Background and career
Gregory III Laham (Arabic: غريغوريوس الثالث لحام; Latin: Gregorius III Lahamus; born Lutfy Laham, December 15, 1933, in Darayya, Syria), Emeritus Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, of Alexandria and Jerusalem, is the former spiritual leader of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. He was elected on November 29, 2000, succeeding Patriarch Maximos V Hakim. He retired on May 6, 2017.
He took the name Gregory in honor of Patriarch Gregory II Youssef, who was the last member of his religious order, the Basilian Salvatorian Order, to be elected Patriarch. Gregory III, who studied in Rome, Italy, and is multilingual, is also the author of several books on Eastern Catholic spirituality and theology.
In addition, he served as the Spiritual Protector of the United Obediences (formerly the Paris and Malta Obediences until 2008) of the Order of Saint Lazarus.
.jpg?width=480)
.jpg?width=480)
.jpg?width=480)
.jpg?width=480)