Syrian Orthodox Research Articles

Justinian and the making of the Syrian Orthodox Church. By Volker L. Menze. (Oxford Early Christian Studies.) Pp. x+316. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. £55. 978 0 19 953487 6

Justinian and the making of the Syrian Orthodox Church. By Volker L. Menze. (Oxford Early Christian Studies.) Pp. x+316. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. £55. 978 0 19 953487 6 - Volume 60 Issue 3

Formation of Group Identity: The Syrian Orthodox Christians and their Historical Narratives

1915년 오스만 제국으로 부터 박해 받은 동방 교회교도들은 고향인 아나트리아 지역에서 타국으로 추방되었으며, 이들 중 대부분의 시리아 정교회교도들은 시리아로 이주해야만 했다. 현재 시리아 정교회교도들은 그들의 정체성를 입증하기 위하여 당시의 학살에 대한 기억을 상징적이고 역사적인 사건으로 진술하고 있다. 즉, 학살의 기억은 시리아 정교회 교도들이 시리아의 원주민의 자손이라는 기억을 소생하게 하며 현대 시리아 사회에서 그들의 민족적, 종교적인 권리를 확립하는데 중요한 역할을 하고 있는 것이다.

Monk, Missionary, and Martyr: John of Ephesus, A Syriac Orthodox Historian In Sixth Century Byzantium

Monk, Missionary, and Martyr: John of Ephesus, A Syriac Orthodox Historian In Sixth Century Byzantium

Michael the Syrian and Syriac Orthodox Identity

AbstractThis paper discusses the concept of Syriac Orthodox identity in the chronicle by Michael the Great as it is expressed in terms for the self-designation (like mhaymnē, Suryōyē) and in the structure of the narrative. The heritage of the ancient Near East, based on the ethnical and historical conception of the Arameans (including the Chaldeans and the Ōturōyē as well as the Ōrōmōyē) since the times of the ancient empires was a very important element of the identity. Just as important to him was the historical legitimacy of the Orthodox Church as a group excluding other Aramaic-speaking Christians. This conception of identity was complex, dialectic, and multi-layered, comprising ethnic, historic, cultural, and religious elements. Not unlike modern people, he and the members of the Syriac Orthodox communities participated in different and overlapping cultures and identities throughout the Syriac Orthodox world. The Syriac Orthodox identity had been under polemical attack for a long time, against which both historical and theological answers were formulated over the centuries. At the same time, Michael can be a witness only for a certain group and a certain region. He speaks mainly for the Syriac-speaking regions of the Syriac Orthodox world and the clergy. Neither the Syriac Orthodox identity of Arabic speaking Syriac Orthodox Christians, for example in Takrit, nor the identities of laymen are of his concern.

Syriac Historiography and Identity Formation

AbstractHistoriographical texts are here read as literary compositions of their time, providing us with various elements of the process of identity construction or reconstruction. The first West Syrian historical texts were produced in the sixth century, when the history of what would become the Syrian Orthodox Church began. An examination of contemporary sources and myths of origins shows that the ethnic origins of the Abgarid dynasty played no part in Syrian 'ethnogenesis', but that there existed a notion of Syro-Mesopotamian origins, closely related to a supposed homeland, that of Aram. An acknowledged common ancestry going back to the Chaldean and Assyrian Empires relies on a common language more than a common homeland or sovereign. Whereas the Assyrians came to personify the ever-hostile Persian neighbour, a sort of stereotypical enemy, the Hellenistic kings were perceived as having effected a synthesis of the double Syro-Mesopotamian and Greek culture. The Seleucid era, as adopted by the Edessans, thus remained in use regardless of the prevailing political powers and is an assertion of independence and a strong local identity marker, being a rejection of the local Antiochene as well as the imperial Byzantine eras. The Syrian Orthodox also developed an innovative method of writing the history of their separated Church, producing a new genre consisting of lengthy chronicles written in several parts or columns, in which political and ecclesiastical history were kept separate. This Syrian Orthodox method of writing history is the only truly distinctive Syrian Orthodox literary genre.

The Formation of a Communal Identity among West Syrian Christians: Results and Conclusions of the Leiden Project

AbstractAmong those who opposed the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the West Syrian (or Syriac Orthodox) Christians were probably least likely to form a national or ethnic community. Yet a group emerged with its own distinctive literature and art, its own network, and historical consciousness. In an intricate process of adoption and rejection, the West Syrians selected elements from the cultures to which they were heirs, and from those with which they came into contact, thus defining a position of their own. In order to study this phenomenon, scholars from various disciplines, and affiliated to two different faculties, were brought together in a programme financed by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research NWO. This essay introduces their research project and methodology, and presents their results and conclusions.

Epilogue: Religious Origins of Nations?

