The Syriac Catholic Church (Classical Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܣܘܪܝܝܬܐ ܩܬܘܠܝܩܝܬܐ, romanized: ʿĪṯo Suryayṯo Qaṯolīqayṯo, Arabic: الكنيسة السريانية الكاثوليكية), also known as Syriac Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch, is an Eastern Catholic Christian church in the Levant that uses the West Syriac Rite liturgy and has many practices and rites in common with the Syriac Orthodox Church. Being one of the twenty-three Eastern Catholic Churches, the Syriac Catholic Church has full autonomy and is a self-governed sui iuris church while it is in full communion with the Holy See of Rome.
The Syriac Catholic Church traces its history to the earliest days of Christianity. After the Chalcedonian Schism the Antiochian Church became part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and was known as the Syriac Orthodox Church, while a new Antiochian patriarchate was established to fill its place by the churches which accepted the Council of Chalcedon. The Syriac Orthodox Church came into full communion with the Holy See and the modern Syriac Orthodox Church is a result of those that did not want to join the Catholic Church. Therefore the Syriac Catholic Church is a continuation of the original Church of Antioch.
The church is headed by Mor Ignatius Joseph III Younan, who has been the patriarch since 2009. Its patriarch of Antioch has the title of Patriarch of Antioch and all the East of the Syriacs and resides in Beirut, Lebanon.
Under the Patriarch it is organised as follows:
- Middle East diocesan jurisdictions
- Syriac Catholic Patriarch of Antioch
- Syriac Catholic Patriarchal Eparchy of Beirut, Lebanon
- Metropolitan Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Damascus, Syria (without suffragan)
- Metropolitan Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Homs, Syria (without suffragan; titular sees of Hama and Nabk are united with it)
- Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Aleppo, Syria
- Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Hassaké-Nisibi, Syria
- Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Mossul, Iraq
- Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Baghdad, Iraq
- Syriac Catholic Archeparchy of Hadiab-Erbil, Iraq
- Syriac Catholic Eparchy of Cairo, Egypt
- Old World missionary jurisdictions
- Syriac Catholic Patriarchal Exarchate of Basra, Iraq and the Gulf
- Syriac Catholic Patriarchal Exarchate of Jerusalem (Palestine and Jordan)
- Syriac Catholic Patriarchal Exarchate of Turkey
- Syriac Catholic Patriarchal Dependency of Sudan and South Sudan (formerly 'of Sudan')
- Overseas diaspora
- Syriac Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady of Deliverance of Newark, New Jersey for the USA, which has 11 parishes in the United States.
- Syriac Catholic Apostolic Exarchate for Canada (6 parishes)
- Syriac Catholic Apostolic Exarchate for Venezuela
Statistics for individual Dioceses may be found on the Catholic-Hierarchy.org website by clicking on the Syrian Catholic Church (Current Dioceses) page and selecting the individual Diocese desired.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are subject to deletion if they are not germane. I have no problem with a bit of colourful language, but blasphemy or depraved profanity will not be allowed. Attacks on the Catholic Faith will not be tolerated. Comments will be deleted that are republican (Yanks! Note the lower case 'r'!), attacks on the legitimacy of Pope Francis as the Vicar of Christ (I know he's a material heretic and a Protector of Perverts, and I definitely want him gone yesterday! However, he is Pope, and I pray for him every day.), the legitimacy of the House of Windsor or of the claims of the Elder Line of the House of France, or attacks on the legitimacy of any of the currently ruling Houses of Europe.