AL-GHORBA: Antoine Tarabay

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Dearly beloved in Christ,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.”

1. These famous words were spoken by the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, and they have resounded throughout the history, to reach us today, as fresh and as powerful as ever.

2. The example of Our Lady stands as a shining beacon, guiding us as we travel the road to her Son. For this reason, she was given a name of great honour in the early Church: Mary the “Theotokos”, meaning Mary “the God bearer.” At two councils held more than fifteen hundred years ago, the bishops of the Church agreed to glorify her with this name, and to declare that He who was born of her was not merely a man, but both God and man.

3. And we are here today, celebrating the feast of her Assumption, we are meditating the amazing event in which Mary was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven, and with God and in God she is Queen of Heaven and Earth. Our celebration tonight is to venerate her and to proclaim once again our devotion to her, as the patron saint of this cathedral and parish, keeping this holy tradition, alive in our Maronite community here and everywhere.

4. I recently came back from Lebanon where I participated in the annual Maronite Synod of Bishops meetings headed by our Patriarch, His Eminence and Beatitude Mar Beshara Boutros Cardinal Rai, during which we discussed many matters related to our Maronite Church and the presence and the future of the Christians in the Middle East. When we travel to Lebanon and the Middle East, we are reminded, too, that Mary is the Queen of Martyrs, for the people of God are suffering from terrible persecution in that unfortunate part of the world. As a sign of solidarity with the Church there and the families of victims from the different terrorist attacks, I also joined a delegation of bishops from Australia as we visited Egypt at the end of May to support the Church and pray for the unity of the Egyptian people.

5. It is because of the worrying increase of violence and hostility to Christians, that our Maronite Church has declared this to be the Year of Martyrs and their witness. In this year we especially remember all those who have accepted death rather than abandon their faith in our Church: the 350 disciples of St Maroun, St Shmuni and her seven sons, the Patriarch Gabriel the Second (of Hajjoula, martyred in 1367), and all the martyrs, from the earliest times with St Aquilina of Byblos in the year 293 to the Blessed Massabki Brothers in Damascus, Syria in 1860. We also remember the many martyrs of modern times.

6. We are grateful that we here in Australia are not suffering persecution like our brethren of the Middle East, but we are experiencing something, which we have not been through before: we are undergoing a serious and sustained attack on our values, which is spread, and even promoted through many outlets of the mainstream media.

7. There is a new hostility openly displayed towards our Gospel values, our Christian ideals and our very right to live by our beliefs. The assault especially targets our teachings on marriage, sexuality, education and bioethics. It also targets in an evil way our stands against abortion, euthanasia and same-sex marriage. The current anti-Christian tide even denies us the right to speak, or to object when our children are subjected to a misleading propaganda dressed up as an anti-bullying campaign, and falsely named Safe Schools Program.

8. Over the coming weeks, we expect a postal vote on same-sex marriage to be conducted all over the country. How should we deal with it? We firstly need to make sure that our details are correct with the electoral commission in order to receive the documents. Secondly, it is our Christian duty and pride to stand for the traditional and biblical definition of marriage, as a union between one man and one woman. I ask you, your families and your friends to respond to the postal vote by opposing same-sex marriage. Do not think that this matter does not affect you. This redefinition of marriage threatens our religious freedoms, in particular our ability to teach the true faith in schools, and the way we offer social services. This attack is an attack on the family, as the building block of society. I urge you all to venerate Our Lady and the Holy Family by voting NO to same-sex marriage and to the redefinition of marriage.

9. I address those issues of persecution and anti-Christian sentiment, because it is necessary. But it is also necessary to share the good news, and thanks to your prayers and other support, there is an abundance of it.

10. First, after a long wait, we have received approval from the relevant authorities to begin the construction of Our Lady Aged Care Centre and to reopen the hostel here at Our Lady of Lebanon, Harris Park. We are soon to begin demolition of the present buildings, and then, to begin construction of a new centre after we have been awarded in May of this year 90 bed licences for our nursing home. It is a wonderful landmark in the development of this super-Maronite community in this area. This achievement would not have been possible without the support of the Australian Federal Government, the Department of Health, Parramatta City Council, the Our Lady Aged Care Centre Committee, and many people of good will. I am very grateful to all of them and I am sure that our elderly who will benefit from these facilities share my sentiment.

11. Further, our second good news lead me to proudly announce that the relics of St Maroun will be arriving to our diocese in February 2018. How wonderful to celebrate the feast of St Maroun, the spiritual father of the Maronite Church, having for the first time his relics in our Church. They are coming from Lebanon, from the Monastery of St John Maroun in Kfarhay. These relics will visit all our churches in Australia so that the faithful may pray in the presence of these sacred memorials of our heavenly patron. And the other good news is that we are going to keep the relics in Australia, at St Maroun’s Cathedral in Redfern.

12. Then, the third good news is our first Maronite Diocesan Assembly to be held in November this year at this parish here. I promised when I became your bishop to hold this Assembly, and I am pleased to be able to preside at this important opportunity to gather in faith representatives from all the Maronite community over our country, so that they may speak to each other and to us, and not only to speak, but more importantly, to be listened to! I want the laity, the good people who flock to the churches, to express their fears, their hopes and their aspirations.

