In Memoriam: Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch

Patriarch Ignatius IV (Hazim) of the Antiochian Orthodox Church has fallen asleep at the age of ninety-one. The patriarch, a native of Syria's Hama province and graduate of the American University of Beirut, was in the 1940s a founder of the Orthodox Youth Movement before going on to serve as a clergyman and, later, as an auxiliary bishop to the patriarch and Metropolitan of Lattakia in western Syria. In 1979 he was elected Patriarch of Antioch and All the East. After faithfully shepherding the Church of Antioch for thirty-three years Patriarch Ignatius reposed earlier today in Beirut, Lebanon, after suffering a severe stroke. May his memory be eternal! More on Patriarch Ignatius' life can be found here.

In Memoriam: Fr. Elias Morcos

Archimandrite Elias (Morcos), an early leader of Syria and Lebanon's Orthodox Youth Movement and founder of the Holy Monastery of St. George or Deir el-Harf on Mount Lebanon, has fallen asleep. May his memory be eternal! More here.