JERUSALEM – Today, on March 11th, 2022, Fr. Rafic Nahra, Patriarchal Vicar for Israel, and Fr. Jamal Daibes, Patriarchal Vicar for Jordan, were appointed as Auxiliary Bishops at the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

After the official announcement, which took place in the Great Hall, the two newly appointed bishops were able to say a few words about their designation.

“I take this appointment with a great sense of responsibility, and a feeling of gratitude towards the Holy Father and the Patriarch,” said Fr. Jamal Daibes. “It is a grace, but a grace that is also a responsibility. I will need the prayers of all the faithful, so we can better serve the Church together, with the image of the Good Shepherd. This is the image I always keep in front of me, to better serve and to serve all the people of God”.

“First of all, I thank the Lord for putting his trust in me, in a poor man,” said Fr. Rafic Nahra. “I would like to serve Him with the help of everyone’s prayer, because this is a service of the Church, to the Church of Jesus Christ. The Latin Patriarchate is not new to me. I have been serving here for years, in a land that touches me greatly; serving a people I love and want to serve. So, this new mission is one that gives me a greater sense of responsibility, particularly, now, to the Christians who are in Israel, who are in Nazareth, where I live. I ask the Lord for the grace to show them the face of Christ, and to also show them the beauty of the Church…”

By: lpj.org