Difference between revisions of "Church of Antioch (Syriac)"

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{{orientalchurches}}
{{orientalchurches}}The '''Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch''' or '''Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch''' is one of the [[Oriental Orthodox]] churches.  It [[schism|separated]] from the [[Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox Church]] after the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Council of Chalcedon]] (AD 451).  It is sometimes referred to as ''Jacobite'' (though this term is at times taken as derogatory) on account of the source of much of its [[bishop|episcopacy]], [[Jacob Baradeus]].
 
  
The present location of the Holy [[See]] of the Church is situated in Bab Touma, in the city of Damascus, Syria.
+
The '''Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch''' or '''Patriarchate of Antioch''' is one of the [[Oriental Orthodox]] churches. Prior to the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Council of Chalcedon]] in 451 the Church of Antioch was united, but after the Council two lines of patriarchs arose, one supported by the East Roman Empire that favored Chalcedon and another persecuted by the East Romans that rejected Chalcedon. The Church is also known as the ''Jacobite'' Church after one of the more prominent leaders of the movement against Chalcedon, St. [[Jacob Baradeus]], and follows the [[West Syrian Rite]].
  
The current leader is His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, Patriarch of Antioch and all the East, Supreme Head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church.
+
==History==
 +
The Syriac Orthodox Church is one of the oldest churches in the world, having its roots in the city of Antioch (modern Antakya, Turkey) where the disciples of the Lord were first called Christians. Antioch was one of the great cities of the East under the Roman Empire and played a central role in the life of the Church in Cilicia, Syria, and Mesopotamia. At the Council of Nicaea in 325 it was recognized as a patriarchate alongside Rome and Alexandria.
  
== Official name ==
+
Although most Orthodox in Antioch spoke Greek, in the countryside Aramic (modern Syriac) was more widely spoken and consequently Syriac took its place as one of the ancient liturgical languages of the Church. It has the distinction of being the language spoken by the Lord, unlike the Greek used to write the Gospels and other books of the New Testament. While Antioch was the preeminent center of the Church of Antioch early in its history, the cities of Edessa (modern Urfa) and Nisibis (modern Nusaybin) also played a significant role in the development of Syriac Orthodoxy.
The church is often referred to as Jacobite (after Jacob Baradaeus) or Monophysite, but these terms are misleading, and not appreciated by the some of the church today. In 2000, a Holy Synod ruled that the name of the church in English should be the "'Syriac Orthodox Church". Before this, it was, and often still is, known as the "Syrian Orthodox Church". The name was changed to disassociate the church from the polity of Syria. The official name of the church in Syriac is ʿIdto Suryoyto Triṣuṯ Šuḇḥo, this name has not changed, nor has the name changed in any other language.
 
  
== Place in Christianity ==
+
The Church of Antioch played a central role in the first three ecumenical councils that shaped the doctrine and structure of the Orthodox Church. After the split over Chalcedon a struggle developed within the Church for the control of the patriarchate, with the Roman emperors generally favoring those in favor of Chalcedon, but occasionally also supporting those who opposed it. In 518 the anti-Chalcedon patriarch, St. [[Severus of Antioch]], was exiled from the city and never returned. Since then the patriarchs of the Syriac Orthodox Church have changed the seat of their patriarchate several times. Aleppo, Malatya, Diyarbakir, Mardin, and Homs all served as seats of the Patriarchs of Antioch, who only moved to Damascus in 1959.
The Syriac Orthodox Church is one of the first particular churches of Christianity, established in Antioch by the Apostle St. Peter in 34 AD. The current head of the Syriac Orthodox Church is the Patriarch His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, who resides in Damascus, the capital of Syria. The Church has about 26 archdioceses and 11 patriarchal vicariates. Patriarch Zakka was enthroned head of the church on [[September 14]], 1980, on the feast of the Cross. Syriac Orthodox faithful around the world took part in the silver jubilee celebrations of his patriarchate in 2005. The Church follows the [[West Syrian Rite|West Syrian rite]].
 
