The Diocesan Bishop for Western Europe is His Eminence, Metropolitan Gabriel, whose residence is in Paris. Metropolitan Gabriel was born in Lebanon in 1923 and received his theological education in Russia. He was consecrated as the Vicar Bishop of Beirut on August 5, 1966. Following his consecration to the episcopate, he served as an assistant bishop to Metropolitan Elias of Beirut. He became the Vicar for Western Europe in 1980. In 1982 he moved to Paris to establish a new Vicariate of Western Europe, which, through his leadership later grew to comprise 23 parishes in France (2), Britain (10), Germany (9), Switzerland (1) and Austria (1). To these there was added a monastic community of eighteen nuns in the south of France. In establishing the Vicariate Bishop Gabriel fully employed his considerable linguistic gifts, being a fluent speaker of Arabic, English, French, Spanish, German and Russian.  Bishop Gabriel, (as he was then), was awarded the "Legion of Honour" by the French State in recognition of his contribution to French society in 1998. In the Autumn of 2000 and in recognition of his work, the Holy Synod of Antioch authorised the elevation of the Vicariate to the status of a Metropolitical see, of which Metropolitan Gabriel is now Archbishop.  Many years Sayedna!

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