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Mar Moussa مار موسى | |
|---|---|
City | |
  Mar Moussa Location within Lebanon | |
| Coordinates:33°54′00″N35°41′06″E / 33.90°N 35.685°E /33.90; 35.685 | |
| Country |  Lebanon |
| Governorate | Mount Lebanon Governorate |
| District | Matn District |
| Highest elevation | 1,150 m (3,770 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 900 m (3,000 ft) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Dialing code | +961 |
Mar Moussa (Arabic:مار موسى, also spelledMar-Moussa) is a town inLebanon in theMatn District ofMount Lebanon Governorate. It is 25 km (16 mi) fromBeirut at an altitude ranging between 900 and 1,150 metres (2,950 and 3,770 ft) abovesea level.
In 1753, a group of Lebanese monks built the monastery of Mar Moussa Al-Habshi[1] over the remains of an old Roman sanctuary. In later years, migrant families from Byblos, Chbaniyé, and Bikfaya settled in the area, where they were employed to cultivate the monastery's lands. Gradually, the community grew into the village called Mar Moussa Ed-Douar. With government financial assistance in the 1950s, the resident farmers obtained ownership of the land and began expanding the village. Since then, many villas and houses have been built in the surrounding area, which is full of pine trees. The village's most prominent landmarks are the monastery and the windmill.
The inhabitants of Mar Moussa are followers of theMaronite Catholic Church.[citation needed]
Like most mountain villages in Lebanon, Mar Moussa is home to a historic Maronite monastery: Deir Mar Moussa (Saint Moussa Monastery). Built in 1753, Deir Mar Moussa Al-Habshi is constructed of white stones and consists of several long buildings with bricks on top, surrounded by trees. It was built over the remains of an old sanctuary. In the monastery there is a small church dedicated toSt. Charbel and shrines forSt. Rafqa (a Maronite Lebanese nunbeatified in 1985 andcanonized in 2001) and Na’amatallah Al-Hardini (a Lebanese monk who was declaredvenerable in 1989, beatified in 1998, andcanonized on 16 May 2004). The courtyard of Deir Mar Moussa overlooks terraces and the pine mountains ofBzebdine, as well asMount Kneysseh.
