Bherdok – The Monastery of St George

Our Lady Of Herezmeny Church, Qartaba, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  كنيسة سيّدة الحرزمانة - قرطبا

Year built:  1827

City:  Qartaba

District:  Jbeil

Governorate:  Mount Lebanon

History: 

بنيت سنة ١٨٢٧ عندما نزح آل كرم من يانوح الى قرطبا وطلبوا بناء كنيسة من مشايخ آل حمادة الذين أذنوا بناء كنيسة في الحرزمانة أي في المكان عينه حيث جرى الوفاق حيث كانت توجد بقايا رومانيّة. وبُنيت بالعونة بين أهالي قرطبا. بُنيت الكنيسة على مرحلتين وتصالبت أسواق العقد بشكل L وأُلغي الباب القديم أواخر القرن التاسع عشر. اللوحة من عمل كنعان ديب الدلبتاوي سنة ١٨٣٢.

The church of Our Lady of Herezmeny - Qartaba
The church was built in 1827 when the Karam family moved from Yanouh to Qartaba. The family made a deal with the sheikhs of the Hamade family to build a church in the Herezmeny land where stood some roman ruins. The church was built with the villagers' voluntary work and effort. In the late 19th century a vault was added to the main building that ended up with an L shape. The painting is the work of Kanaan Dib and dates back to 1832

Deir Saydet el Natour, Hraiche, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  سيدة الناطور

City:  Enfeh

District:  Koura

Governorate:  North

History: 

The convent’s ancient origin is attached to a legend. A rich man of the region committed adultery; filled with remorse, he attached a padlocked iron chain to his ankle and threw the key into the sea-shore and survived on the fish brought to him by local fishermen, who called him the guardian of the cavern. One day, a fisherman brought him a fish, in whose entrails the hermit found the key of the padlock. He knew then that God had delivered him from his suffering, and he built a convent above the cavern. He dedicated it to The Mother of God, but it also took the name of the Guardian.

The daily life of the convent is regulated by the flow of visitors who come to fulfill vows and make prayers. Sister Catherine al-Jamal is the principal resident of Dayr al-Natour, and she has done everything within her power to restore it.

According to the Crusader document, the Monastery of the Presentation of Our Lady Natour was built by Cistercians. Indeed, the Church interior resembles that of the Cistercian Church of Balamand, built in 1157. Otherwise, the history of Dayr al-Natour is hidden in obscurity, although it is said that the local Orthodox community took it over after the departure of the Crusaders. Its name is almost unmentioned by historical sources during the Mamluk and most of the Ottoman period, although it is reported that French corsairs attacked the Monastery at the beginning of the eighteenth century and killed a monk.

In 1838, the Ottoman authorities gave permission to the Monastery to be rebuilt. In the second half of the nineteenth century, it contained several monks and a superior, and it possessed fifteen dunums of land. During the First World War, it was bombarded by a Russian ship. A few years later, the Monastery lost its last Superior, Basilios Debs, who became Archbishop of Akkar. After his departure, monastic life ended at Dayr al-Natour.

During the twentieth century, the deserted monastery became a refuge for shepherds from the neighboring regions. In 1973, Sister Catherine al-Jamal moved to Dayr al-Natour and began to restore it from its ruin.

كنيسة القديسة شمونة, Hadchit, Lebanon

Name in arabic:  كنيسة مارت شموني

City:  Hadchit

District:  Bcharre

Governorate:  North

History: 

كنيسة مارت شموني - وادي حولات حدشيت

يُشَكِّل وادي حولات، جزءًا من وادي قاديشا.
بنيت كنيسة مارت شموني داخل تجويفٍ صخري، أواخر القرن الثاني عشر. تتألف من ثلاثة أسواق، إثنان أساسيّان مبنيان من الحجر والثالث محفور في الصَخر. كانت حتى ثمانينيّات القرن الماضي مَكسّوة بجداريات سريانيّة تعود للقرن الثالث عشر وتتشابه مع نظيراتها في بحديدات. على أبوابها نقوش مسيحانيّة ومريميّة.

The Church of Mart Shemouny- the valley of Houlat Hadshyt

The valley of Houlat is a part of the Qadisha valley. The church of Mart Shemouny was built in a rocky cliff, at the end of the XIIth century. It consists of three aisles: the two main ones are built with stone masonry, and the third is carved into the stone. Up until the 80’s the church was entirely covered by frescoes similar to those in Behdeidat. On the door are still visible Christological and Marial insignia.