13. Our Diocesan Assembly will be marked by three moments: to listen, to understand and to act. We have to listen to our people who are facing new challenges in transmitting the faith from generation to generation, and they strive to keep alive the Gospel spirit of the wider Church in Australia. We wish to meet these challenges with understanding, seeking the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and with charity: including all of the faithful, not least our young people who are so important to us. And so we shall act by envisaging strategies and directions in our gathering in November, here in Sydney, with the motto “Strong in Faith – Growing in Love”.

14. Dear Brothers, Sisters and friends,

Before I conclude my homily for tonight I would like to say few words in Lebanese:

15. As Pope Benedict XVI says:

Being in God and with God, Mary is close to each one of us, knows our hearts, can hear our prayers, can help us with her motherly kindness and has been given to us, as the Lord said, precisely as a “mother” to whom we can turn at every moment. She always listens to us, she is always close to us, and being Mother of the Son, participates in the power of the Son and in his goodness. We can always entrust the whole of our lives to this Mother, who is not far from any one of us.

16. And tonight, I entrust all of you beloved sons and daughters of the faith to Mary, the Theotokos, the bearer of God. I also entrust to Mary’s Holy Heart all our priests especially Monsignor Shora Maree who celebrates 30 years to the priesthood. Let us pray to all those who have served this wonderful community, past and present, asking Our Lady of Lebanon, Patron of this parish to lead us all closer to her son Jesus Christ. Amen

We are Witnesses to His Resurrection (Acts 2:32)

Beloved Children of our Maronite Eparchy,

1. "He is Risen... and we are witnesses to that" (Acts 2:32; 10:38-40). The Easter journey is a journey from the darkness of the tomb to the light of the Resurrection; a journey from the suffering of the Cross and the sorrow of death to the joy and glory of victory over pain and bereavement. The purpose of this journey is the attainment of eternal life. This great hope flowing from the historic event of Easter, is a witness to the death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This hope has endured through the centuries and reaches us today, for each one of us was in the mind and heart of Christ on the day of his crucifixion and also on the day of his Resurrection. As such, every person is invited to believe in the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead, and to proclaim the Paschal mystery, which is the passage of man, through the grace of Jesus, from death to life.

2. The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead is a truth, as bright as the sun. In the Gospels, we find the witnesses to this truth. Their testimonies complement one another and they are beyond any reasonable doubt. The first witness to his death and Resurrection is Jesus himself, who prophesied this several times. The Evangelist Matthew records Jesus speaking about his death and Resurrection on six different occasions. (12:38, 16:21 , 17:9, 17:22-23, 20:19, 26: 31-32)

3. Before I come to the witnesses of Christ's Resurrection, let us consider the testimonies to his death:

a. The first testimony of Jesus' death on the Cross was by the centurion who was responsible for the crucifixion (Matthew 27:45-65; Mark 15:33-41, 45).

b. The second testimony records that Jesus was buried by Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph asked for the body of Jesus to be taken down from the Cross. He wrapped it in linen and had it placed in a new tomb. A large rock was rolled before the door of the tomb. It was sealed by orders of King Herod and watched over by guards. (Matthew 27:57; Mark 15:46; John 19:39-40; Luke 23:50-56)

4. The testimonies in the Bible to the Resurrection of Christ from the dead are many:

a. First, the narrative of the empty tomb and the angel's statement to the women, saying: “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” The angel also told them to proclaim the good news to the apostles. (Matthew 28:6; Luke 24:6)

b. The second testimony to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is from the disciples Peter and John, who after hearing the news, came quickly to the place where Jesus was buried. They found the empty tomb, and the linen strips and handkerchief on the ground and believed that He had truly risen (John 20: 3-8).

c. The third witness came from the guards at the tomb who felt the earthquake. They witnessed the stone roll from the door of the grave and were surprised to see the angel of the Lord sitting on it. His face was like the lightning, and his garments white as snow. The guards went into the city and reported to the elders and chief priests everything that had happened. But the chief priests devised a plan and gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them to say that Jesus’ disciples came during the night and stole him away while they were asleep. (Matthew 28: 2-4,11-15). This raises the question, how could the guards see the apostles steal the body of Jesus if they were asleep?

d. The final proof of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus is his several apparitions after the Resurrection: first to Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18), then to Peter (Luke 24:34) and then to the disciples of Emmaus with whom He walked and to whom he revealed Himself with the breaking of the bread (Luke 24: 13-35). All these appearances to the apostles were to strengthen their faith. However, the appearance of Jesus to Thomas, who was not with the apostles on the previous occasions, with its clear and tangible proofs, is the most beautiful and strongest testimony of his Resurrection. Today, we renew our faith in the death and Resurrection of Christ, despite the many attempts to discount and distort this truth in today's world, and we utter a cry of faith with the Apostle Thomas saying: “My Lord and my God!”