At the end of this book, it would seem appropriate to look back and see how the various contributions relate to the results and conclusions of the Leiden project, which are presented in the opening chapter. Here we have to bear in mind that the nature of the contributions differs: some authors have reacted to elements of our essay; others have offered their insights on the basis of their own research, whether it is concerned with additional sources regarding the Syriac Orthodox community, or whether it relates to some of the other Christian communities of the Middle East. However, central to all the contributions is the question 'Can a religious choice indeed be the starting point for an ethnic community and eventually even a nation, or should we assume that the Christian communities of the Middle East have always been of an ethnic nature?'. Keywords: Christian communities; epilogue; Religious Origins

Dominance and Diversity: Kingship, Ethnicity, and Christianity in Orthodox Ethiopia

AbstractThe purpose of this article is to survey the history of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church with an emphasis on several features which are of significance for comparison to Syriac Orthodox Christianity. Although it focuses primarily on the period from 1270 during which 'Ethiopian' was a national rather than ethnic identity, it shares several themes with other papers in this volume. After considering the manner in which Christianity reached Ethiopia and in particular the central role played by the royal court in the acceptance and consolidation of the Church, attention is given to the claims of successive Ethiopian rulers and ethnic groups to be 'Israelites', that is, descendants of biblical figures most notably King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. The paper next considers the manner in which monastic movements, which emerged in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, were associated with ethnically based resistance to the expansion of the Christian kingdom. Other themes include the development of a tradition of biblical interpretation and Christological controversies. The paper concludes with a discussion of ongoing research concerning the Ethiopian diaspora which has developed in the period since the Marxist revolution of 1974.

Reflections on Identity. The Suryoye of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries: Bar Salibi, Bar Shakko, and Barhebraeus

AbstractThe present article studies some aspects of the literary output of three Syriac Orthodox authors, Dionysius bar Salibi, Jacob bar Shakko, and Gregory Barhebraeus, who are considered the most important representatives of the period known as 'the Syriac Renaissance' (twelfth and thirteenth centuries). The focus of this study is on the growing importance of Arabic, the concern for the preservation of Syriac, considered as an important identity marker, the influence of Muslim cultural patterns and the West Syrian attitude to Islam as a religious system, and, finally, the emergence or rejection of ideas which tend to consider the Christologies of the East Syrians and Chalcedonians acceptable.

The Psalm Commentary of Daniel of Salah and the Formation of Sixth-Century Syrian Orthodox Identity

AbstractBy the 540s the anti-Chalcedonian Syrian Miaphysites had experienced frequent periods of persecution and were in the process of developing into an independent church, with distinct structures and doctrine. Unable to found schools for their clergy, they needed alternative methods to provide ideological formation. This paper argues that the Miaphysite leaders identified the exegesis of the Psalms, the quintessence of the scriptures and the heart of the daily liturgy, as a key means not only of shaping their community's religious beliefs but also of addressing larger political issues. Their chosen exegete was Daniel of Salah who in c.542 produced a Psalm commentary in homiletic form which addressed numerous issues of contemporary relevance. His response to Christological controversy is touched upon, but the focus is on his development of Miaphysite imperial ideology. Previous historians have usually argued that the Miaphysites demonstrated great loyalty to the institution and person of the emperor, despite persecution at their hands. This paper argues to the contrary that while Daniel accepted the need for political allegiance to the emperors, he denies them any role as special mediators of divine revelation or faith. The true king is the crucified Christ, in whose image the mind or reason of each human was created, and it is the guidance of these which is to be followed in religious matters.

The Authorial Spirit? Biblical Citations in Jacob of Edessa's Hexaemeron

Abstract The Syrian Orthodox bishop and polymath Jacob of Edessa (c. 630–708 CE) produced his own Syriac version of the Old Testament which combined the Peshitta and Greek traditions. Similarly composite citations of Scripture appear in his other works, raising the question of their relationship to his own biblical version. This article analyses some examples of citations of the book of Job that appear in Jacob's first treatise in his Hexaemeron, on the nature of angels.

Formation of Group Identity among Syrian Orthodox Christians: State Politics and Historical Narratives

Formation of Group Identity among Syrian Orthodox Christians: State Politics and Historical Narratives

Constructing a group identity within the Syrian nation: Religious multiculturalism and music practices among Syrian Orthodox Christians

Constructing a group identity within the Syrian nation: Religious multiculturalism and music practices among Syrian Orthodox Christians

Some aspects of the situation of refugees from the oriental Orthodox Christian churches

Among the many denominations of Christians living in the Middle East, one is that of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, comprising the Armenian Orthodox, the Syrian Orthodox, the Coptic Orthodox, the Ethiopian Orthodox and the Eritrean Orthodox, who are among the most ancient Christian communities of the Middle East and Africa. Right up until the present, large groups of these people have been leaving their home places, not only for economic reasons, but also as a consequence of major historical and more recent turmoil in their areas of origin. Some of them have become refugees, mostly in North and South America, Europe and Australia. In a number of cases, religious reasons have also played a role in these migrations. In most of the places to which these Christians have emigrated, they have organized their own parishes.