  
== History ==
+
Despite its glorious past the Syriac Orthodox Church is today a small remnant of what it once was due to the persecution of the East Romans in the 500s and 600s that was followed by the arrival of Islam, the atrocities of the Crusaders in the 1000s and 1100s, the depredations of the Mongols, and the genocides conducted under the Ottoman Turks and Kurds in the late 1800s and early 1900s in the heartlands of the Church in upper Mesopotamia (known as the Sayfo or Sword). Despite all of this the Church has continued to produce great scholars, theologians, and saints through the centuries, among them Sts. Jacob of Edessa and Gregory of Ebroyo ('Bar Hebraeus').
{{stub}}
 
  
== Patriarchate and other central institutions ==
+
==Church Worldwide Today==
The spiritual care of the Church of Antioch was vested in the Bishop of Antioch from the earliest years of Christianity. The first among the Bishops of Antioch was St. Peter who is believed to have established a church at Antioch in AD 33. Given the antiquity of the bishopric of Antioch and the importance of the Church in the city of Antioch which was a commercially significant city in the eastern parts of the Roman Empire, the First Council of [[Nicea]] (AD 325) recognized the bishopric as a Patriarchate along with the bishoprics of Rome, Alexandria, and Jerusalem, bestowing authority for the Church in Antioch and All of the East on the Patriarch. (The Synod of Constantinople in AD 381 recognized the See of Constantinople also as a Patriarchate).
+
The Syriac Orthodox Church today is headquartered at Bab Touma in Damascus, Syria. Excluding the patriarchal Malankara Syriac Orthodox Church in India the Syriac Orthodox Church is divided into 27 archdioceses and patriarchal vicariates scattered across the globe. The current primate of the Church is Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I (Iwas) of Antioch and All the East.
 
 
Even though the Synod of Nicea was convened by the Roman Emperor Constantine, the authority of the ecumenical synod was also accepted by the Church in the Persian Empire which was politically isolated from the Churches in the Roman Empire. Until AD 498, this Church accepted the spiritual authority of the Patriarch of Antioch.
 
 
 
The Christological controversies that followed the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451 resulted in a long struggle for the Patriarchate between those who accepted and those who rejected the Council. In AD 518, Patriarch Mor Severius was exiled from the city of Antioch and took refuge in Alexandria. On account of many historical upheavals and consequent hardships which the church had to undergo, the Patriarchate was transferred to different monasteries in Mesopotamia for centuries. In the 13th century it was transferred in the Mor Hananyo Monastery (Deir al-Za`faran), in southeastern Turkey near Mardin, where it remained until 1933. Due to an adverse political situation, it was transferred to Homs, Syria and in 1959 was transferred again to Damascus.
 
 
 
The Patriarchate office is now in Bab Touma, in Damascus, capital of Syria; but the Patriarch resides at the Mor Aphrem Monastery in Ma`arat Sayyidnaya located about twenty five kilometers north of Damascus.
 
 
 
===St. Aphrem Syrian Orthodox Theological Seminary===
 
Patriarch Aphrem I Barsoum (†1957) established St. Aphrem's Clerical School in 1934 in Zahle, Lebanon. In 1946 it was moved to Mosul, Iraq, where it provided the Church with a good selection of graduates, the first among them being His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas and many other of the Church's eminences.
 
 
 
In 1962 Patriarch Yakub III moved it back to Zahle, Lebanon.
 
 
 
In the year 1968 Patriarch Yakub III put up a building for the seminary in 'Atshanneh, Bekfeyah, Lebanon, where it remained until just before 1976 when its doors were closed because of the war clouds breaking over Lebanon.
 
 
 
In the year 1980 His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas was installed as Patriarch and one of the most important matters on His Holiness' mind was the issue of the seminary. The Holy Synod decided that Damascus should be the site of the seminary. His Holiness opened the institute in an old building in Haret al-Zeitoun in Bab Sharqi.
 
