Makhoul Farha

Makhoul Farha OCD (born 28 December 1959) is a Lebanese Melkite Catholic hierarch, who has served as the Archbishop of the Melkite Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Baalbek since 2025.

Early life and education Farha was born on 28 December 1959 in Ras Baalbek, a town in the Beqaa Governorate of Lebanon. Feeling a religious vocation, he entered the religious order of the Discalced Carmelites (OCD) in 1974. He made his simple vows on 15 August 1975 and his solemn profession on 15 August 1983.

After he completed his philosophical and theological studies, Farha was ordained a priest on 14 July 1984. Later he obtained a licentiate in a canon law from the Pontifical Urban University in Rome in 1988. He took on broader administrative responsibilities for the region as a counselor and Provincial Vicar of the Carmelite Delegation. In this leadership capacity, he managed the order's network of schools, parishes, and spiritual centers, while actively working to strengthen local ecumenical ties and elevate educational standards across their institutions.

Episcopate The Synod of Bishops of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church elected Farha to succeed the retiring Archbishop Elias Rahal as the Archbishop of Baalbek. Following the assent of Pope Leo XIV, the election was officially announced by the Holy See on 16 July 2025. He was consecrated as a bishop on 24 August 2025 at the Basilica of Saint Paul in Harissa-Daraoun by Patriarch Youssef Absi.