Bishop Mar Theophilus Philip Barakat
the biography:
He is Philip bin Hadi Barakat, his mother is Shamsa Abboud.
Born in Zaidal – Homs – Syria on 1/7/1952.
He has six brothers and three sisters. His parents, a sister, and two of his brothers died, may God have mercy on them.
He studied primary school at the “Jesuit Fathers’ School ” in Homs, and in September 1964, he joined the seminary of the Monastery of Our Lady of Deliverance – Al-Shorfa in Lebanon.
Where he continued his studies in the complementary and secondary levels. He studied philosophy and theology at the University of the Holy Spirit, Kaslik, Lebanon.
When he finished his lessons, he returned to his diocese in Homs, Hama, and Nabek.
He was ordained a priest on August 15, 1976, by the laying of the hand of the tri- Merciful Patriarch Mar Ignatius Antoun II Hayek, in the Church of Our Lady of Deliverance – Zeidel.
The Tri-Merciful Bishop Youssef Abyad appointed him as a priest of the parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Fayrouzeh and the parish of Saint Michael in Maskanah.
After 12 years, he devoted himself to serving the parish of Fayrouzeh, until the beginning of 2001, when he moved to serve the parish of Zeidel, the largest parish of the diocese, to succeed its priest, Father George Kassab, who was elected bishop of the diocese.
In 2000, the Most Merciful Bishop Mar Theophilus George Kassab appointed him as General Episcopal Vicar for the Diocese of Homs, Hama, and Nabek and its environs, and promoted him to the rank of Bishop on 7/24/2004.
On 10/25/2013, after the death of the tri- Merciful Bishop George Kassab, Patriarch Mar Ignatius Youssef III Younan appointed him as Patriarchal Administrator of the Diocese, in addition to his mission as the parish priest of Zaidel.
He took care of all the parishes of the sprawling diocese, which currently consists of 13 parishes. He made continuous visits to every parish, checking on the believers, and celebrating the feasts of the intercessors of its churches.
He worked in the field of the Lord as required by the priestly service, including establishing brotherhoods, Christian education centers, and choirs. He excelled in serving the sick and the poor and comforting the sad, and all the parishes in which he served spoke of these matters.
In the field of construction, in Fayrouzeh, he expanded the church’s external entrance, built rooms for the use of the parish priest, and expanded the church. The greatest achievement in Fayrouzah was the construction of the hall, which can accommodate about 600 people, and under the hall he created the spacious and distinctive Christian education center.
In Zeidel, he built four residential apartments for rent, and a large and decent condolence hall near the cemeteries, and Patriarch Youssef III Younan inaugurated it in the summer of 2015. The Patriarch laid the foundation stone for a building that will be a rest house (shelter) for the elderly and infirm. Bishop Philip Barakat was interested in reclaiming the agricultural lands of the parish, so that they began to generate good profits.
Bishop Philip Barakat also cared for the displaced during the difficult circumstances that Syria experienced.
The new bishop chose the slogan, “Defend the truth until death, and the Lord God will defend you” (Joshua ben Sirach 4:33), and he took the patriarchal name “Mar Theophilus,” and he has been the patron saint of the diocese’s chair since the days of the Most Merciful Bishop Mar Theophilus Youssef Jarji in 1921.
He was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Homs, Hama, Nabek, and its environs on May 7, 2016, by the laying of the hand of Patriarch Mar Ignatius Youssef III Younan, in the Syriac Catholic Church of Our Lady of Deliverance, Zaidal – Homs – Syria.
He moved to the house of the Heavenly Father on the evening of June 13, 2020, following a stroke.