 
 
His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas' dream came true in 1996 with the construction of a beautiful new structure which became the location of St. Aphrem's Clerical Seminary. The building was dedicated on the 14th of September, 1996. The new building is located in the municipality of Ma`arat Saidnaya, about twenty five kilometers north of Damascus.
 
 
 
The building has five floors: the first floor (basement) has a kitchen and a large dining hall as well as rooms for services and storage; the second floor (ground floor) contains classrooms for the four years of study at the seminary, the students' library, administrative and reception offices, a lecture hall, a reception hall, a computer room, and two clinics, dental and general; the third floor has rooms for bishops, priests and seminarians. On the fourth floor is a small church named after St. Aphrem the Syrian that hold about 200 people. There is also the patriarchal wing, which included the patriarchal library, a reception hall and special wing for visiting patriarchs. The monks live in small rooms or cells on the fifth floor. The monastery and the church have a number of icons of our Lord Jesus Christ, St. Mary and St. Aphrem. Nuns from the Demyana Coptic Orthodox Convent in Egypt painted these icons.
 
 
 
===St. Peter and St. Paul's Cathedral and the Crypts for the Patriarchs of Antioch===
 
An important tradition in the Syriac Orthodox Church is keeping the crypts of the Antiochean Patriarchs in a special place in the monasteries that served as their seat. Thus, the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul was built to house the crypts of the patriarchs. The area of the church is 250 square meters, and the basement area is 85 square meters, with an area specially designated for the crypts of the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchs of Antioch. Entrance to the crypts is possible from inside the church or from the outside. the cathedral was built in the shape of a cross and seats around 800 people. The cathedral contain icons of our Lord Jesus, St. Mary, St. Peter and St. Paul and of the baptism of the Lord Jesus by his servant John the Baptist. The icons are the work of the nuns from the St. Demyana Coptic Orthodox Convent in Egypt. The church has a bell tower with a cross and bells, built at an height of 22 meters. It is worth noting that the Greek Orthodox Synod under the headship of His Grace Archbishop Seraphim gave the monastery three bells as a token of their appreciation for His Holiness Patriarch Zakka I Iwas and the Syriac Orthodox Church.
 
  
 
== Church in India ==
 
== Church in India ==
 
+
The Orthodox Church in India is in a difficult stage due to conflict between the ''Patriarch of Antioch'' and the ''Catholicos of East''. As both of them were not ready for a compromise, there arose many civil disputes.
The Orthodox Church in India is in a pitty stage due to conflict between the ''Patriarch of Antioch'' and the ''Catholicos of East''. As both of them were not ready for a compromise, there arose many civil disputes.
 
  
 
At present, there are 3 Orthodox Communities in India.
 
At present, there are 3 Orthodox Communities in India.
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This church is the result of a split in 1772 AD. This church have the same tradition and christonology of the other two Orthodox sets. The head of this church is an Independent Archbishop.
 
This church is the result of a split in 1772 AD. This church have the same tradition and christonology of the other two Orthodox sets. The head of this church is an Independent Archbishop.
  
==Source==
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==Structure==
*[[Wikipedia:Syriac Orthodox Church|''Syriac Orthodox Church'' at Wikipedia]]
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*Archdiocese of Aleppo (Syria)
 +
*Archdiocese of Baghdad and Basra (Iraq)
 +
*Archdiocese of Beirut (Lebanon)
 +
*Archdiocese of Dayro d'Mor Mattai (Iraq)
 +
*Archdiocese of Homs and Hama (Syria)
 +
*Archdiocese of Jazirah and the Euphrates (Syria)
 +
*Archdiocese of Mosul (Iraq)
 +
*Archdiocese of Mount Lebanon (Lebanon)
 +
*Archdiocese of Scandinavia
 +
*Archdiocese of Tur Abdin (Turkey)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Adiyaman (Turkey)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Argentina
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Australia and New Zealand (Oceania)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Belgium and France
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Brazil
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Canada
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Constantinople (Turkey)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Damascus (Syria)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Eastern United States
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Great Britain
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Jerusalem and the Holy Land (Israel, Jordan, and Palestine)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Mardin (Turkey)
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of the Netherlands
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Northern Germany
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Sweden
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Switzerland and Austria
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of the Western United States
 +
*Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa (Lebanon)
 +
 
