Syriac Orthodox Archbishop of Jerusalem

The first Syriac Orthodox church in Jerusalem was probably built between the Sasanian conquest (614) and the Islamic conquest (637). The Patriarch Michael the Syrian (died 1199) implies that the church torn down by Harun al-Rashid in 806/807 predated the Islamic conquest. It was soon rebuilt by an Egyptian named Macarius of Naburwah. Since almost all of the known bishops were monks, there must also have been at least a rudimentary monastic community.[3]

The church appears to have been destroyed at the time of the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In 1092, Mansur of Tilbana, another Egyptian, built what was then the only Syriac Orthodox church in the city. In the first quarter of the 12th century, Bishop Ignatius II rebuilt the destroyed church and monastery. It was dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene and later also to Simon the Pharisee. Shortly after 1125, Ignatius III constructed a hostel with a courtyard across from the church.[3] According to John of Würzburg, writing later in the century, this church was believed to have formerly been the house of Simon the Leper.[4] It is located near the Church of Saint Anne on the northeastern side of the city.[5]

After the Ayyyubid conquest in 1187, the church and monastery were transformed into a Muslim school. The bishops were only able again to occupy it again briefly when the city was in Christian hands between the Sixth Crusade (1229) and the Khwarazmian conquest (1244). Thereafter the Syriac Orthodox used the small church of Saint Thomas of the Germans until it was handed over to the Muslim authorities by the incumbent monk, who converted to Islam in 1451/1452.[3]

The Syriac Orthodox patriarch acquired the Monastery of Saint Mark from the Coptic Orthodox in 1472 and this has served ever since as the church of the bishops of Jerusalem.[3][6]

The following are some of the most prominent churches belonging to the archdiocese of Jerusalem.

• The Monastery of Saint Mark, Jerusalem[7] is the ancient site of the house of Mary, mother of Mark the Evangelist (Acts 12:12) and the place of the Last Supper of Christ with His disciples. Most other Christians believe that the Last Supper was held at the nearby Cenacle on Mount Zion, According to a 6th-century Estrangelo Syriac Inscription at the Monastery, "This is the house of Mary, mother of John, called Mark. Proclaimed a church by the holy apostles under the name of the Virgin Mary, mother of God, after the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven. Renewed after the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in the year A.D. 73." of St Mark's in Jerusalem found during a restoration in 1940. The Monastery have a magnificent library and press.
• The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where the Jesus Christ was crucified is the major church of Christanity. The Syriac Orthodox of Holy Sepulchre Chapel is known as Chapel of Saint Joseph of Arimathea and Saint Nicodemus, On the far side of the chapel is the low entrance to an almost complete 1st-century Jewish tombs. The Church believe that Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were buried here.
• In Church of the Nativity, the Syriac Orthodox Church are holding minor rights of worship at the Armenian church in the northern transept, and at the Altar of Nativity.
• The Church of Mother of God in Bethlehem was established in 1913 and renovated in 1943. The name of church dedicated by Philoxenus Jacob of Salah, later Syriac Orthodox Bishop in Jerusalem. The School of Saint Ephrem, Saint Ephrem Society, Club and Scouts are worked under the church.[8][9]
• Church of the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, where the burial place of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Syriac Orthodox of Church of Tomb Virgin Mary are holding Altar and minor rights.
• Saint Ephrem Syriac Orthodox Cathedral is one of the cathedrals of Amman, Jordan

The Syriac Orthodox Register of Episcopal Ordinations only goes back to 793. Michael the Syrian appended to his Chronicle a list of bishops of Jerusalem from James, brother of Jesus, down to his own time. It is identical to the Register for the bishops after 793. The bishops were of metropolitan rank.[10]

In the following list, a date range like 792×818 means "ordained between 792 and 818". Bishops before 793 cannot be dated at all. The list begins with the first bishop elected in opposition to the Council of Chalcedon (451), but the numbering takes into account the earlier bishops of Jerusalem.[11]

