Msgr Nahra, a 'true Lebanese' 'frontier' man for the Church of the Holy Land
Patriarch Pizzaballa presided over the episcopal ordination of the new vicar of Israel in the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth. Passionate about dialogue, educated as an engineer, he is a builder of 'bridges' between people. The exhortation to be a "father" for priests and the faithful.
Beirut (AsiaNews) - Born in Egypt, in Ismailia on January 27, 1959, raised in Lebanon, his later years spent in France before moving to the Holy Land, Msgr Rafic Nahra is truly Lebanese. A man of openness and dialogue, a distinctive trait that knows how to extend himself according to the occasion without ever breaking, and who is capable of adapting without ever changing his nature, a precious resource that the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem can boast of counting among its ranks since last April 30th in Nazareth, with his episcopal ordination.
Lebanese and Maronite by birth, 63-year-old Fr. Rafic Nahra was ordained auxiliary bishop of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem on Saturday 30 April in the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth (Galilee-Israel). The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
Firmly rooted in the reading of the Bible and in the fraternal life that animates the life of the Churches and ecclesial movements in Lebanon, Mgr Rafic Nahra happily considers himself "a man drawn to the frontiers". He arrived in France in 1979, at the age of 20, after studying engineering for two years, which was interrupted by the war. A scholarship holder, he "built" bridges and roads, then started work. However, shortly afterwards, Christ wooed him at length and then invited him to abandon bridges, pavements and soil mechanics to become first and foremost a builder of bridges between people, communities and peoples.
In his new episcopal role, Bishop Nahra will deal more specifically with Arabic-speaking Latin Catholics, who represent some 17,000 people in Israel. Having previously entered the seminary in 1987 and been a priest in the diocese of Paris since 1992, he made himself available in 2016 to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which appointed him patriarchal vicar for Hebrew-speaking Catholics, a position with a responsibility to which was also added that of coordinator and head of the pastoral care of migrants.
A passion for Jewish-Christian dialogue
Passionate about Jewish-Christian dialogue, in 2004 he was sent by Card. Lustiger, himself of Jewish origin, to the Holy City to continue his studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. These studies were crowned in 2016 with a master's degree in Judaic Thought, then a doctorate in Judeo-Arabic literature. These qualifications earned him the direction, between 2008 and 2011, of the "Judaism and Christianity" research department of the College of the Bernardines in Paris. And in Jerusalem, while serving with Palestinian children or in the Maronite parish in Jerusalem, he also came into contact with Israel's Hebrew-speaking Christian community of a few hundred people.
Patriarch Pizzaballa celebrated the episcopal ordination, together with Msgr. William Shomali, vicar general for Jerusalem and Palestine, and Msgr. Thibault Verny, auxiliary bishop of Paris, as well as in the presence of Msgr. Adolfo Tito Yllana, apostolic nuncio to the Holy Land. Also present were Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah and Fr. Francesco Patton, Custos of the Holy Land and recently confirmed in the post by Pope Francis.
Msgr Nahra will certainly know how to meet all the expectations of his patriarch who, as a final recommendation, addressed these words to him: "One thing will be asked of you before your anointing: do you love the Lord? [...] The testimony that the Church expects from you is above all this". And this aspect will certainly not be difficult for him to fulfil. To fully embrace the Lord's call, he turned his back on a bright professional future, which would certainly have opened all doors to him, preferring instead to enter the Paris seminary in 1987.
Knowing his preference for pastoral work, the Patriarch also advised him to act as a good administrator and "to be a father to priests and faithful". At the same time, he also warned him "not to confuse 'fatherhood' with simple 'friendship'. A father is more than a friend. Being a father implies knowing how to generate: faith, first of all, but also life in the Church".
A crowd gathering different communities experienced the ordination ceremony as a moment of joy, reflecting Fr Rafic's journey, considered in many ways "atypical": members of the vicariate of St James (the Hebrew-speaking Catholic community) and the vicariate for migrants and asylum seekers (Vmas), priests from the diocese of Paris, lay, religious and consecrated people from all over the Holy Land...
Everyone applauded, interrupting the celebration several times. At the end of the mass, after blessing the crowd and giving a speech of thanks to all, the new bishop was surrounded by a crowd of faithful, who came to congratulate him.
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10/10/2023 15:48
