The Massabki Brothers

The three Maronite laymen of Damascus, martyred in 1860 and canonized in 2024

For most of Christian history, the great saints of the Maronite Church have been monks, hermits, and nuns. Saint Charbel, Saint Rafqa, and their brothers and sisters in the cloister gave the Church its familiar image of holiness: a life withdrawn into prayer on a Lebanese mountain.

The three Massabki brothers of Damascus break that pattern. They were married men and working laymen, a merchant and a teacher among them, who lived ordinary lives in a city far from the monasteries. And in October 2024, they became the first Maronite laymen ever canonized as saints.

Who Were the Massabki Brothers

Francis, Abdel Moati, and Raphael Massabki were three brothers from a Maronite family of Damascus. They were not clergy or religious. They were laymen who lived and worked in the heart of one of the oldest Christian communities in the world.

Francis, the eldest, was a prominent silk merchant, well known in the city. He was also a devoted benefactor and steward of the Franciscan church in Damascus, giving generously of his time and means to support the friars and their work.

Abdel Moati was a teacher and catechist. He gave himself to the instruction of the young, handing on the faith to the next generation of Damascene Christians. Raphael, the third brother, assisted the friars in their church, quietly serving the community he loved.

Between them, the three brothers represent something the Church rarely lifts up in this way: the holiness of everyday lay life. Their sanctity did not come from a monastery. It came from faith lived out in a family, a business, a classroom, and a parish.

The Massacre of Damascus, 1860

The summer of 1860 brought terrible violence to Syria and Mount Lebanon. A wave of anti-Christian massacres swept through the region, and in July it reached the Christian quarters of Damascus.

The Bab Touma district, the historic Christian quarter of the city, became a place of great danger. As the violence spread, Christian families sought whatever shelter they could find, and many looked to the churches and religious houses for refuge.

On the night of 9 to 10 July 1860, the three Massabki brothers had taken refuge in the Franciscan convent in the Bab Touma quarter. They were there together with eight Spanish Franciscan friars, sheltering as the attacks closed in around them.

What happened that night placed the brothers among the martyrs. They were not killed in random violence. They were given a choice, and their answer is the reason the Church honors them today.

"We Are Christians" — Their Witness

When the attackers reached the friary, they came to the Massabki brothers with an offer. Their lives would be spared if they renounced Christ and embraced Islam. It was a way out, and it was placed before them plainly.

The brothers refused. Francis is remembered for answering that he would never abandon his faith, whatever it cost him. All three chose death over denial, and they were killed for the name of Christ.

This is the heart of their story. A martyr, in the Church's understanding, is not simply someone who dies violently. A martyr is a witness, one who could have lived by denying the faith and chose instead to die confessing it. The Massabki brothers made that choice freely.

Their witness echoes the courage of the early martyrs of the first centuries, who faced the same demand and gave the same answer. In a single night, three ordinary laymen of Damascus joined that long line of faithful who counted Christ dearer than their own lives.

The Eight Franciscan Companions

The Massabki brothers did not die alone. They were killed alongside eight Spanish Franciscan friars who were sheltering in the same convent that night, and the three laymen and the eight religious have always been honored together.

This is why they are known collectively as the Martyrs of Damascus. Their cause was joined into one, laymen and friars, Maronite and Franciscan, bound together by the same faith and the same death.

There is something fitting in this union. Francis Massabki had been a benefactor and steward of the Franciscan church in Damascus during his life. In death, he and his brothers were united with the very friars they had served and supported.

The Martyrs of Damascus stand as a sign of the bond between the Maronite Church and the wider Catholic communion. Their witness belongs both to Lebanon and Syria and to the universal Church.

From Beatification (1926) to Canonization (2024)

The path to sainthood is often long, and for the Martyrs of Damascus it spanned nearly a century of formal recognition. On 10 October 1926, Pope Pius XI beatified the three Massabki brothers together with their eight Franciscan companions.

Beatification declared them "Blessed" and confirmed the Church's judgment that they had died as true martyrs for the faith. For decades they were venerated under that title, especially among Maronites and in the Franciscan family.

The final step came in our own time. On 20 October 2024, Pope Francis canonized the Martyrs of Damascus, declaring the Massabki brothers and their companions to be saints of the universal Church.

For the Maronite Church the moment was historic. Francis, Abdel Moati, and Raphael became the first Maronite laymen ever to be canonized, and their elevation brought great joy to the Maronite Church and to Christians across the Middle East.

Why They Matter for Maronites Today

The Massabki brothers offer the Maronite faithful a model of holiness that looks like their own lives. Most Maronites are not monks or nuns. They are parents, workers, merchants, and teachers, and now three of their own kind stand among the canonized saints.

Their story says clearly that sanctity is not reserved for the cloister. A silk merchant who gave generously to his church, a teacher who formed the young in faith, a man who served the friars: these are the raw materials of holiness, and the Church has confirmed it.

Their witness also speaks to the reality of Christians in the Middle East, who have known persecution across the centuries and still know it today. In the Massabki brothers, that suffering Church has three intercessors who understood it from the inside.

They take their place among the great Maronite saints, alongside Saint Maron, the father of the tradition, Saint Charbel, and Saint Rafqa. To understand the community that produced them, see our guide to what it means to be a Maronite Catholic and the story of the Maronites in Lebanon.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who were the Massabki brothers?

The Massabki brothers were three Maronite laymen of Damascus: Francis, a silk merchant and steward of the Franciscan church; Abdel Moati, a teacher and catechist; and Raphael, who assisted the friars. During the anti-Christian massacres in Damascus in July 1860, they were killed for refusing to deny Christ. They are honored together with eight Spanish Franciscan friars as the Martyrs of Damascus, and they were canonized in 2024.

When were the Massabki brothers canonized?

The Massabki brothers were canonized on 20 October 2024 by Pope Francis, together with the eight Franciscan friars martyred alongside them. They had first been beatified on 10 October 1926 by Pope Pius XI. Their canonization made them the first Maronite laymen ever to be raised to the altars, a moment of great joy for the Maronite Church and for Christians of the Middle East.

Why were the Massabki brothers killed?

During the anti-Christian massacres in Damascus on the night of 9 to 10 July 1860, the three brothers had taken refuge in the Franciscan convent in the Bab Touma quarter. Their attackers offered to spare their lives if they renounced Christ and embraced Islam. They refused to deny their faith and were killed for it, dying as martyrs alongside eight Franciscan friars.

Are the Massabki brothers Maronite saints?

Yes. Francis, Abdel Moati, and Raphael Massabki were Maronite Catholic laymen of Damascus, and they are the first Maronite laymen to be canonized. Their canonization in 2024 was celebrated across the Maronite Church as recognition that ordinary lay faithful, a merchant, a teacher, and a helper of the friars, can reach the heights of holiness through faithful witness.

When is the feast of the Martyrs of Damascus?

The feast of the Martyrs of Damascus, which includes the three Massabki brothers and the eight Franciscan friars, is kept on 10 July. The date recalls the night of 9 to 10 July 1860 when they gave their lives for the faith in Damascus. On this day the Maronite Church and the Franciscan family remember their witness together.