 +
==Hierarchy (Outside India)==
 +
*Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I of Antioch and All the East
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Mosul
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Severios of Baghdad and Basra
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Aleppo
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Theophilos of Mount Lebanon
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Timotheos of Tur Abdin
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Filuxinos of Constantinople
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Julius of Sodertalje (Scandinavia)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Ostatheos of Hassakah (Jazirah and the Euphrates)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Ivanios of Damascus
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Clemis of Burbank (Western United States)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Severios of Jerusalem
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Cyril of Teaneck (Eastern United States)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Dionysius of Arth (Switzerland and Austria)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Dioscoros of Sodertalje (Sweden)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Silwanos of Homs and Hama
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Philoxenos of Mardin
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Athanasius of Montreal (Canada)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Militius of Sydney (Australia and New Zealand)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Timotheos of Dayro d'Mor Mattai
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Nicholovos of La Plata (Argentina)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Yostinos of Zahle and Bekaa
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Clemis of Beirut
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Adiyaman
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Severios of Brussels (Belgium and France)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Athanasius of London (Great Britain)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Julius of Warburg (Northern Germany)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Polycarpus of Dayro d'Mor Afrem (Netherlands)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Severius, Auxiliary (St. Ephraim's Seminary in Mosul)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Philexinos, Patriarchal Auxiliary (St. Ephraim's Seminary in Damascus)
 +
*Metropolitan Mor Dionysius, Patriarchal Auxiliary (Patriarchal Offices)
 +
 
 +
== Official Name ==
 +
In 2000 the Holy Synod ruled that the name of the Church in English should be the "Syriac Orthodox Church". Before this it was, and often still is, known as the "Syrian Orthodox Church." The name was changed to disassociate the Church from the polity of Syria. The official name of the Church in Syriac is ʿIdto Suryoyto Triṣuṯ Šuḇḥo, which was not changed in the 2000 ruling.
  
== External links ==
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== External Links ==
 +
*[http://www.syrian-orthodox.com/news.php Patriarchate of Antioch] (Official Website)
 +
*[http://new.alepposuryoye.com/ Archdiocese of Aleppo] (Official Website)
 +
*[http://www.reyono.net/default.aspx?s=14 Patriarchal Vicariate of Constantinople] (Official Website)
 +
*[http://syrianorthodoxchurch.org/ Patriarchal Vicariate of the Eastern United States] (Official Website)
 +
*[http://www.soc-wus.org/ Patriarchal Vicariate of the Western United States] (Official Website)
 
*[http://sor.cua.edu/ Syriac Orthodox Resources]
 
*[http://sor.cua.edu/ Syriac Orthodox Resources]
 +
*[http://www.syrianchurch.org/ Malankara Syriac Christian Resources]
 
*[http://www.socdigest.org/ Shroro - The Syriac Orthodox Christian Digest]
 
*[http://www.socdigest.org/ Shroro - The Syriac Orthodox Christian Digest]
 
*[http://www.suryanikadim.org/ Syriac Orthodox Church in Turkey]
 
*[http://www.suryanikadim.org/ Syriac Orthodox Church in Turkey]
 
*[http://www.syrianorthodoxchurch.com/ Syriac Orthodox Church in Canada]
 
*[http://www.syrianorthodoxchurch.com/ Syriac Orthodox Church in Canada]
 +
*[[Wikipedia:Syriac Orthodox Church|''Syriac Orthodox Church'' at Wikipedia]]
  
