. Qozhaya is considered to be one of the oldest monasteries of the valley of
Qadisha. It was founded during the last centuries of the Roman Empire in
Roman Phoenicia. Several hermitages are attached to it; and at a certain period (probably the 12th Century AD) it has been the See of the
Maronite Patriarch. In 1584, the first printing press of the
Middle East was installed in this monastery by Maronite Patriarch Sergius Rizzi. In 1610, under the leadership of
Yuhanna Makhlouf, the press printed a bilingual Psalter in a small folio of 260 pages. The psalms are arranged in two columns, on the right is the text in
Syriac and on the left in Arabic, but written in Syriac letters, which is known as
Garshuni. In 1708, it was handed down to the newly formed Lebanese Maronite Order. It still belongs to this important Order. Qozhaya was at its pinnacle in the first part of the 19th Century with more than 300 monks belonging to it. With its large properties in the valley, in Ain-Baqra and in Jedaydeh, Qozhaya is one of the richest monasteries of the Order. It contributes financially to the maintenance of the less fortunate monasteries of the Order. ==What to see==