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Melkite Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch

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Coat of arms of the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate
Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East
بطريركيّة أنطاكية وسائر المشرق للروم الملكيين الكاثوليك
Patriarch Youssef Absi
TypeAntiochian
ClassificationEastern Catholic
OrientationByzantine Catholic
ScriptureSeptuagint, New Testament
TheologyEastern Catholic theology
PolityEpiscopal
PrimateYoussef Absi, Patriarch of Antioch and All the East (since June 21, 2017)
LanguageKoine Greek (historical),
Aramaic (Classical Syriac) (historical),[1]
Arabic (official),[2]
English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and other languages (extended)
HeadquartersCathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition, Damascus, Syria
TerritoryPrimary: Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, parts of Turkey, and Sudan
Extended: North America, South America, Western, Southern and Central Europe, Australia, New Zealand
FounderApostles Peter and Paul
IndependenceA.D. 519[3]
Branched fromChurch of Antioch
SeparationsMaronite Church – 685

Georgian Orthodox Church – 1010[4]

Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch – 1724
MembersApprox. 1.6 million (2024)[5]
Official websitewww.melkitepat.org
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The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch (Greek: Μελχίτικο Πατριαρχείο Αντιοχείας), also known as the Melkite Catholic Church, and legally as the Rūm Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East (Arabic: بطريركيّة أنطاكية وسائر المشرق للروم الملكيين الكاثوليك, romanized: Baṭriyarkiyyat ʾAnṭākiya wa-Sāʾir al-Mašriq li-r-Rūm al-Malakiyyīn al-Kāṯūlīk), is an autocephalous Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See. It originates from the historic Church of Antioch, which according to tradition, was founded by the Apostles Peter and Paul. The church is headed by the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch and maintains its own distinct Byzantine liturgical tradition and ecclesiastical governance.

History

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The Melkite Greek Catholic Church traces its origins to the ancient Christian community of Antioch, one of the earliest centers of Christianity. After the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the Church of Antioch experienced divisions, leading to the formation of multiple branches. The term Melkite (from Syriac malkāyā, meaning "imperial") originally referred to those who accepted Chalcedonian Christology and remained aligned with the Byzantine emperor.

In 1724, a schism occurred within the Chalcedonian Melkite Church when Cyril VI Tanas was elected patriarch and sought communion with Rome. The portion of the Church that rejected communion with Rome remained within the Eastern Orthodox Church, forming the modern Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch.

Structure and Leadership

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The Melkite Catholic Patriarch of Antioch's complete title is: Patriarch of Antioch and of All the East, of Alexandria and of Jerusalem of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, incorporating its other titular patriarchates.[6] The patriarchal cathedral is the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition (Arabic: كاتدرائية سيدة النياح للروم الملكيين في دمشق) in Damascus, Syria. It was visited by Pope John Paul II in 2001.[7]

Membership and Distribution

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The Melkite Greek Catholic Church has approximately 1.6 million members worldwide.[8] Its territorial jurisdiction includes Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, and parts of Egypt and Iraq. The Melkite diaspora extends to Europe, the Americas, and Australia, where it has established parishes and eparchies.

The Church continues to maintain its Byzantine heritage while remaining fully Catholic, preserving the traditions of Eastern Christianity within the larger communion of the Catholic Church.

Proper province and archdiocese

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The Patriarch also holds the office of Metropolitan of an empty Ecclesiastical province without an actual suffragan see, actually comprising only his proper Metropolitan Archeparchy of Damascus (of the Melkites) also, in Latin: Damascenus Græcorum Melkitarum (with terms in other relevant languages: Damasco [Curiate Italiano]; Arabic: دِمَشق, romanized: Dimašq; and, locally, aš-Šām). Like the Patriarchate, in Rome it depends only upon the Congregation for the Oriental Churches.

During a vacancy in the Patriarchate (such as following the resignation of Gregory III Laham in 2017), the bishop of the permanent synod who is most senior by ordination serves as administrator in chief of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church.

As of 2014, it pastorally served three thousand Catholics in eight parishes and one mission with: nine priests (six diocesan, three religious); three deacons; thirty‑three lay religious (three brothers, thirty sisters); and ten seminarians.

Titular Patriarchates

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In continuation of the earlier Melkite patriarchates of the ancient sees of Alexandria and of Jerusalem, two titular patriarchates exist. These are however simply titles, vested in the residential Patriarch of Antioch, which also have Catholic residential counterparts:

List of eparchs and archeparchs

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For earlier patriarchs, see List of patriarchs of Antioch (before 518) and List of Greek Orthodox Patriarchs of Antioch § Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Antioch from 518 to 1724.

The following is a list of Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchs of Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem. Those Patriarchs who were born in Syria are indicated with a symbol 'α', those born in Egypt with 'β', and those born in Lebanon with 'γ'. Eparch is equivalent to bishop, and archeparch to archbishop:

Auxiliary bishops

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The following is a list of auxiliary bishops of the episcopate of the See of Antioch:

  • François Abou Mokh BS (Salvatorian Fathers), 1996 – July 27, 1998
  • Isidore Battikha BA (66[clarification needed]), August 25, 1992 – February 9, 2006
  • Jean Mansour MSP, August 19, 1980 – 1997
  • François Abou Mokh BS, February 7, 1978 – 1992
  • Élias Nijmé BA, August 16, 1971 – April 4
  • Saba Youakim BS, September 9, 1968 – April 4
  • Nicolas Hajj, July 30, 1965 – November 3, 1984
  • Néophytos Edelby BA (Basilian Aleppian Order), December 24, 1961 – March 6, 1968
  • Pierre Kamel Medawar, MSP (Society of Missionaries of Saint Paul), March 13, 1943 – 1969
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  • Maximos III Mazloum
    Maximos III Mazloum
  • Gregory II Youssef
    Gregory II Youssef
  • Peter IV Jeraigiry
    Peter IV Jeraigiry
  • Cyril VIII Geha
    Cyril VIII Geha
  • Demetrius I Qadi
    Demetrius I Qadi
  • Maximos V Hakim
    Maximos V Hakim
  • Gregory III Laham
    Gregory III Laham
  • Youssef Absi
    Youssef Absi

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Born in Syria
  2. ^ a b c Born in Egypt
  3. ^ a b Born in Lebanon

References

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  1. ^ Arman Akopian (December 11, 2017). "Other branches of Syriac Christianity: Melkites and Maronites". Introduction to Aramean and Syriac Studies. Gorgias Press. p. 217. ISBN 978-1-4632-3893-3. The main center of Aramaic-speaking Melkites was Palestine. During the 5th-6th centuries, they were engaged in literary, mainly translation work in the local Western Aramaic dialect, known as "Palestinian Christian Aramaic", using a script closely resembling the cursive Estrangela of Osrhoene.
  2. ^ All the metropolitans are now required to be proficient in Arabic per the Church's statutes.
  3. ^ Hore, Alexander Hugh (1899). Eighteen Centuries of the Orthodox Greek Church. James Parker. pp. 281–282.
  4. ^ Ioseliani, P. (1866). A Short History of the Georgian Church. Saunders, Otley and Company.
  5. ^ "Melkite Greek Catholic Church Statistics". Catholic Hierarchy.
  6. ^ "Melkite: Patriarch".
  7. ^ "Pope John Paul II in Greece, Syria, and Malta (4-9 May 2001)". EWTN Global Catholic Television Network.
  8. ^ "Melkite Greek Catholic Church Statistics". Catholic Hierarchy.
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