Patriarch Hoyek, 'father of Greater Lebanon,' on the path to beatification

BEIRUT — Maronite Patriarch Elias Hoyek, often described as the "father of Greater Lebanon," is set to be beatified, the Vatican News website reported, after a miracle attributed to his intercession was officially recognized. Declared Venerable in 2019 by Pope Francis, the recognition of a miracle was required for him to advance to beatification.

Msgr. Hoyek led the Maronite Church from 1899 until his death in 1931. He is widely regarded as a founding figure of Greater Lebanon, after advocating at the Versailles Conference — which gathered the victors of the First World War — for an independent Lebanon that would not be limited to Mount Lebanon alone.

Following a meeting on Friday between Pope Leo XIV and Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the Pope authorized the publication of six decrees, including one recognizing a miracle attributed to Hoyek: the healing of a Druze officer in the Lebanese Army, Nayef Abu Assi, who suffered from chronic spondylolysis, a serious spinal condition that can cause chronic pain and mobility issues. The officer reportedly awoke completely healed after seeing the patriarch in a dream.

No date has yet been announced for the beatification ceremony.

Born on 4 December 1843 in Helta, northern Lebanon, Elias Hoyek entered seminary at 16 before continuing his theological studies in Rome. Ordained a priest in 1870, he later returned to Lebanon, where he co-founded with Mother Rosalie Nasr the Congregation of the Maronite Sisters of the Holy Family in Aabrine (Batroun), the first female apostolic congregation in the Maronite Church.

Elected patriarch in 1899, he spent three decades focusing on clergy formation and Christian education. His remains rest at the convent of the Sisters of the Holy Family in Aabrine.

President Joseph Aoun welcomed the announcement on X and thanked Pope Leo XIV for “his constant attention toward Lebanon, particularly during these delicate circumstances and amid the major challenges facing the country.”

“This proclamation, made precisely today on the centenary of the proclamation of the Lebanese Constitution, is a sign that Divine Providence — under whose guidance the new Blessed always worked — is the same force protecting Greater Lebanon as he envisioned it and tirelessly worked for: a homeland of harmony among its different communities, within its historical and civilizational borders,” Aoun also wrote.

Last February, Pope Leo XIV also recognized a miracle attributed to Lebanese priest Bechara Abu Mrad, paving the way for his beatification.