Dearly Beloved,

5. Christian life is built on faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and on constant witness to his Resurrection from the dead. This is the truth that our Maronite Church has lived and experienced generation after generation, and in defence of which it gave the blood of its martyrs. We are today called to renew our faith in this truth. With this belief, our Patriarch, His Beatitude and Eminence Mar Bechara Boutros Cardinal Rai, along with the Maronite Synod of Bishops, declared a year for martyrdom and the witness of the martyrs, starting on the Feast of Saint Maroun on 9 February 2017 and concluding on the Feast of St. John Maroun on 2 March 2018. This also marks the passing of 1500 years from the martyrdom of the 350 monks of the Monastery of Saint Maroun in the year 517.

6. In order to be witnesses to the Resurrection of the Lord in today's society, we must be spiritually renewed by practicing the sacrament of reconciliation, participating in the Holy Mass, and receiving the body and blood of Jesus every Sunday, and even every day if we can. This is the best way to renew and strengthen our faith in Jesus, risen from the dead. We live this faith in our church through the intercession of the Saints. If our Church is to bear a better and broader Christian witness in Australia, we need to meet and put together spiritual and pastoral plans. We need to discuss the social problems and challenges that face us, especially the challenge of passing on the faith, the faith of our forefathers, to new generations.

7. With the aim of improving our Christian witness and strengthening the family and defending marriage, we launched, three years ago, plans to hold a Diocesan Assembly for our Maronite Eparchy in Australia. The good news today is that the Assembly will hold its first general meeting from the 24th to the 26th of November 2017 in Sydney, with the participation of parish and ecclesial representatives and Maronite organisations from all over the country.

8. Finally, with St Augustine we repeat: “It’s no great thing to believe that Christ died; even pagans and Jews and wicked people believe that. They all believe that he died. The faith of Christians is Christ’s resurrection. This is the great thing: we believe that he rose from the dead.” As such, we understand that it is not possible to be true Christians unless we believe in the Resurrection of Christ. Jesus risen from the tomb and victorious over evil, sin and death, is ever present in the heart of the world, present through his Holy Spirit, through His living word, and in His body and blood in the Eucharist. Every time we celebrate the Eucharist, we then call to mind the truth of his suffering, death and Resurrection and his constant living presence with us. He is closer to us than ourselves because Jesus is the same: yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). We live in hope of the revelation of his Glory in the second coming.

9. On this Holy Day, we all turn to Jesus and cry out with one voice and in one faith: "Come, O Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20). Come and seal our hearts with the seal of your glorious Resurrection. Strengthen our faith that we may witness to you and boldly declare the truth of your Resurrection saying:

“Christ is Risen, Truly Risen… and we are witnesses to that.”

+ Antoine-Charbel Tarabay

Maronite Bishop of Australia

Easter Sunday, 16 April 2017

The Maronite Eparchy of Australia aims to further its apostolic, social and charity work based on the teachings of the Church, and as stated in the Seven Pastoral Priorities announced by Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay in 2013, and in particular the fifth priority: identifying pressing social problems and developing appropriate measures to address them.

Over the past years, Sister Rose Therese Tannous, Maronite Sister of the Holy Family, founded the White Stone Association to develop projects and programs aiming to raise awareness on the dangers of drug addiction and to provide pastoral care for individuals suffering from addictions and their families. It has also agreed to lease land in Bilpin, NSW from the Maronite Eparchy of Australia to build a drug rehabilitation centre.

Due to the apostolic, spiritual and social importance of the work of White Stone, and following the resignation of Sister Rose Therese Tannous in November 2016, the new Board of White Stone wishes to announce the following:

1. The Board is deeply grateful to Sister Rose Therese Tannous and all the individuals who worked with her, as well as the organisations and persons who supported this important humanitarian and social project.

2. The White Stone Association which was previously an independent registered association is taking steps to incorporation under both the Canon Law of the Church and the law of our land, Australia.

3. We emphasize our commitment to caring for individuals suffering from addiction and their families, especially the young people who have fallen victim to drugs, through White Stone. A new committee for White Stone was elected in December 2016 with Mr Daryl Melham, formerly the Federal Member for Banks, Subdeacon Danny Nouh as Public Officer, Mr Gerard Lahoud, Treasurer, lawyer Charbel Azzi and Ms Jeanette Samawi, as directors.

Subdeacon Joseph Maatouk was appointed by the Board as Executive Officer and Secretary of White Stone, effective 1 March 2017. The Board considers Subdeacon Maatouk as an exciting and suitable appointment due to his extensive experience with counseling of persons affected with drug addictions.

4. MaroniteCare, the charitable and social works arm of the Maronite Eparchy of Australia, oversees the work and mission of White Stone. The new Board of Directors of White Stone has taken responsibility of the activities and assets of White Stone, effective 31 December 2016. The handover was conducted in a spirit of cooperation and ongoing collaboration. The summary of the assets is:

a. Bank accounts to the value of $398,042, less arrears in loan repayments of $86,530, resulting in a net balance of $311,512.

b. A Toyota Hiace Commuter Bus (12 seater)

c. Office supplies in Harris Park and equipment for the property in Bilpin

5. The new Board values the "Kadisha Centre" project in Bilpin, which includes, in addition to White Stone, several other community and social projects, most importantly a spiritual and retreat centre for young people and families.

6. We confirm that White Stone will be collaborating with skilled professionals and experts in social work, especially in the area of addiction, to develop a clear and organised vision to address the epidemic of addiction amongst our youth. This problem which claims the lives of a significant number of young people every year, leaves behind a gaping wound and great pain to their families and their church.

In conclusion, we renew our deep gratitude to Sr Rose Therese Tannous, and to the Congregation of the Maronite Sisters of the Holy Family, to the former Board members and to all the individuals who supported the launch of White Stone, this humanitarian project reflecting mercy and care. We pray to the Lord to increase in our community and the wider communities the spirit of love, cooperation and giving.

For further information, please contact MaroniteCare on 028831 0000.

Sunday 2 April 2017

Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral, Harris Park

Your Grace Bishop Robert Rabbat,

Your Excellencies: Minister Gebran Bassil and Minister Pierre Raffoul,

Ministers of the Crown,

Honourable Members of Parliaments,

Reverend Fathers and Maronite Sisters of the Holy family,

Mr Charge d’Affaires and Consuls General,

Distinguished guests,

Dearly beloved,

It is a beautiful occasion to celebrate the sixth Sunday of Lent and the last before Palm Sunday, reflecting on the miracle performed by our Lord Jesus Christ in healing the blind man. It is significant to understand that our Lenten journey is leading us to see Jesus with the eyes of faith in order to repair our view of the world and our relationships with others.

It is also a source of joy for all of us today to welcome the visiting delegation from our homeland Lebanon led by his Excellency Mr Gebran Bassil, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, and accompanied by his Excellency Mr Pierre Raffoul, State Minister for Presidency Affairs. On behalf of the Maronite community in Australia, and together with our dear guests here today: His grace Bishop Rabbat, Mr Luke Foley, Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Geoff Lee, Member for Parramatta, Mr Phillip Ruddock, Special Envoy for Human Rights, Ms Julia Finn, Member for Granville, all our guests and the community of Our Lady of Lebanon Parish in Harris Park, I welcome you. It is our pleasure and our privilege to have 2 Lebanese ministers visiting us at the same time.

Your visit is a testimony to the significance of the role of migrants to Lebanon. I am aware that you were very keen to travel to Australia to firstly consolidate the strong relationship between Australia and Lebanon, and secondly, to remind the Australian of Lebanese descent that their homeland Lebanon needs them. We know, Minister Bassil, how much you value the importance of teaching our children in Australia the Arabic language and culture, and instilling in them the pride of their Lebanese roots and identity, as you said in Melbourne.

The Lebanese migrants have benefitted from the wonderful opportunities of this generous and beloved land, Australia. But, at the same time, they contributed to this multicultural society and given back at all levels to the progress of this dear nation.

Since I arrived to Australia in 2002, I have come to know the Lebanese community members, who are grateful and loyal to Australia, but who, at the same time, carry Lebanon in their hearts and dreams. I am confident today, more than ever, that the Lebanese dream of a better tomorrow has started becoming a reality with the election of His Excellency General Michel Aoun as President of the Lebanese Republic. We join our prayers to those of the millions of Lebanese all around the world, hoping that Lebanon will know prosperity and become, once again, an oasis of peace and harmony in the Middle East, and an example of coexistence between all religions and cultures.

THE HOPE OF OUR FATHERS

AND THE EXPECTATION OF THE NATIONS

1. At the Birth of our Lord Jesus, we celebrate a feast of hope, for in him were fulfilled what the prophets and messengers foretold, and the long wait of our fathers and the nations reached its desired goal. The promised saviour was born, Emmanuel, “God with us"; the dream came true and Good Hope was revealed to all humanity.

2. The Birth of our Lord Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem, manifested the love of God the Father in the Son made man, and Christ the Lord was glorified in the child born from the Virgin Mary, the daughter of David. The Word of God has become flesh to give the whole of humanity a new life for a new covenant in which the Word incarnate would be revealed. This Word is light itself. It is the sun of righteousness that shines on all the darkness of history, to illuminate it with the light of hope of the new era, because "separated from Christ .... we are without hope "(Eph 2/12).

3. We celebrate Christmas this year, when the glimmer of hope is about to expire in the hearts of many. The hope in our souls is threatened by the spread of religious fundamentalism that chooses the language of murder, darkness and intimidation towards others. The recent terrorist attack at St. Peter's Church, attached to St. Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Cairo, was the worst in a series of attacks and persecution against the Christian minority in Egypt. This violence has the sinister goal of igniting a religious war. The attack which killed over 25 people, mostly women and children, and injured many more, leads us first to condemn terrorism and to reject it. We question the state of the world's conscience about the fate of minorities, especially Christians in the Middle East. We also question the Egyptian people about Egypt, for it was a refuge for the holy family of Nazareth whole fled there to escape from the threats of Herod. Is this tradition still alive?

4. The luminous, indisputable truth is that Christmas preaches hope in the midst of suffering, pain and adversity. The Christmas star is the Star of Hope, which made the people walking in darkness see a great light (Is 9:2). Our hope does not come from other people, but from God, from whom and through whom comes healing to the world. Hope, which is at the foundation of a renewed world, helps us to alleviate the pain and resist evil, but we cannot eradicate them, until God becomes all in all.

5. It is therefore imperative that we ask today: What can we hope for? And what must we have the courage and wisdom to simply accept?

