Sleiman Hajjar

Sleiman Hajjar (May 13, 1950 — March 10, 2002) was the Melkite Catholic bishop of Canada.{{cite web|url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bhajjar.html|title=Bishop Sleiman Hajjar, B.S.|last=Cheney|first=David|date=14 December 2007|work=Catholic-Hierarchy.org|accessdate=2008-12-31}} Hajjar was born in Jezzine, Lebanon and graduated from St. Joseph University and from the Pontifical University of the Holy Spirit in Lebanon. Ordained a priest on August 4, 1979, he served in Lebanon before coming to Canada in 1995{{cite news|url=http://www.anglicanjournal.com/issues/2002/128/may/05/article/sleiman-hajjar/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20070517025842/http://www.anglicanjournal.com/issues/2002/128/may/05/article/sleiman-hajjar/|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 17, 2007|title=Sleiman Hajjar|date=May 1, 2002|publisher=The Anglican Church of Canada|accessdate=2008-12-31}} and was posted to Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Ottawa. He was consecrated a bishop in 1998 and served as eparch for the 40,000 Melkite Catholics in Canada. He was considered a dynamic pastor and was particularly known for his work with youth, both in Lebanon and in Canada. While in Lebanon Hajjar established a variety of humanitarian relief efforts focused on helping children caught in the upheaval of the Lebanese civil war.{{cite journal|last=Beyrouti|first=Francois|title=A Bishop of Tender Service|journal=Sophia|publisher=Melkite Greek Catholic Eparchate of Newton|location=Roslindale, MA|volume=32|issue=2-3|pages=25|issn=0194-7958}}

Hajjar died of a heart attack while on holiday in Florida.{{cite news|title=Melkite bishop a 'true humanitarian'|last=Hustak|first=Alan|date=March 21, 2002 |work=The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec)|pages=A4}} He was succeeded as bishop by Ibrahim Ibrahim.{{Cite web |title=BISHOP IBRAHIM M. IBRAHIM – MELKITE EPARCHY OF CANADA |url=https://melkite.ca/bishop-ibrahim-m-ibrahim/ |access-date=2022-08-19 |language=en-CA}}