Aito – Monastery of Saint Simon Al-Qarn

Saint Peter and Paul, Aaqoura, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  كنيسة مار بطرس وبولس

City:  Aaqoura

District:  Jbeil

Governorate:  Mount Lebanon

History: 

كنيسة مار بطرس وبولس - العاقورة

الكنيسة عبارة عن مغارة كانت مدفنًا لكهنة أدونيس وتحوي عدّة نواويس، وثلاث اعمدة تنضح الماء كانت قديمًا لنذور العواقر. وثّق المغارة العالم إرنست رينان والمفوّضيّة السّامية الفرنسيّة، لكنّ العديد من معالم المدفن خرّبت جرّاء البحث عن الطمائر. على الجدار الشرقيّ داخل الكنيسة كتابة منقوشة باللغة السريانيّة وهي مختلفة من حيث الاسلوب، لأنّها منقوشةٌ بشكلٍ عاموديٍّ وليس افقياً. وقد فسّر علماء الآثار هذه الظاهرة أنّه في القرن السابع للميلاد زمن الامويّين ذهبت بعثات نسطوريّة الى الصين. وهذا ما يفسّر الاسلوب العامودي في الكتابة الآراميّة المنقوشة، فهؤلاء تأثروا بالكتابة الصينيّة العاموديّة كالكتابات السريانيّة في شيان التي تعود للحقبة نفسها. رمّم المذبح سنة ١٨٩٥، والواجهة الأماميّة سنة ١٩٥٢.

The church of Sts Peter and Paul - Aqoura

The church was a funerary cave for the priests of Adonis, it holds many sarcophaguses and three columns that pour water. The cave was studied by Ernest Renan and the archeologists of the French high commissariat. The church holds a VIIth century Syriac calligraphy that is distinct since it was written vertically, which relates to the Nestorian monks who went to missions during the Umayyad era and reached China. There they were influenced by the mandarin calligraphy and began writing Syriac in this manner. The stella of Xian uses the same type of writing and dates back to that era. The church was plundered by tomb raiders, the high altar was restored in 1895, and the entrance in 1952.

Sayidet al Maounet Church, Ain Aakrine, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  كنيسة سيّدة المعونات

City:  Ain Aakrine

District:  Koura

Governorate:  North

History: 

كنيسة سيّدة المعونات - عين عكرين

سكن الموارنة بلدة عين عكرين من القرن التاسع عشر. أمّا الكنيسة فبنيت نهاية القرن التاسع عشر. البناء كناية عن سوقٍ واحدٍ مسقوف ينتهي بحنية نصف دائريّة. المميّز في هذه الكنيسة أنّها آن رمّمت أوائل هذا القرن زيّنها المرحوم الأب عبده بدوي رائد الإيقونوغرافيا المارونيّة الحديثة بمجموعةٍ من الفسيفساء والأيقونات.

The church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help - Ain Ekrine

The Maronites first came to Ain Ekrin in the beginning of the XIXth century. They built the church at the end of the century. The structure is a single nave roofed building, with a semi circular apse. The church was restored in the early XXIth century, and it consists a visual iconographical heritage to the belated Fr Abdo Badawi, the pioneer of modern maronite iconography.

Hermel, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  دير مار مارون على نهر العاصي

City:  Hermel

District:  Hermel

Governorate:  Baalbek-Hermel

History: 

The monastery of St Maroun on the Orontes - Hermel

The monastery was originally a natural cave consisting of three sections, it was expanded by Roman builders working in nearby stone quarries. It is situated above Ain El Zarqa, one of the sources of the Orontes River, and connected to the river via a corridor carved into the mountainside. This was used to fetch water and provide a hiding place during enemy attacks. In the VIth century, Maronite monks sought refuge in the cave after facing persecution in northern Syria, where their monastery was destroyed and its contents dispersed. The monks expanded the cave and carved an altar, turning the cave into a new monastery. This marked the beginning of the Maronite migration to the mountains of Lebanon along the Orontes River. Over time, the monastery was neglected and became an abandoned farm. In 2011, it was visited by Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi and has since been restored in 2018, returning to the Maronite Church. The monastery serves as a testament to the spread and perseverance of the Maronite Church in the Levant.