Saint Maron is the spiritual father of the Maronites, and the saint from whom the Maronite Church draws its name. The Maronite rite is one of 23 Eastern Catholic Churches that is in full communion with the Holy See of Rome. Of all the Eastern Churches, the Maronite Church is the only one known by the name of a person—Saint Maron.
The only source we have on Saint Maron’s Life is from his biographer, Theodoret of Cyrrhus, who wrote “Historia Religiosa” in the fifth century (The Religious History, also known as A History of the Monks of Syria). He describes the life of hermits in Cyrrhus and vicinity. In chapter 16 Theodoret mentions that Saint Maron was one of those hermits.The Diocese of Cyrrhus was west of Euphratia in northern Syria. Cyrrhus was at a distance of two days north east of Antioch and about 70 kms north west of Aleppo. [1]
