St. Raphael Hawaweeny St. Raphael was born in Damascus, Syria on November 8, 1860. Immediately after his birth, his parents fled with him to Beirut, just prior to the Druse massacres in Damascus that claimed 2,500 Christian lives. St. Raphael attended the Greek Orthodox Theological School in Halki and was ordained to the diaconate, then traveled to Russia to continue his studies. In 1894, St. Raphael was accepted into the Russian Orthodox Church and became a professor of Arabic language at the Kazan Theological Academy. That same year, St. Raphael joined a missionary team to work among American immigrants. He was assigned to New York City and organized St. Nicholas Cathedral in Brooklyn. He then set out on a five month trip across the country to meet Arab-speaking American Christians. In 1904, St. Raphael became the first bishop consecrated in America. He then founded The Word magazine, originally in Arabic. St. Raphael insisted that Sunday School, Divine Liturgy and other services be performed in English, so as to not lose the young people of the Church. To this day, we still use his famous English language Service Book, identified by its red cover and gold cross. Despite repeated attempts to lure St. Raphael back to the Middle East, he remained loyal to the Russian Orthodox Church and continued his work in America, serving as an envoy of Antioch under the jurisdiction of Moscow. In 1909, St. Raphael was stricken with a severe case of rheumatism that developed into heart disease, which eventually led to his death on February 27, 1915 at the age of 54. By the end of his ministry, St. Raphael had founded more than 30 Orthodox parishes throughout North America. St. Raphael is now buried at the Antiochian Village Campground in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. Close Window