 
[[Category:Jurisdictions|Antioch (Syriac)]]
 
[[Category:Jurisdictions|Antioch (Syriac)]]

Revision as of 07:49, March 2, 2011

Coptic Orthodox Cross

Churches of the Oriental
Orthodox Communion

Autocephalous Churches
Armenia | Alexandria | Ethiopia | Antioch | India | Eritrea
Autonomous Churches
Armenia: Cilicia | Jerusalem | Constantinople
Antioch: Jacobite Indian


The Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch or Patriarchate of Antioch is one of the Oriental Orthodox churches. Prior to the Council of Chalcedon in 451 the Church of Antioch was united, but after the Council two lines of patriarchs arose, one supported by the East Roman Empire that favored Chalcedon and another persecuted by the East Romans that rejected Chalcedon. The Church is also known as the Jacobite Church after one of the more prominent leaders of the movement against Chalcedon, St. Jacob Baradeus, and follows the West Syrian Rite.

History

The Syriac Orthodox Church is one of the oldest churches in the world, having its roots in the city of Antioch (modern Antakya, Turkey) where the disciples of the Lord were first called Christians. Antioch was one of the great cities of the East under the Roman Empire and played a central role in the life of the Church in Cilicia, Syria, and Mesopotamia. At the Council of Nicaea in 325 it was recognized as a patriarchate alongside Rome and Alexandria.

Although most Orthodox in Antioch spoke Greek, in the countryside Aramic (modern Syriac) was more widely spoken and consequently Syriac took its place as one of the ancient liturgical languages of the Church. It has the distinction of being the language spoken by the Lord, unlike the Greek used to write the Gospels and other books of the New Testament. While Antioch was the preeminent center of the Church of Antioch early in its history, the cities of Edessa (modern Urfa) and Nisibis (modern Nusaybin) also played a significant role in the development of Syriac Orthodoxy.

The Church of Antioch played a central role in the first three ecumenical councils that shaped the doctrine and structure of the Orthodox Church. After the split over Chalcedon a struggle developed within the Church for the control of the patriarchate, with the Roman emperors generally favoring those in favor of Chalcedon, but occasionally also supporting those who opposed it. In 518 the anti-Chalcedon patriarch, St. Severus of Antioch, was exiled from the city and never returned. Since then the patriarchs of the Syriac Orthodox Church have changed the seat of their patriarchate several times. Aleppo, Malatya, Diyarbakir, Mardin, and Homs all served as seats of the Patriarchs of Antioch, who only moved to Damascus in 1959.

Despite its glorious past the Syriac Orthodox Church is today a small remnant of what it once was due to the persecution of the East Romans in the 500s and 600s that was followed by the arrival of Islam, the atrocities of the Crusaders in the 1000s and 1100s, the depredations of the Mongols, and the genocides conducted under the Ottoman Turks and Kurds in the late 1800s and early 1900s in the heartlands of the Church in upper Mesopotamia (known as the Sayfo or Sword). Despite all of this the Church has continued to produce great scholars, theologians, and saints through the centuries, among them Sts. Jacob of Edessa and Gregory of Ebroyo ('Bar Hebraeus').

Church Worldwide Today

The Syriac Orthodox Church today is headquartered at Bab Touma in Damascus, Syria. Excluding the patriarchal Malankara Syriac Orthodox Church in India the Syriac Orthodox Church is divided into 27 archdioceses and patriarchal vicariates scattered across the globe. The current primate of the Church is Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I (Iwas) of Antioch and All the East.

Church in India

The Orthodox Church in India is in a difficult stage due to conflict between the Patriarch of Antioch and the Catholicos of East. As both of them were not ready for a compromise, there arose many civil disputes.

At present, there are 3 Orthodox Communities in India. They are:

This Church recognises Patriarch of Antioch only as the highest ranking Spiritual Leader. The legally (by Malankara Association as per the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India) elected Catholicos of East is its Supreme and administrative Head.

