Author-Priest Here For Rites

Church of Holy Rosary Scene of Ceremonies

The following Jacksonville Journal article was published September 23, 1944

A special high mass will be celebrated in the Church of the Holy Rosary at 11 o'clock tomorrow morning, by the Rev. Joseph Eid, celebrated author and linguist and pastor of St. Anthony's Church of the Desert, Fall River, Mass.

Father Eid, who will conduct the mass in the Maronite Catholic rite, was brought to Jacksonville at the request of Lebanese and Syrian groups here and by invitation of the Church of Holy Rosary.

The language to be used in this ceremony is the Aramaic, or Syriac, which was spoken by the Lord himself, according to Father Eid. He said this liturgy, one of the oldest in the world, comes from the Apostle St. James.

Father Eid, who has seven foreign languages at his command, studied at the University of Beirut, located in famed Lebanon, cradle of the faith and center the Christian religion in that part of the Near East.

He completed his study for the priesthood at the University of Propaganda, Vatican City, Rome, from where he received his degrees of doctor of divinity and doctor of philosophy. He was ordained priest in 1924 and came to this country five years later, where he built St. Anthony's at Fall River in 1930, and aided in founding mission at New Bedford, Mass.

The story continues in the following Florida Times Union article also published September 23, 1944

TO CONDUCT MASS - The Rev. Joseph Eid, pastor of St. Anthony of the Desert Church, Fall River, Mass., will celebrate High Mass in the Maronite Catholic Rite, at 11 A. M. Sunday in the Church of the Holy Rosary.

Special Mass To Be Held at Holy Rosary

Father Eid, Fall River, Mass., Will Conduct Maronite Rite Service.

The Rev. Joseph Eid, D.D., Ph.D. pastor of St. Anthony of the Desert Church, Fall River, Mass., will celebrate High Mass in the Maronite Catholic Rite at 11 A.M., Sunday in the Church of the Holy Rosary.

Father Eid was invited to conduct this mass in Jacksonville by the Rev. Schamoun Yazagi, priest of the Lebanese and Syrian groups in Jacksonville, and by the Church of Holy Rosary.

The mass will be conducted especially for the people of Lebanese and Syrian extraction, a good many of whom belong to the Maronite of Rite, Father Eid to said.

This oriental liturgy, he said, is one of oldest in the church, ascribed to St. James, Apostle of Christ. Its substance and principal parts the same as the Latin mass, the difference being in the externals, namely the ceremonies, he explained.

The language used in this liturgy is the Aramaic, or simply Syriac, which was spoken by the Lord, himself, Father Eid said.

Father Eid said the majority of the people of the Maronite Church come from Lebanon, cradle of that faith, where Beirut, the capital, has always been the center of the Christian religion in that part of the Near East.

During the service Father Eid will outline the principal points of this oriental Catholic mass, as well as summarize the main events of the religious history of the Lebanese people, who have remained faithful to the Maronite tradition for centuries down to the present day.

Father Eid, who speaks seven languages, both oriental and occidental, made de his study of the classics at French University of Beirut and completed his education at the University of Propaganda, in Rome, where he was awarded degrees of Doctor of Divinity and Doctor of Philosophy.

He was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1924 and came to the United States An 1929. He built St. Anthony's Church at Fall River in 1930 and also founded a mission neighboring New Bedford, Mass.

Fr. Eid has written a number of books, including “Under the Shade of the Cedars,” the epic poem of Lebanon and Syria, in French poetry and prose.