Above all, we hope in Christ’s promise to us of salvation and eternal life, not only as a reality to come, but as a present fact. The frustration and despair felt by man today as a result of the failure of scientific progress and development to bring him happiness renders the mission of the Church and its people an urgent and difficult one at the same time. Our world desperately needs a Hope that can bring a real joy to the heart. The revolution of science and technology that we are witnessing may contribute to the building of human society, but it could also potentially destroy humanity, if it is not related to forces beyond it and stronger than it. What ultimately saves man and grants him true happiness is neither science, nor the speed of social communication, nor the digital media and electronic games which have entered our homes, and taken a prime place in our daily lives, and the lives of our children, as a daily bread that we cannot dispense with. Technology does not intend to leave us any time soon, but rather the opposite for it has ascended an imaginary throne in our lives. The least we can say is that this is robbing us of our children and the human dimension of lovingly interacting with others.

6. It is only the true love that gives of itself, and not modern science or technology, that can save man and bring hope to his heart. When man experiences a great love, he truly enters into an oasis of redemption and salvation, giving new meaning to his life. Those touched by true love can sail in the mystery of life and as they delve deeper, they find hope emanating from the mystery of the divine incarnation, for it is truly the hope of our fathers and the expectation of the nations.

7. Dearly Beloved,

Reflecting on the great event of Christmas, we become aware of the importance of renewing our faith in a society that is suffering a crisis of faith in God, failing to realise that a world without God is a world without hope. Hope is a holy virtue that results from our Christian faith and invigorates it. There is no hope without faith, and no faith without hope. They go together and they both flow from the love of God and lead the journey of God's people towards the joy of Heaven.

8. We experience this journey of hope in a particular way in our Eparchy especially as we launch the work for the Diocesan Synod with the first general assembly to be held in the last week of November 2017. The assembly will address the seven pastoral priorities announced in 2013, and consider ways to activate the role of the laity in our Church, in addition to various pastoral, apostolic and spiritual matters in our Eparchy.

9. The mission of our Maronite Church in our multicultural Australian society is to spread the message of hope, not only for our sake as Maronite Christians, but for others so that we may be, for them, messengers of the good news of the Gospel. May we help others to walk under the guidance of the Christmas star, the Star of Hope, to the manger of Bethlehem, to worship the Divine Child. From thereon commences the journey of formation in faith, hope and love.

10. Prayer is essential to grow in hope. When no one else hears or listens to me, God still listens to my pleas. And when I can no longer speak with anyone, I can speak with God. It is beautiful when families come together to pray and praise the Divine Child at Christmas, this Child who has entered the history of each and every one of us and become closer to us than ourselves.

11. The good news for us today is that "God is the foundation of hope: not any god, but the God who has a human face and who has loved us to the end, each one of us and humanity in its entirety." (Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi, 31). Let us therefore rejoice and chant:

"Christ is born ... Alleluia"

Sydney, 24 December 2016.

+ Antoine-Charbel Tarabay

Maronite Bishop of Australia

At Christmas, God’s Mercy is Incarnated

1. This year, the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ occurs in the course of the "Jubilee Year of Mercy" declared by Pope Francis. This commences on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the eighth of December, and ends in 2016 on the Feast of Christ the King, the twentieth of November.

2. The mercy of God was first revealed in His creation of man: "in the image of himself … male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27). This mercy has accompanied man despite his sinning and going astray. It was evident in various stages of the history of the people of God in the Old Testament, but manifested itself in a unique way in the New Testament, when God revealed himself to us through his incarnate Son. This mercy, which appeared in history as an oasis of repentance and reconciliation, in fact transcends all time and space. It endures forever. As the Psalmist says: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His mercy endures forever” (Psalm 136:1).

3. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of mercy itself into our world as a perfect expression of God's love for humanity. The most beautiful thing we can contemplate at Christmas is the incarnation of God’s mercy. This not only reveals to us the greatness of his boundless love and pity for those who sin and have gone astray, but also that the mercy which flows from the heart of God has now, through the Divine Incarnation, entered the human heart, making us more merciful to our brothers and sisters.

4. Today's world is suffering tremendously from violence and hatred. This is often joined to a hardness of heart and hostility that leads to torture and murder justified on religious or ideological grounds. More than ever, there is an urgent need now to experience that mercy of God which leads man to practice compassion and sympathy when dealing with others. From merciful God to merciful humanity, we journey in contemplation in the words of our Lord Jesus: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36).

5. Our celebration of the incarnation of mercy at Christmas must not be limited to words and theories that hold us prisoners of the letter and the law. We are called, in this Year of Mercy, to courageously and confidently leave our comfort zones, and to practice compassion and forgiveness in response to Our Lord’s call to us to repent. Jesus met with sinners and evil-doers, and changed their lives and their hearts, not through the force of law or the threat of justice, but by mercy and love, proclaiming: "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7).

6. One of the main characteristics of God’s mercy, revealing his omnipotence, is that it knows no bounds. The Lord Jesus explained this in the parable of the Good Samaritan where a man fell victim to thieves, who left him beaten and half dead along the side of the road. The Good Samaritan, overcoming the ancient animosity between Jews and Samaritans, and transcending religious and ethnic barriers, treated the man with mercy. This reveals to us how God's mercy knows no bounds. As such, the mercy of each of us towards our brothers and sisters must overcome every barrier and border, and necessarily be put into practice, not remaining a fleeting emotion.

