Antioch Church: history, current state

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Currently world Orthodoxy includes fifteen autocephalous (independent) churches. Among them, according to the diptych adopted in the Russian Orthodox Church - the order of commemoration at the liturgy of their primates, the third place is occupied by the Antioch Church, which is one of the oldest in the world. Her story and the problems of modern life will be the subject of our conversation.

The legacy of the holy apostles

According to legend, it was founded in the year 37 by the holy apostles Peter and Paul, who visited the city of Antioch, located on the territory of Ancient Syria. Today it is called Antakya and is part of modern Turkey. It should be noted that it was in this city that the followers of Jesus Christ were first called Christians. This is evidenced by the lines of the 11th chapter of the New Testament book of the Acts of the Apostles.

Like all Christians of the first centuries, members of the Antiochian Church immediately after its founding were subjected to severe persecution by the pagans. This was put to an end only by the co-rulers of the Roman Empire - the emperors Constantine the Great and Licinius, who in 313 legitimizedfreedom of religion in all territories subject to them, which included Antioch.

The first ascetic monks and the beginning of the patriarchate

It is known that after the Church of Antioch came out of the underground, monasticism became widespread in it, which at that time was still a religious innovation and existed until that time only in Egypt. But, unlike the monks of the Nile Valley, their Syrian brethren led a less closed and detached from the outside world way of life. Their regular activities included missionary work and charity work.

This picture changed significantly in the next century, when a whole galaxy of hermits entered the history of the church, who practiced such a type of ascetic feat as pilgrimage. The monks, who became famous in this way, for a long time performed uninterrupted prayer, choosing as its place the open top of a tower, pillar, or simply a high stone. The founder of this movement is considered to be a Syrian monk, canonized as a saint, Simeon the Stylite.

Antioch Orthodox Church is one of the oldest Patriarchates, that is, independent local churches headed by their own patriarch. Its first primate was Bishop Maximus, who ascended to the patriarchal throne in 451 and remained in power for five years.

Theological differences that caused the split

During the 5th and 7th centuries, the Church of Antioch experienced a period of sharp confrontation between representativestwo conflicting theological schools. One group was made up of followers of the doctrine of the dual nature of Jesus Christ, his Divine and human essence, embodied in Him neither together nor separately. They were called dyophysite.

Their opponents, the Miaphysites, had a different point of view. According to them, the nature of Jesus Christ was one, but embodied both God and man. This concept was rejected and recognized as heretical at the Council of Chalcedon held in 451. Despite the fact that it was supported by Emperor Justin I, who ruled in those years, the supporters of the Miaphysite doctrine eventually managed to unite and win over the majority of the inhabitants of Syria. As a result, a parallel patriarchy was formed, which later became the Syrian Orthodox Church. It remains Miaphysite to this day, and its former opponents became part of the Greek Church.

Under the rule of the Arab conquerors

In May 637, Syria was captured by the Arabs, which became a real disaster for the Greek Orthodox communities living in it. Their situation was worsened by the fact that the conquerors saw in them not only infidels, but also potential allies of their main enemy, Byzantium.

As a result, the Patriarchs of Antioch, starting with Macedonia, who left the country in 638, were forced to move their see to Constantinople, but after the death of George in 702, the patriarchate was completely stopped. The Church of Antioch regained its primate only after fortyyears, when Caliph Hisham, who ruled in those years, gave permission for the election of a new patriarch, but at the same time established tight control over his loy alty.

Invasion of the Seljuk Turks and the invasion of the Crusaders

In the XI century, Antioch was subjected to a new invasion of conquerors. This time they turned out to be the Seljuk Turks - one of the branches of the Western Turks, named after their leader Seljuk. However, they were not destined to keep their conquests for a long time, since after a dozen years they were driven out by the crusaders who appeared in these parts. And again, the Church of Antioch had to go through extremely difficult times for her, as she found herself under the rule of Catholics, who everywhere tried to establish the dominance of their confession.

To this end, Patriarch John, who ruled in those years, was expelled by them, and the Roman prelate Bernard was put in his place. Very soon, all Orthodox bishops in the territories under the rule of the crusaders were replaced by Catholic hierarchs. In this regard, the Antiochian Orthodox See again moved to Constantinople, where it remained until 1261, when the position of the European conquerors was greatly weakened.

Moving to Damascus and the Ottoman yoke

At the end of the 13th century, the crusaders were forced to leave their last possessions in the East, but by this time the Orthodox, who two hundred years ago made up half of the population of Syria, were almost completely exterminated and made up only small scattered groups. In 1342 the patriarchal seeThe Antiochian church was moved to Damascus. It is located there to this day. This, by the way, is the answer to a frequently asked question about where the Antioch Church is today.

In 1517, Syria was captured by the Ottoman Empire, and as a result, the Patriarch of Antioch was subordinate to his brother of Constantinople. The reason was that Byzantium had long been under Turkish rule, and the Patriarch of Constantinople enjoyed a certain patronage of the authorities. Despite the fact that the Orthodox Church was subject to significant taxes, there was no significant deterioration in the position of its ordinary members. There were also no attempts to forcibly Islamize them.

Recent past and present day

In the period of modern history, the Church of Antioch enjoyed the patronage of the Russian government. It was with his support that in 1899 the Orthodox Arab Meletius (Dumani) occupied the patriarchal throne. The tradition of choosing Arabs for this position continues to this day. In the future, Nicholas I repeatedly supplied the church with cash subsidies.

Today, the Antiochian Orthodox Church, headed by the one hundred and sixty-seventh Patriarch John X (Yazidzhi), includes twenty-two dioceses, and the number of parishioners, according to various estimates, fluctuates within two million people. As mentioned above, the patriarchal residence is located in Damascus.

Churchconflict in the Middle East

In 2013, a conflict arose between the two oldest churches in the world. The reason for it was the mutual disagreement over the rights to a confessional presence in Qatar. Patriarch John X of Antioch expressed dissatisfaction with his Jerusalem counterpart about his claims to the dioceses located in this Middle Eastern emirate. He received an answer in a form that brooked no objection. Since then, the conflict between the Jerusalem and Antioch churches has taken on such an irreconcilable character that Eucharistic (liturgical) communion between them has even been interrupted.

Such a situation, of course, damages the integrity and unity of all world Orthodoxy. In this regard, the leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate has repeatedly expressed the hope that the Churches of Antioch and Jerusalem will be able to overcome differences and find an acceptable solution.

Refusing to participate in the Ecumenical Council

This year, from 18 to 26 June, the Pan-Orthodox (Ecumenical) Council was held in Crete. However, it took place without four autocephalous local churches, which for various reasons declined the invitation to participate. Among them was the Antioch Church. The Pan-Orthodox Council was preparing in an atmosphere of heated discussions on many issues that caused disagreement among its potential participants.

But as a result of a long and multifaceted work carried out by representatives of the churches, it was not possible to reach an agreement on most of the most important issues. This, in particular, is the reason for the refusalAntiochian church from the cathedral. It was clarified in the statement of a representative of their Synodal Department, made in May of this year. A similar decision was made by the leadership of the Bulgarian, Georgian and Russian Orthodox Churches.