His Beatitude John X

Patriarch of Antioch and all the East.

Personal Data:

   His Beatitude John X was born in the city of Latakia, Syria, in the year 1955.  He was raised in a home known for education, virtue and faith. His father, Manah Yazigi, a Syrian, was a teacher of Arabic and a poet. His mother, Rozah Moussi, is of Lebanese origin. His Beatitude has three siblings, one of whom is a Metropolitan and another a nun.

 
Education:

   His Beatitude attended the schools of Latakia.  He enrolled in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Techrin, in Latakia. He has studied church music and excelled in it, forming choirs and training them in traditional church chants. He is a notable leader of young people and has worked with them in various social and spiritual programs.

   He received the degree of Bachelor of Theology from the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology at Balamand in 1978.  He then studied at the University of Thessaloniki in Greece
and received the degree of Doctor of Theology with Distinction in the year 1983.

   His doctoral thesis, which was written in Greek and carried the title The Service of the Holy Baptism: A Historical, Theological, and Liturgical Study, was published. While in Greece, he also studied church music and received a Diploma from the Higher Institute of Byzantine Music in Thessaloniki.

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Ecclesiastical Career:

   His Beatitude was ordained deacon in 1979 and then priest in 1983 in the Archdiocese of Latakia by His Eminence Metropolitan Youhanna Mansour. 

   From 1981, His Beatitude taught courses on liturgy in the Saint John of Damascus Institute of Theology. He was in due course appointed Dean of the Institute of Theology in the University of Balamand, his first appointment being from 1988 to 1991 and second from 2001 to 2005. In addition, he served as Abbot in the Patriarchal Monastery of Our Lady of Balamand from the year 2001 to 2005. He served as Abbot of the Saint George Al Humayrah Patriarchal Monastery in Wadi Al-Nadarah, Syria, from 1993 to 2005. He founded a monastic community there and established a School of Ecclesiastical Studies that serves the Patriarchate as a whole. In addition, he participated in the founding of the Convent of Our Lady of Blemmena in Tartous, Syria.

   His Beatitude was elected by the Holy Antiochian Synod Bishop of Al Husun, Wadi Al-Nadarah in the Archdiocese of Akkar in the year 1995. He served in this position until 2008, when the Holy Synod elected him Metropolitan of the Archdiocese of Europe. In addition to his work within the Orthodox Church, His Beatitude also played an important role outside the Church, not least through attending religious seminars and international conferences.

   His Beatitude is famed for the clarity of his views and his strict adherence to all that is true and just in human relations. He has excelled in bringing people together, through dialogue and conciliatory approaches to people of differing views. He is known for his compassion, friendliness, generosity, social concern and, last but not least, readiness both to listen and to offer help.

   Wherever His Beatitude has served, he has brought revival, awakening the youth and calling them to the service of both Church and society. He is particularly noted for his wisdom in managing institutions and conducting church affairs. He has played a crucial role in encouraging vocations to the ordained ministry, maintaining leadership in this regard.