7. On this occasion, I invite you, dear sons and daughters of our Eparchy, to work together and extend a helping hand to the deprived and vulnerable, especially to the refugees in Lebanon and the Middle East. Let us also bear in mind the poor and the marginalised in many parts of the world, where they have been pushed to the outskirts of big cities, where they live in extreme poverty and suffer deprivation and injustice.

8. Every work of mercy which we perform for one of our brethren, we do also for the person of Jesus himself, who is concealed behind the hungry and the thirsty, the sick and the stranger, the marginalised and the prisoner, whether we know this or not.

9. Dearly beloved,

This Year of Mercy is a voice calling our political leaders in the wilderness of today's world, to truthfully and honestly work for peace and bring to an end the wars throughout the world, especially in Syria and Iraq. It is also a call to all those who, to achieve their hidden agendas, employ the name of religion to justify killing and hatred, to listen to the voice of their humanity and their consciences, and to realise that every person is precious, and that life is a gift from God. This should lead them to respect it, and cease their deadly schemes and operations which each and every day claim the lives of innocent souls.

10. The Door of Mercy is Jesus Christ himself. He has opened this door for us through the Church and the Sacraments, especially through the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation. In this Holy Jubilee Year, we have dedicated Doors of Mercy in three churches of our Eparchy. These are: St Maroun’s Cathedral in Redfern, Our Lady of Lebanon Co-Cathedral in Harris Park, and Our Lady of Lebanon Church in Melbourne. The passage of believers through the Door of Mercy has the symbolic and mystical meaning that we pass with the Lord Jesus from darkness to light, from slavery to freedom, and from sin to grace. May our celebration of Christmas this year truly be an occasion to renew the birth of mercy in our hearts, in our communities, and in our world.

Christ is Born! Alleluia!

Sydney, 24 December 2015.

+ Antoine-Charbel Tarabay

Maronite Bishop of Australia

By Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay
18 September 2015

Your Excellency my Brother Bishop Rabbat,
Excellencies,
Reverend Monsignor, Fathers and Sisters,
A special welcome to our Muslim and Druz friends,
Distinguished guests,
Dear friends,

In the Old Testament, Job addressed the Lord saying: “You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit.” I am humbled to think that God has shown His providence not only to me, but to the little flock he has entrusted to my care, because the production of this book at this time owes as much and even more to His special care and kindness than it does to any plan of my own.

I have dedicated this modest volume to the Blessed Virgin Mary, to the Church and to my religious family, the Lebanese Maronite Order of Monks, and to my parents and siblings, because this book was not going to see the light without their prayers and support.

The Church is concerned to promote and defend the culture of life against the cult of death that we are witnessing in today’s society, not only with Islamic fundamentalism (ISIL), but also in the medical profession when practising abortion and euthanasia. It is therefore right to remember and invoke Our Lady, the mother of Jesus and my mother, for it is through her intercession, that we can defend life and promote values.

It is an especially humbling matter to meditate on the fact that I am the first Maronite Bishop of Australia to have published a book in the English language. This is a sign that there is a real and present need for the Maronite Bishop in this country to be addressing the new generation of Maronites in this way.

Bioethics at the Crossroad of Religions is a new open-door treating bioethical issues in a coherent and comprehensive manner, explaining and expounding the teaching of the Church, and relating it to contemporary realities. That being the need, it does seem to me that the Lord saw that it would be fulfilled in his own good time, making use of his instruments. Therefore, of course, my only achievement is to have walked through the doors which the Lord has opened, and to offer my mind, my hand and my tongue to think the thoughts, write the lines and utter the teachings of the Holy Church.

I had not intended to delay the publication of this book until now, but the pressure of monastic, pastoral and episcopal duties have not allowed me to do so in the past years. I had intended from the beginning that the volume should be made available in English, especially as more Maronites today read English more than any other language, not excluding Arabic, especially those in the Expansion, who now outnumber the Maronites in Lebanon.

I originally prepared my thesis in French while studying in Rome. Then came my providential posting here, where I was able to work with people who could assist me in the translation, and to finesse the text. In this respect, too, it is right to mention the care taken by Connor Court, the publishers of this volume.

This modest book is intended to open a doorway for a respectful and informed dialogue about bioethics between Christianity and Islam.

The recent agitation concerning Same-Sex Marriage has some echoes in this book showing how much Christianity and Islam have in common especially when it comes to marriage between man and woman and the right of children to be born from marriage between man and woman only.

In the past we would speak about a war of religions, but today we witness a war against all religions. At a time when ethical principles are challenged and questioned, there is a need for such a work to appear. This book is an invitation to Christianity and Islam to collaborate more on bioethical matters for the benefit and respect of human beings and humanity.

This book addresses the religious and philosophical foundations of ethics and morality, especially bioethics. If we do not address the foundations of our teaching, if we cannot articulate the grounds of our doctrines, we will lack faith in our own ethical positions, be unable to explain the wisdom of our moral doctrines to others, and be unable to make persuasive statements in defence of our faith.

