It is common, both in America and globally, to use the phrases “Catholic” and “Roman Catholic” interchangeably. The truth, however, is that our one Church includes no fewer than 24 holy, Catholic Churches sui iuris, grouped into six distinct liturgical families known as rites. The Latin Catholic Church in the Diocese of Providence is proud to share Rhode Island with members of three Eastern Catholic traditions, which provide our small state with a wealth of liturgical and spiritual diversity. Although these communities are all churches “sui iuris” (of their own law), they each share full communion with Rome and are under the jurisdiction of the Pope. Eastern Catholics and Latin Catholics share the same dignity as members of the Body of Christ. A Catholic could even visit the liturgy of another Church sui iuris and fulfill one’s Sunday Mass obligation.
Local Parish: St. Basil the Great, Lincoln
Local Diocese: Eparchy of Newton, Mass.
Liturgy: Byzantine Rite
Liturgical Languages: Arabic & Greek
The name ‘Melkite’ derives from a Syriac word meaning ‘royal.’ It initially referred to those Christians who sided with the emperor (and the pope) following the Council of Chalcedon, as opposed to what would become Oriental Orthodox Christianity. Today, however, the term ‘royal’ could just as easily be applied to the aesthetic effect of a Melkite liturgy: the sanctuary is enclosed by a dazzling screen of gilded icons, clerics wear elaborate vestments adapted from the courtly dress of the Byzantine Empire, and the Gospel Book is processed through the congregation accompanied by incense, candles, and liturgical fans known as “ripidia.”
“The Melkite Church is called ‘Greek’ because it is part of the Byzantine Rite,” explained Melkite Bishop Francois Beyrouti, noting that the majority of the faith’s 1.5 million adherents actually live in regions like Syria, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan. “We use the liturgies of St John Chrysostom and St. Basil, so much of the chanting is in Greek, together with Arabic and, in America, English for the readings and sermon.”
The Byzantine Rite is by far the largest Catholic liturgical family by number of branches, including 14 distinct national churches. Many of these, like the Melkites, are headed by a patriarch elected by a synod of bishops and confirmed by the pope.
“The Bishop of Rome is the successor of St. Peter, the leader of the apostles,” explained Bishop Beyrouti. “The patriarchs are successors of churches founded by the other apostles, the bishops of cities like Constantinople, Alexandria, and Jerusalem.”
The first Melkites arrived in Rhode Island with a small wave of Syrian immigration in the 1870s. By 1909, the population had become large enough to form an independent parish in Central Falls; it built its current property, at the summit of Cobble Hill in Lincoln, in 1998. The church includes the only dedicated Melkite cemetery in the United States.
“Pope St. John Paul II frequently used to say that the Latin Church and the East were the two lungs of the Church,” explained the late Msgr. Joseph Haggar in an earlier interview with R.I. Catholic. Msgr. Haggar was the pastor of St. Basil’s for 56 years before passing away in March of this year. “I’ve always been a big supporter of reaching out to our local Latin parishes. I think there’s so much we can gain in understanding from one another.”
Liturgies are held each Sunday at 10 a.m. in the summer and 9 a.m. in the winter; the church also hosts a Middle Eastern Food Festival each October, featuring delicacies like homemade hummus and yoghurt.
Local Parish: St. George Church, Cranston
Local Diocese: Eparchy of St. Maron of Brooklyn, N.Y.
Liturgy: Syro-Antiochene Rite
Liturgical Languages: Aramaic & Arabic
The Maronites are unique among Eastern Catholics in that they have no corresponding Orthodox sect—the church has always maintained full communion with Rome, with its origins in a monastic movement founded by the Lebanese St. Maron in the late 4th Century. The qualities of monastic organization, Petrine loyalty and Lebanese heritage constitute Marks of the Church unique to the Maronite Rite, as defined by their Patriarchal Assembly.
“Lebanon has been a crossroads throughout most of human history,” said Beirut, Lebanon-born Father Tony Saab, pastor of St. George Maronite Catholic Church. “Different influences, both within the Catholic Church and outside of it, have impacted the Maronite faith during those centuries, but we’ve always maintained our traditions and our place within the universal church as led by the pope.”
The Church’s role in Lebanese history has been so extensive, in fact, that the term ‘Maronite’ is used to refer not only to the patrimony itself, but to an ethnoreligious group within the broader Lebanese cultural identity.
The West Syriac Rite employs the Liturgy of St. James, or ‘Holy Qurobo,’ one of the most ancient liturgical prayers in the Church. Tradition credits its authorship to St. James the Just.
“Our liturgy is special to us because of its unique connection to Our Lord,” explained Father Saab. “It also uses Aramaic as its sacred language — the same language spoken by Jesus and the apostles, and which Latin Catholics might know from Biblical phrases like ‘Eli, eli, lema sabachtani?’” [‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’].
