Sani Ibrahim "Barhoum" Azar (ساني ابراهيم عازر June 22, 1961) is the fourth and current Palestinian Bishop of the

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) is a Lutheran denomination that has congregations in Jordan and State of Palestine. First recognized as an autonomous religious community by King Hussein in 1959,Evangelical ...

Biography

Azar is a product of The Evangelical Lutheran Schools in

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East J ...

, graduating from The Evangelical Lutheran School of

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital ...

in 1979. Azar earned his theology degree from Ludwig Maximillian University in Munich,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

in 1987. He speaks fluent German as a second language. His first language is

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

. His Master's thesis was, “The History of the Evangelical Mission in the 19th and 20th Century.” He was ordained March 25, 1988 and elected to be the incoming bishop in January 2017. Azar served as pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in the Old City,

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

for 30 years. Before becoming the pastor of Redeemer, Azar served as youth pastor and president of the ELCJHL Synod.

Early life

Azar was born on 22 June 1961 in

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

to Mr. Charlie Azar originally from Jaffa and Mrs. Jihan Azar, originally from Nazareth. His father was a deacon with the Bethel order of German deacons. His father was the House Father at the Schneller School in

and at the Boarding School of the Evangelical Lutheran School in Bethlehem and Beit Jala. Azar was greatly influenced by his father's diaconal work with their people in

. Azar attributes his respect for missions and diakonia to his two aunts who were among the first Palestinian deaconesses in the Lutheran church in Palestine. His aunts also worked with youth in the Lutheran schools during Azar's childhood. Later, when Azar was called to pursue ordained ministry, he went to Germany to study and became fluent in the German language.

Marriage and children

In 1992 Azar married Nahla Elias, who is from Amman,

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...

and they have three daughters: *

Sally Azar Sally Azar ( ar, سالي عازر) is a Palestinian pastor. She was ordained on January 22, 2023, by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land in a ceremony at the Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem, making her the first female ...

(1996) completed her master's degree in theology at the Near East School of Theology in Beirut. Sally studied for an advanced theology degree in Germany. She was elected youth representative for the

Lutheran World Federation The Lutheran World Federation (LWF; german: Lutherischer Weltbund) is a global communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish ...

(LWF) council in May 2017. Sally was ordained in January 2023, becoming the first female Palestinian pastor in the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Ho ...

. *Sama Azar (2001) is currently studying to become a social worker and deacon in Bethel *Jihan Azar (1994) is recently married and pursuing an advanced degree pharmaceutical studies in Cairo.

Accomplishments and activities

Azar serves on the board of The Near East School of Theology, the board of the Bethany Beyond the Jordan Baptismal Site, and is the President of the Lutheran Ecclesiastical Court. He also serves on The Department of Services to Palestinian Refugees (DSPR) a division of the Middle East Council of Churches, and the Housing Committee of the Augusta Victoria Hospital Lutheran World Federation board. In his service to the church, Azar has always been a member of the ELCJHL Church Council. He also is a board member of the Jerusalem Society of Berlin Missions and the Vice President of the Evangelical Lutheran German School of Talitha Kumi in Beit Jala. Azar is the founder of the Day Care Center for the Elderly located next door to Redeemer Church.

References

External links