(Homs – Maskaneh)

The village of Maskaneh is located 9 km south of the city of Homs. It is the second village established by the Suryani descendants of Sadad in 1634, following Fairouzeh. An old church, the Church of the Virgin Mary, was built in Maskaneh, though its exact construction date is unknown. It was renovated by the late Patriarch Ephrem Barsoum, and a new church was constructed in the 1990s.

Most of the parishioners work in agriculture and as government employees. The church oversees several endowments, including a priest’s house, a school for teaching the Syriac language (Religious Education Center), a playground, agricultural lands, and reception halls. There is not a significant number of expatriates from this parish, though some families began emigrating during the Syrian war, constituting no more than 10% of the parish population.

Several priests from the local community and other areas like Hafar and Saddad have served the church. The late Patriarch Ephrem I Barsoum visited the church multiple times, as did the late Patriarch Zakka I Iwas in 2001. The church is served by a large number of deacons and deaconesses, exceeding 80 in total.