953-17-005-3.
  4. Back to citation Dau, Butros (1984). Religious, cultural and political history of the Maronites. Lebanon. pp. 556–557.

Bibliography