This book helps to see that both Christianity and Islam have some common ethical principles, but it also highlights some differences, where these two religions diverge in their ethical teachings.

I will now offer some examples of these points of similarity and of difference:

In the coming years, as my duties allow, I intend to issue a second volume, building on this foundation to tackle specific topics such as abortion, IVF, euthanasia and organ transplant in Christianity and Islam.

While Fr Peter Joseph described to you earlier the contents of the volume, it remains to me to say a few words about its spirit. As the subtitle suggests, it records my thoughts on the anthropological foundation of bioethics in the two largest world religions. It is what is in French termed an essai, which more than the English word essay, means a writing which has been designed to explore rather than to definitively settle and giving final answers to an important question such as this.

From that perspective, this book is intended to inform, promote and stimulate pondering and discussing these vital issues. It is one of the tragedies of our day that, too often, matters which should be the subject of serious study and debate, are disposed of on the basis of prejudice, superficial and even sentimental treatments in a mass media which is more attuned to commerce and social promotion than it is to the search for truth. It is an important part of the New Evangelisation that we try and reach people, and call to them to realise that their true good is found and fulfilled in the Word of God.

This volume also deals specifically with anthropology in these two faiths. “Anthropology” is simply the study of human life, by reference to human nature and considerations. Because Christianity and Islam are religions, even their anthropology (in so far as they have one) is derived from their theology. If anthropology is the study of humanity, and theology the study of God, bioethics is a blend of both, for it asks, how should human life sciences and health care be ordered so that humanity’s spiritual end may be realised through our lives here on earth?

I chose Catholicism to represent Christianity not so much because I am myself a son of the Church, but more because it has the most fully developed theology, anthropology and bioethics of any Christian grouping, and is by far the largest and most influential of all the Christian Churches. I selected Islam because we Maronites, and now Christians all over the world, have more to do with this religion than we do with any other. Once there were few Muslims in Australia, Europe and the USA. Today Islam already is, or appears likely to soon become, the second largest religion in those areas.

It remains now only to thank those who have helped organise this book launch: the Australian Catholic University, and especially Professor Greg Craven and Professor Marea Nicholson present with us tonight, who so generously offered the venue; the Maronite Catholic Society, and its president Mr Tony Khattar, who have supported this event. My gratitude also goes to Ms Naomi Tsvirko, our MC, and to our small team at the Chancery for their role in preparing the book for printing and then tonight’s event: Fr Yuhanna Azize, Pauline Dib, Ray Chahine, and Elise Gharrach. I thank every person who made it possible for this book to come to the attention of the community.

I reserve my final thanks, over and above those mentioned in the dedication, to George Cardinal Pell, who wrote the foreword. Truly, he has always been a loyal servant of the Church, and a friend to the Maronite Church and to myself personally.

Finally, dear friends, the subject addressed in this book is too vast to be explored in one study. This study is only a stepping stone in this journey. My ultimate aim in publishing this study is to reiterate that human being and human reality cannot and should not at any time be treated as a means, but rather as an end, because every human being, without exception, is lovingly made in the image of God.

Book launch of Bioethics at the Crossroads of Religions – Thoughts on the Foundations of Bioethics in Christianity and Islam by Bishop Antoine Tarabay (Connor Court, 2015)
Talk by Fr. Peter Joseph

Your Excellency, Bishop Antoine-Charbel,

Distinguished guests of churches and government and associations,

Fathers, Sisters,

Dear friends,

In the English language, there are very few publications that compare and contrast Catholic and Moslem approaches to the modern questions of bioethics. This book of Bishop Tarabay in English is possibly unique, or at least, one of very few that look at this topic.

The author

Bishop Tarabay, as His Eminence Cardinal Pell says in the book’s introduction, has “a rare intellectual, linguistic and religious culture and experience to tackle this pressing subject of inter-religious bioethics in the modern world.” Bishop Tarabay has studied and taught in Lebanon, and has studied further in France and Italy. In Lebanon, he has lectured in business ethics, bio-ethics and moral theology. It was in Rome he gained his doctorate in moral theology. He has been an educator in Australia, as well, as we all know. This broad education has given him the best of East and West. He has the insight into the Islamic sources and perspectives, and can read them in the original language, but at the same time, can re-present them in a modern western language, English, with the western style of thought and structure and order.

Bio-ethics

“Bio-ethics” is not a word we use every day – but the issues of bioethics are confronted every day by doctors, scientists, nurses and other medical practitioners. Bios is the Greek word for life. Ethics, also a word from the Greek, ethos, means the system of moral values and doctrines regarding the practice of human virtue.

Bioethics is defined as “the systematic study of human behaviour in the context of the life sciences and health care.” (p. xiii). One Italian Catholic bishop states that “Bioethics is a part of moral philosophy that determines whether it is licit or not to intervene in the life of man, particularly when related to the practice and development of medical and biological sciences.” (p. xiii)

The whole subject expanded enormously in the second half of the 20th century when many things became possible in medical science, that were impossible and unthinkable in a previous age, although the English writer Aldous Huxley wrote an extraordinarily prescient novel Brave New World, in 1932, a world of test-tube babies, psychological manipulation and eugenics.

