Paul Mounged El Hachem

Education

He studied at the Seminary of Ghazir and went on to continue his education at Carmes Seminary in Paris. El-Hachem has Master's degrees in Journalism, International Studies, and Social Studies.

He received a doctorate in theology and Canon Law from the Catholic University of Paris.

He speaks Arabic, French, Italian, English, Syriac, Latin, Greek, and Aramaic.

Life

El-Hachem was born on September 8, 1934 in Lebanon. He was ordained priest on March 28, 1959 and worked for years as such in Lebanon. Pope John Paul II awarded him on 11 December 1978 as Honorific Chaplain of His Holiness (Monsignor).

From 1967 to 1970, he served as Director of the Arabic programs for Vatican Radio. From 1970 to 1978, he was an Official of the Commission for Social Communications, Vice-Director for the Holy See Press Office. In 1974 he was appointed Delegate in charge of the Vatican Film Library. From 1978 to 1995, El-Hachem worked at the Vatican Secretariat of State. From 1991 to 2004 he was a professor of Islamic Law at the Pontifical Lateran University. In October 1993 he was appointed head of the Office of the General Affairs Section of the Vatican Secretariat of State.

On 10 June 1995 he was appointed Maronite Bishop of the Eparchy of Baalbek-Deir El-Ahmar, succeeding Philippe Boutros Chebaya. Maronite Patriarch of Antioch, Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir, consecrated him bishop on September 13, 1995. His co-consecrators were Boutros Gemayel, Archeparch of Cyprus and Roland Aboujaoudé, Auxiliary Bishop of Antioch.

On August 27, 2005, El-Hachem was appointed Titular Archbishop of Darnis and became the successor of Raffaele Baratta and named apostolic nuncio to Kuwait, Bahrain, Yemen and Qatar. On August 4, 2007 El-Hachem became apostolic nuncio to the United Arab Emirates. On 2 December 2009 he became emeritus apostolic nuncio.

His successor in the Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Baalbek-Deir El Ahmar was Simon Atallah.