• Theodosius (451–453)
• Severus (590–635)
• Anastasius
• Martyrius
• Sallustianus
• Elias
• Cyril II
• Jeremy I
• Thomas I
• John I
• Philoxenus I
• Timothy I (792×818)
• Job (816×845)
• Ignatius I (816×846)
• Joseph III (816×846)
• John II (845×875)
• Cyril III Noah (845×875)
• Cyriacus
• Severus (877×884)
• Joseph IV (909×924)
• Theodore (909×924)
• Cyril IV (922×936)
• Jeremy II (935×954)
• Thomas II (964×986)
• John III (1006×1031)
• Philoxenus II (1003×1031)
• Zacharias (1041×1058)
• Thomas III (1041×1058)
• Timothy II (1062×1074)
• John IV (1079×1083)
• Cyril V (1090×1130)
• David (1090×1130)
• Ignatius II Hesnun (1090×1130, died 1124/1125)
• Ignatius III ibn Busayr of Gadina (1123×1140)
• Ignatius IV Romanus (1138×1167)[nb 1]
• Athanasius (1167×1200)
• Ignatius V Sahdo (1167×1200)[nb 2]
• Basil (fl. 1292–1295)[14]

...

• Gregorius Joseph al-Gurji (c. 1510/1512–1537)[nb 3][15]
• Gregorius Bahnam (c. 1530)
• John of Mardin (d. 1577)[16]
• Gregorius, called John of Gargar (d. 1585×1587)[nb 4]
• Gregorius Behnam of Arbo (1590–1614)[14][18]
• Gregorius Abdal Jaleel (1664–1681)
• Gregorius Simon of Tur Abdin (1693–1719)[19]
• Gregorius Thomas (1737–1748)[20]
• Athanasius Jacob (1785–1797)[21]
• Cyril ‘Abd al-Ahad (1799–1840)[21]
• Gregorius Abded Sattuf (1872–1880)[22]
• George Kassab of Sadad (d. 1896)[23]
• Iyawannis Elias (1896–1908)[24]
• Athanasius Yeshue Samuel (1946–1957)
• Dionysius Behnan Jijjawi (1957–1996)
• Sewerus Malki Mourad (1996–2018)
• Gabriel Dahho (2019–)[25]

Notes

Citations

• Barsoum, Ephrem (2003). The Scattered Pearls: A History of Syriac Literature and Sciences. Translated by Matti Moosa (2nd ed.). Gorgias Press. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
• Barsoum, Ephrem (2008). History of the Za‘faran Monastery. Translated by Matti Moosa. Gorgias Press.
• Chabot, Jean-Baptiste, ed. (1905). Chronique de Michel le Syrien. Vol. III. Paris: Ernest Leroux.
• Ignatius Jacob III (2008). History of the Monastery of Saint Matthew in Mosul. Translated by Matti Moosa. Gorgias Press.
• John of Würzburg (1890). Description of the Holy Land. Translated by Aubrey Stewart. London: Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society.
• Kiraz, George A. (2011). "ʿAbdullāh II Saṭṭūf". In Sebastian P. Brock; Aaron M. Butts; George A. Kiraz; Lucas Van Rompay (eds.). Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage. Gorgias Press, electronic edition by Beth Mardutho. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
• Kiraz, George A.; Van Rompay, Lucas (2011). "Jerusalem". In Sebastian P. Brock; Aaron M. Butts; George A. Kiraz; Lucas Van Rompay (eds.). Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage. Gorgias Press, electronic edition by Beth Mardutho. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
• Palmer, Andrew (1991). "The History of the Syrian Orthodox in Jerusalem". Oriens Christianus. 75: 16–43.
• Palmer, Andrew (1992). "The History of the Syrian Orthodox in Jerusalem, Part  II: Queen Melisende and the Jacobite Estates". Oriens Christianus. 76: 74–94.