There is a mention in the history of the saints of a hermit saint named Marun who died in the beginning of the fifth century AD. “Marun”, in Syriac, is a diminutive of the word “Mar”, which means “Master”. The only reference to his biography is what was briefly narrated about him by Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrus, in his book “The History of the Pure Ones of God,” a book in which its author chronicles the biographies of the monks of his contemporaries. It is well-known that Saint John Chrysostom (+ 408), Archbishop of Constantinople, addressed a letter to him from his exile in Kokoza from an Armenian country. The Orthodox Church celebrates his memory on the fourteenth of February, while the Maronite Church celebrates it on the ninth of February.
Theodoret does not mention in which geographical area of Syria Maron practiced asceticism. He says that the saint “who was an adornment in the choir of divine saints, took for himself a hill that in the past was precious to a people of unbelievers, as it was a temple for devils, so he transformed what was in it into the worship of God, and then He built himself a vile silo in which he could hide.” His biographer mentions that he had the gift of healing until his fame spread everywhere, and he used this talent to guide those who came to him for healing to the true teaching. He was not only satisfied with healing the infirmities of the body, but he also brought useful treatment to the souls, curing “the one from the disease of miserliness, the other from anger, giving this instruction that leads to wisdom, and giving that instruction to virtue, taming this one’s sluggishness, and refreshing that one from his laziness.” God passed away after he was struck by a minor illness that claimed his life. It is said that a severe dispute broke out between neighboring villages, each of them wanting to monopolize his body.
Within the patristic heritage, we have received a letter sent by the great Saint John of Antioch to the righteous Saint Maron the Hermit, in which he reminds him of the old friendship and recommends that he pray for him. In this letter, which was most likely written between the years 404 and 405, John says: “We are bound with you by the bond of love. Even if we are far away in body, we continue to think about your activity, and our reassurance increases and we obtain a lot of comfort while we are here in exile, because there is no small joy that comes to us when we hear the news of your safety. Above all, we ask you to pray for us.” However, we cannot be certain that the person to whom the message was sent is the same Marun the Hermit.
If Saint Maron was Orthodox in identity and affiliation, and died Orthodox, then who established the Maronite Church? How did you grow up? What is certain is that our Saint Maron died before the establishment of the Maronite Church. As for the name of the Maronite Church, it goes back to the Monastery of Saint Maron, which was built by the followers of Saint Maron and his disciples in the Afameya area (known today as Qalaat al-Madiq), near Hama in Syria, on the banks of the Orontes River. The little that can be confirmed about the history of the Maronites in the first years of the birth of their church is that John Maron, their first patriarch who died in 707, was the one who established their own church organization separate from the Orthodox Church. This means that the Maronite Church did not know an independent organization until about three hundred years after the death of Saint Maron. So, the Maronite lineage goes back to the monastery, not to the saint.
Since some ambiguities surround the historical origin of the Maronite Church and the early stages of its spread, its doctrinal faith was also subject to controversy during a long period of its life. It was attributed to her belief in the heresy of the one will in Jesus Christ, which the Church fought in the seventh century AD, and she affirmed at the Sixth Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople in 681 that Christ had two wills, a divine and a human. What reinforces this hypothesis is that Emperor Heraclius (610-641), who supported people of one will, had a good relationship with the Monastery of Saint Maron, and “endowed many endowments for it,” as Saeed bin Al-Batriq reported in his history. With the arrival of the Crusaders to the East in their famous campaigns at the end of the eleventh century, the Maronites contacted the Church of Rome, which accepted their return to the Catholic faith. Thus, the Maronite Church is the first church to unite in Rome after the great schism between the Eastern Orthodox and Western Catholic Churches.
Our saint Maron the Righteous was not satisfied with ascetic and austere works, such as fasting, constant prayers, staying up late in remembrance of God, prolonging prostrations, reciting the Holy Bible, and meditating. Rather, he also devoted himself to working on the land, preaching to visitors, guiding them, and comforting those who mourn... Theodoret says: “Maron was not content with practicing arduous labor, but he was attentive.” Also to attract many people to more works of philosophy. And the one who rewarded his labors (that is, God) showered him with grace.” Saint Maron is a saint who is not limited to a nation, a church, or a specific place on earth. He is the saint of the universal Church, the saint of the entire Church.
The church celebrates it on February 14.
