I am Father Marwan Akoury, a Lebanese priest of the Maronite Diocese of Beirut. I am the eldest son in a family of five: my father, my mother and my two sisters.
Since my childhood I have loved the Lord and I was aware that He loved me. Because my family taught me this love, it contributed to the development of my vocation and my desire to consecrate my life to the Lord. Especially since my help in the parish of St. Thecla, where I lived.
I was born on September 29, 1980, at the time of the war in Lebanon, which started in 1975 and lasted more than 30 years. And in spite of the great destruction of the warChristian life in Lebanon and the Church's involvement in Lebanese society remained a feature of my country. But the scars of the war persist even today.
To this must be added sectarianism and the rejection of all that is different and does not belong to my community, especially the Muslim. In the midst of all this, I have realized that Jesus has invited me to bear witness to his Salvation and his Love for the whole world, in order to destroy the obstacles of hatred and discrimination.
The commitment in the life of the Church in the parish, with the youth movements, was not enough for me, so I looked elsewhere for ways to calm my burning desire for the mission. After a long journey, which preceded the university years and lasted until the end of my professional career in the school where I taught until I was 27 years old, the time came when I decided to leave everything to serve the Lord in the priestly life.
It was not easy to make a decision like this, especially because I am the eldest son, and I was counted on to enlarge the family. But God's call overcomes all obstacles and sustains our decisions so that His will is fulfilled.
At the diocesan seminary of Beirut "Saint Augustin", I completed my formation and prepared myself for my priestly ordination, which took place on May 19, 2013, Pentecost Sunday.
As the Lord sent his disciples to teach and baptize, he sent me to the mission with all the diversities that exist within the Church of Beirut, that is to say in the parish of Saint Michel and also in the Collège de la Sagesse, where I was director of the lycée.
"During those three years, I learned about priesthood, I learned that a priest, in order to fulfill his ministry, needs to always be in communion with his Master and always listen to his Word."
Sowing the spirit of Christ and building bridges of peace and dialogue is something that requires good communication, especially in a country that is a concrete example of diversity and coexistence with the other, whether Christian or Muslim. And once again, it was the Lord's call, through my bishop, Monsignor Paul Matar, who proposed me to study communication in Rome, to respond to the needs of the Church in Lebanon.
So here I am, in Rome, since 2016, at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, pursuing my studies in Institutional Social Communication.
Here I have discovered what I was looking for, and I live with joy and enthusiasm my new mission in the heart of the Church, with Christ, to whom I have given my whole life, my past, my present and my future.
Father Marwan Akoury
