Bishop Mar Theophilos George Kassab
the biography:
He was born in Zaidal – Homs on January 17, 1946, the son of Elias Kassab and Maryam bint Issa Muhaisen.
He received his primary education at Zaidal Public School.
He went to Deir Al-Shorfa in 1960.
In it, he focused on obtaining secondary sciences, then philosophy and theology.
In 1973, he moved to his diocese in Homs, where he spent a probationary year, where he worked in various apostolic and pastoral fields, moving between Homs and Zaidal.
On 10/6/1974, he was ordained a priest by the laying on of the hand of Bishop Youssef Abyad, in the Church of the Virgin Mary in Zaidel.
He worked in serving the souls of his parish, Zaidal.
He remained active in his pastoral service for twenty-six consecutive years, and was appreciated by his parishioners for the social and religious development he achieved and the positions he took, especially in the field of unity and dialogue.
He paid great attention to developing the church and the priest’s house, adding to them a building for the school and another for the club, and he built cemeteries for the members of the sect.
He paid special attention to youth, and held regular courses for Christian education and a church choir.
In 1995, Bishop Musa Daoud appointed him as his general vicar for the Diocese of Homs, Hama, and Nabek.
Father George performed the duties of the deputy in addition to his pastoral duties
Following the election of the Bishop of the Diocese of Homs, Hama and Nabek, Mar Basilius Musa Daoud, as Patriarch on 10/15/1998, the new Patriarch appointed his deputy general, Bishop George Kassab, as patriarchal administrator of the Diocese of Homs, pending the election of a new bishop for it.
On 3/3/2000, he was elevated to the episcopal rank by the laying on of the hand of Patriarch Mar Basilius Musa Daoud, in the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Homs, and he adopted as an episcopal motto the words of Saint Paul the Apostle: “I am strong in Christ who strengthens me (2 Corinthians 13:24)
He carried out great works, raised the level of the Diocese of Homs in spiritual, administrative and pastoral terms, and developed its endowments so that the diocese could secure its material needs on its own without external aid.
He took care of the lives of priests and their service, providing them with health insurance, and he also established the Priests’ Retirement Fund.
He renewed the churches and parishes, and in particular he restored and renovated the archbishopric building in Al-Hamidiyah – Homs.
He restored the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, which was a masterpiece of ecclesiastical heritage, before it fell into ruin and destruction as a result of the war in Syria.
Following the vacancy of the Syriac Patriarchal Chair of Antioch
With the resignation of Patriarch Mar Ignatius Boutros VIII Abdel Ahad on February 2, 2008,
Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop George Kassab as apostolic administrator of the Patriarchal Diocese of Lebanon.
And a member of the tripartite episcopal committee to manage the vacant patriarchal chair
He continued in this position until the election of Mar Ignatius Joseph III Younan, Patriarch of Syriac Antioch, on January 20.
2009
At the Holy Synod held in June 2009
He was elected a member of the Permanent Synod of the Syriac Catholic Church
He moved to the house of the Heavenly Father on the evening of Tuesday, 10/22/2013
While undergoing treatment in Lebanon