Catholic statements on bio-ethical issues

As we know, the Catholic Church has spoken clearly and definitively and at length on certain issues of bio-ethics. Even Pope Pius XII, who died in 1958, spoke against artificial insemination in 1949 and 1951, and in 1956 he stated that ‘in vitro’ fertilization “must be rejected as immoral and absolutely illicit.” After it became a reality, the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, under Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, at the time of Pope John Paul II, spoke authoritatively in the document of 1987: “Donum Vitae [The gift of life] Instruction on Respect for Human Life in Its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation.” That masterly and concise document was updated and re-presented by the Holy See in 2008 in the “Instruction Dignitas Personae [the dignity of the person] on certain bioethical questions.”

The content and order of the book

There are myriad bio-ethical issues today: for example, euthanasia, infanticide, abortion, contraception, fertility drugs, in-vitro fertilization, gamete donation & gamete adoption, embryo freezing & experimentation, surrogate motherhood, sex-change surgery, gene therapy, stem cell therapy, and so on. Rather than deal with these specific bio-ethical issues, – in this study, Bishop Tarabay goes to the foundations of all bio-ethics in Islam and Christianity, by looking at four key subjects.

1. He looks firstly at man, as a creature of God.

2. Then he considers the significance of human sexuality.

3. Then, the significance of human corporeality – the bodily nature of man.

4. Lastly, ethical principles in health and sickness.

In each of the four parts, the author gives you, firstly, the Catholic perspective on the theme, followed by the Islamic perspective on that theme. Then comes a section on “Convergences and Divergences”, comparing the two religions on the specific theme.

Understanding is assisted by order and structure, and this book is a very well-ordered book, and at the same time, ranges over sources in English, Arabic, French and Italian.

Sources used

For the Islamic sections, Bishop Tarabay quotes the Koran, naturally, but also the Hadith, and the Shari’a, and the works of modern Moslem scholars, commentators and philosophers.

For the Catholic sections, the Bishop quotes the Bible, of course, documents of the Second Vatican Council, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and magisterial statements of Pope John Paul, along with modern bio-ethicists and Catholic philosophers, including the present Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, a noted bio-ethicist in his own right.

Four Catholic foundations

In his introduction, Cardinal George Pell mentions four Catholic axioms: three about God and one about man.

We believe in the Fatherhood of God. As the Apostles’ Creed begins: “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.” God is not some remote Supreme Being, alien to us and the world, but our loving Father; and through human relations, we can come closer to God and deepen in our understanding of Him.

Secondly, God is Logos—Reason—and the source of reason. The Divine Wisdom cannot do or command anything contrary to reason. He may do or mandate things above the limits of human wisdom, but He can never command what is inherently absurd or unreasonable. This has major implications for morality.

Thirdly, we have the great declaration of St John, the Beloved Disciple: “God is love.” It is His very nature to love. He cannot hate what He has made. All that He made is good, very good indeed, as Genesis tells us.

And, regarding man, as we also learn in Genesis, human beings are made “in the image of God.” This means that we can learn something about God by studying His creatures, man and woman, who have a heart for tender loving, a will for freely choosing, and a mind for rational understanding.

Cardinal Pell comments: “I think that many Christians take these foundations for granted, and presume that Moslems equally accept them. Do they know that while all four foundations are in the Christian Bible, not only are they absent from the Koran but they are denied by Islam?”

The Cardinal continues: “I realize, of course, that such ancient foundations, however necessary, do not answer all the complicated and delicate ethical questions that confront us in the face of modern bio-technology. However, unless we are clear about our foundations, we will be off track even before we begin to search for where the answers lie.”

A few observations

Bishop Tarabay notes many significant convergences and divergences between the two religions. In the chapter on human sexuality, while there are some very clear and external convergences in prohibiting adultery, promiscuity and prostitution, the understanding of the relationship between man and woman is significantly different. The concept of the dignity of the human person, and of the woman in particular, is weak in Islam (p. 85). Further, in Islam, there is no praise for the dedication of the human person to God in the state of celibacy or virginity.

The Bishop notes: “the sacredness of the human body is lacking in Islam.” (p. 129). As Catholic Christians, we follow St Paul, who says “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.” A temple, because the Divine Trinity has taken up Their abode in the baptised.

It is clear that the crucial differences have their origin in the very foundation of religion, namely in the concept of God – is He our Heavenly Father, or not? Also, of course, the Incarnation of God the Son has changed everything: as Christians, we believe God has come so close to us, dwelt amongst us and shared our human life, given man a dignity of which he never dreamt until it happened, and raised us up to His divine life. All of this nowhere found in Islam.

As Islam and Christianity now co-exist not only in the Middle East, but also in Europe, and many other nations, including the USA, and Australia, it is important that Christians be informed of the first principles from which these two religions address bio-ethics (cf. back cover of the book).

At the end of the book, the Bishop tells us, he intends to follow this up with another book looking at the specific bio-ethical issues we all face – again comparing and contrasting the two religions in their evaluations of modern practices.

I commend Bishop Tarabay for an informative, impartial and wide-ranging study, and I commend this book whole-heartedly to your readership.

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