![]() ![]() Growth of the church did not stop during periods of persecution, and by the end of the 4th century Christianity became the official state religion. By the 2nd century, Christianity was widespread in Antioch and throughout Syria. Scholars attribute the actual writing of the gospels in Koine Greek to the Hellenized Christian population of Antioch, with authors such as St. As Christianity began to spread, the disciples preached the Gospel throughout the region and were for the first time recorded to be called "Christians" in the city of Antioch ( Acts 11:26), the historical See of the Melkite Catholic Patriarchate. The name literally means "Roman Catholic", confusingly for the modern English-speaker, but that refers not to the Latin-speaking Western Catholic Church of Rome but to the Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox "Byzantine" Roman heritage, the centre of gravity of which was the city of "New Rome" (Latin: Nova Roma, Greek: Νέα Ρώμη), Constantinople.Īccording to the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, its origins go back to the establishment of Christianity in the Near East. The Arabic word " Rūm" means Eastern Romans, from the Greek word " Romaioi" by which the Greek-speaking Eastern Romans (called "Byzantines" in modern parlance) had continued to identify themselves even when the Roman empire had ceased to exist elsewhere. In Arabic, the official language of the church, it is called ar-Rūm al-Kāṯūlīk ( Arabic: الروم الكاثوليك). According to Church tradition, the Melkite Church of Antioch is the "oldest continuous Christian community in the world". The term Catholic acknowledges communion with the Church of Rome and implies participation in the universal Christian church. The Greek element signifies the Byzantine Rite heritage of the church, the liturgy used by all the Eastern Orthodox churches. Of the Chalcedonian churches, Greek Catholics continue to use the term, while Eastern Orthodox do not. Melkite, from the Syriac word malkā for "King" and the Arabic word Malakī ( Arabic: ملكي, meaning "royal", and by extension, "imperial"), was originally a pejorative term for Middle Eastern Christians who accepted the authority of the Council of Chalcedon (451) and the Byzantine Emperor, a term applied to them by non-Chalcedonians. Those who rejected this move formed the extant Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch. While the Melkite Catholic Church's Byzantine liturgical traditions are shared with those of Eastern Orthodoxy, the church has officially been part of the Catholic Church since re-entering communion with the Holy See under Patriarch Cyril VI Tanas in 1724. ![]() At present there is a worldwide membership of approximately 1.6 million. Outside the Near East, the Melkite Church has also grown through intermarriage with, and the conversion of, people of various ethnic heritages as well as transritualism. Melkite Greek Catholics are present, however, throughout the world by migration due to persecution of Christians. It is mainly centered in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Palestine. The Melkite Church, like many other Eastern Catholic particular churches, shares the Byzantine Rite with the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and other Eastern Orthodox churches. The Melkites, who are Byzantine Rite Catholics, trace their history to the early Christians of Antioch, formerly part of Syria and now in Turkey, of the 1st century AD, where Christianity was introduced by Saint Peter. Its chief pastor is Patriarch Youssef Absi, headquartered at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition in Damascus, Syria. The Melkite Greek Catholic Church, or Melkite Byzantine Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catholic Church. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |