Patriarch Moran Mor Bechara Boutros al-Rai is the 77th Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and is also a Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was elected patriarch of the Maronites at age 71, on March 15, 2011 when he succeeded Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir.
He was born in Himlaya, Matn District, Lebanon on February 25, 1940. He attended Collège Notre Dame de Jamhour, a Jesuit school in Lebanon. After entering the Mariamite Maronite Order on July 31, 1962, he was ordained as a priest on September 3, 1976. From 1967-1975, he was responsible for the Arabic programs of Vatican Radio. In 1975, he received a PhD in canon and civil law, and also studied for three years at Lateran University in Rome. He was appointed titular bishop of Caesarea Philippi on May 2, 1986 and consecrated as auxiliary bishop of Antioch on July 12, 1986. In February 2013, he participated as a cardinal elector in the conclave that elected Pope Francis. On November 30, 2013, Rai was appointed membership to the Congregation for Catholic Education by Pope Francis.