This Church recognises Patriarch of Antioch as its Supreme Head. The regional head of this Church is a titular Cathilicos ordained by the Patriarch.

This church is the result of a split in 1772 AD. This church have the same tradition and christonology of the other two Orthodox sets. The head of this church is an Independent Archbishop.

Structure

  • Archdiocese of Aleppo (Syria)
  • Archdiocese of Baghdad and Basra (Iraq)
  • Archdiocese of Beirut (Lebanon)
  • Archdiocese of Dayro d'Mor Mattai (Iraq)
  • Archdiocese of Homs and Hama (Syria)
  • Archdiocese of Jazirah and the Euphrates (Syria)
  • Archdiocese of Mosul (Iraq)
  • Archdiocese of Mount Lebanon (Lebanon)
  • Archdiocese of Scandinavia
  • Archdiocese of Tur Abdin (Turkey)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Adiyaman (Turkey)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Argentina
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Australia and New Zealand (Oceania)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Belgium and France
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Brazil
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Canada
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Constantinople (Turkey)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Damascus (Syria)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Eastern United States
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Great Britain
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Jerusalem and the Holy Land (Israel, Jordan, and Palestine)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Mardin (Turkey)
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of the Netherlands
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Northern Germany
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Sweden
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Switzerland and Austria
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of the Western United States
  • Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa (Lebanon)

Hierarchy (Outside India)

  • Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I of Antioch and All the East
  • Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Mosul
  • Metropolitan Mor Severios of Baghdad and Basra
  • Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Aleppo
  • Metropolitan Mor Theophilos of Mount Lebanon
  • Metropolitan Mor Timotheos of Tur Abdin
  • Metropolitan Mor Filuxinos of Constantinople
  • Metropolitan Mor Julius of Sodertalje (Scandinavia)
  • Metropolitan Mor Ostatheos of Hassakah (Jazirah and the Euphrates)
  • Metropolitan Mor Ivanios of Damascus
  • Metropolitan Mor Clemis of Burbank (Western United States)
  • Metropolitan Mor Severios of Jerusalem
  • Metropolitan Mor Cyril of Teaneck (Eastern United States)
  • Metropolitan Mor Dionysius of Arth (Switzerland and Austria)
  • Metropolitan Mor Dioscoros of Sodertalje (Sweden)
  • Metropolitan Mor Silwanos of Homs and Hama
  • Metropolitan Mor Philoxenos of Mardin
  • Metropolitan Mor Athanasius of Montreal (Canada)
  • Metropolitan Mor Militius of Sydney (Australia and New Zealand)
  • Metropolitan Mor Timotheos of Dayro d'Mor Mattai
  • Metropolitan Mor Nicholovos of La Plata (Argentina)
  • Metropolitan Mor Yostinos of Zahle and Bekaa
  • Metropolitan Mor Clemis of Beirut
  • Metropolitan Mor Gregorios of Adiyaman
  • Metropolitan Mor Severios of Brussels (Belgium and France)
  • Metropolitan Mor Athanasius of London (Great Britain)
  • Metropolitan Mor Julius of Warburg (Northern Germany)
  • Metropolitan Mor Polycarpus of Dayro d'Mor Afrem (Netherlands)
  • Metropolitan Mor Severius, Auxiliary (St. Ephraim's Seminary in Mosul)
  • Metropolitan Mor Philexinos, Patriarchal Auxiliary (St. Ephraim's Seminary in Damascus)
  • Metropolitan Mor Dionysius, Patriarchal Auxiliary (Patriarchal Offices)

Official Name

In 2000 the Holy Synod ruled that the name of the Church in English should be the "Syriac Orthodox Church". Before this it was, and often still is, known as the "Syrian Orthodox Church." The name was changed to disassociate the Church from the polity of Syria. The official name of the Church in Syriac is ʿIdto Suryoyto Triṣuṯ Šuḇḥo, which was not changed in the 2000 ruling.

External Links