Among the unique aspects of the Holy Qurobo is the exchange of peace, which begins with the celebrant praying before the altar, then passing a blessing to a designated member of the congregation. They, in turn, walk with hands folded in prayer to bear the blessing to the first row of the congregation, who in turn pass it to the row behind them, and so forth until the prayer has passed through the entire church.
Federal Hill was the site of the first significant Lebanese community in Rhode Island, with Holy Ghost Church hosting Maronite liturgies celebrated by traveling priests. In 2013, the parish purchased the former Church of St. Ann, next to St Mary’s at the end of Cranston Street. Their new home combines the original elements of Latin architecture with a church fabric drawn from the Maronite tradition, including unique icons and statues.
One of these is of St. Charbel Makhlouf, installed outside of the parish beside a flagpole proudly bearing the standards of both the Vatican and Lebanon. The saint—known as the ‘Miracle Monk of Lebanon’—has a widespread devotion among the Maronites, who remember him for his personal sanctity, his commitment to seeking harmony between Christians and Muslims and the many healing miracles attributed to him.
“Our universal Church has been blessed by unique saints from each of her branches,” said Father Saab. “One of the great joys of exploring different communities is discovering new holy men and women who express the same faith in diverse ways.”
St. George’s celebrates St. Charbel Liturgies intermittently throughout the year, including a ceremony with blessed healing oil from Mount Lebanon held on his feast day in July. Each Sunday, the parish offers Mass in both the Roman Rite (8:30 a.m.) and the Maronite Rite (10:30 a.m.).
Local Parish: St. Michael the Archangel, Woonsocket
Local Diocese: Eparchy of Stamford, Conn.
Liturgy: Byzantine Rite
Liturgical Languages: Old Church Slavonic & Ukrainian
With more than 5 million members throughout the globe, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is by far the largest of the Eastern Rites within the Catholic Church. It has also become the most widely featured in global news coverage since the escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2022.
“Since the invasion, we’ve had visits from Catholics of every rite, as well as Orthodox Christians and Protestants looking to show support,” said Father Mykhaylo Dosyak, pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Ukrainian Catholic Church in Woonsocket.
Like the Melkites, Ukrainian Catholics belong to the Byzantine Rite, making use of the liturgies of SS. John Chrysostom and Basil. Unlike their Mediterranean brethren, however, the Ukrainians use Church Slavonic as their liturgical language.
“The language is very ancient—we call it ‘Church’ Slavonic because today it’s only used for religious purposes,” explains Father Dosyak. “It’s similar to Latin for the Roman Rite.”
The key details of Byzantine Rite remain the same, however. The Eucharist is received under both species—that is to say, with the Body and Blood of Christ mixed together and received from a silver spoon known as a “myrnyk.” The church also features a prominent iconostasis, or screen of icons which separates the congregation from the sacrifice at the altar.
“This is one of the church traditions that dates back to the Old Testament,” Father Dosyak explained. “It is an expression of the same spirit of reverence that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of Solomon’s Temple.”
Ukrainian Catholics also follow a somewhat complicated set of fasting regulations similar to those of Eastern Orthodoxy.
“We have two main periods of fasting: Great Lent, which is similar to the Latin Lent, and the Nativity Fast before Christmas,” said Father Doysak. “It’s a very different approach from the Latin Church, especially here in America, where people seem to begin celebrating Christmas even before Thanksgiving. You won’t hear us say ‘Merry Christmas’ until the day itself, but once the Christmas season starts, we continue celebrating for the full 12 days.”
St. Michael’s offers liturgies on Sundays at 8:15 a.m. and 11 a.m., both of which are bilingual (English and Ukrainian).
By way of conclusion, it is important to note that some schismatic groups inappropriate use the term “Catholic,” even though they are not in communion with Rome; communities such as the Polish National Catholic Church and Old Catholic Church (Utrecht Union) are groups that do not share our Catholic faith.
We pray even more fervently for peace within our world, and for the protection of our Church from violence and persecution. Significant populations of Maronites and Melkites live in regions of the Middle East where the open practice of their faith is forbidden; together with the Copts, these Christian rites account for the highest rate of persecution of any religious minority group in the world (based on statistics from the year 2021). Ukrainian Catholics, meanwhile, face threats from a foe who despises both the nation it serves and the Western world with which it proudly shares communion.
“When you see Christians killing Christians in the name of Christ, you know that only the devil is winning,” Father Doysak said. “And there is nothing he hates more than the unity of our diverse churches. But Christ is stronger than his hatred. And when I concelebrate Mass with a priest of the Latin Church, or when the members of other rites celebrate their liturgies, we are not just praying as equals. We are celebrating and sharing exactly the same Body of Christ—whether in Ukraine, in the Middle East, in Rome, or here in Rhode Island.”