The Search for Orthodoxy A.D. 325–553

How could Christendom be split into six churches by the mid-sixth century, despite repeated, strenuous efforts to bring about a unity of doctrine? The six were, at the end (and five remain to this day), Arian, Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, and East Syrian. The focus of discussion is on the eastern half of the Roman world and on the play of forces beyond the strictly theological at the decisive councils: namely, control of procedures, documents, and witnesses, so as to insure a majority vote at the end, and, in the run-up, control of the emperor who summoned the council and determined the list of invited bishops. The forming of voting blocs encouraged the forming of fixed traditions, influenced by regional loyalties of all sorts and stubbornly maintained in the face even of imperial force. Hence, from the mid-fifth century, independent churches.

Syrian Orthodox Attitudes ro the Pilgrimage to Jerusalem

Syrian Orthodox Attitudes ro the Pilgrimage to Jerusalem

From religious association to ethnic community: a research project on identity formation among the Syrian orthodox under muslim rule

At the Universityof Leiden, a research group is investigating the formation of a communal identity among West Syrian (or Syrian Orthodox) Christians after the Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE. Of the anti-Chalcedonians, the Syrian Orthodox were probably least likely to form a national or ethnic community. Yet a group emerged with its own distinctive literature and art, its own network and historical consciousness. In a process of adoption and rejection, the West Syrians selected elements from the cultures to which they were heirs and from those with which they came into contact, thus defining a position of their own. In order to study this phenomenon, scholars from various disciplines and affiliated to two different faculties are working together. This paper discusses their research programme and its basic hypothesis.

Selective Amnesia: Memory and History of the Urfalli Syrian Orthodox Christians

This article analyzes how a community of Syrian Orthodox Christians (Urfallis), who were forced to emigrate from Urfa to Aleppo in 1924, reconstruct their collective history. These displaced Christians maintain silence about two important events in their history. The reason for their emigration and their participation in the Syrian nationalist movement during the 1930s are either wiped from their memories or deliberately concealed. This selective amnesia is conditioned largely by the complex relationship between the ruling elite, whether French or Syrian, and ordinary Urfallis. The process of historical reconstruction suggests that the ambivalent position of these Christians, which stems from their religious affiliation and immigrant origin, makes them design alternative narratives in order to adapt to the changing political situation whilst they establish a secure position for themselves within Syrian society. This research was funded by the Royal Anthropological Institute.

Studi su Clemente Romano: Atti degli Incontri di Roma, 29 marzo e 22 novembre 2001 (review)

Ancient and Medieval Studi su Clemente Romano: Atti degli Incontri di Roma, 29 marzo e 22 novembre 2001. Edited by Philippe Luisier, S.J. [Orientalia Christiana Analecta 268.] (Rome: Pontificio Istituto Orientale. 2003. Pp. 226. Paperback.) The eight essays of this volume are products of two conferences focused on Clemens Romanus and Clementine tradition held in March and November, 2001, in the city of Rome. English and Italian summaries of each essay conclude the volume, which contains no indices. Alessandro Bausi (San Clemente e le tradizioni clementine nella letteratura etiopica canonico-liturgica, pp. 13-55) presents a valuable overview of research on Ethiopian literature on Clement and the Clementine tradition. One group of texts written under the name of Clement belongs to the literary genre of the Graeco-Roman romance novel (e.g., The Preaching and The Acts of Peter). Another group belongs to the tradition of canon law and liturgy (Sinodos, The Synod or the Collection of Canons). Translations from the Greek mark the first period of this literature (fourth to seventh centuries); pseudonymous texts attributed to Clement are translations from Arabic with a long line of transmission in which Arabic versions are the immediate antecedents of Ethiopian versions. The possible existence in the first period of pseudo-Clementine texts of canonical-liturgical content and an Ethiopian collection of canon law would shed new light on the origin of anthologies of canon law in Ethiopia. An extensive bibliography closes the essay. Two of the eight essays are by Enrico Cattaneo on the text of 1 Clement, In the first (Un 'nuovo' passo della Prima dementis', la 'grande ammonizione' di 58,2-59,2a,pp. 57-82), Cattaneo argues that 1 Clement 58:2-59:2a constitutes a focal point of this general yet personal letter. Reflecting an awareness of the Israelite roots of the Roman Christian community, the verses constitute a grand admonition concluding this admonitory letter and promise salvation to those who like Jesus obey God's will. Cattaneo's second study (La Prima dementis come un caso di correptio fraternapp. 83-103) views the entire letter as a fraternal admonition/instruction/correction (paideia) from the church at Rome to that at Corinth, similar to the fraternal instruction of IQS 5,24-6,1 in content and spirit. Offering a profile of Clement of Rome in the liturgical texts of the Christian East (pp. 107-126), Johannes Hoffmann discusses (1) the canonical reception of 1 (and 2) Clement at Corinth, among the Copts (fifth century) and as late as the twelfth century among the Syrian Orthodox; (2) Clement as pseudepigraphic author of various liturgical formulae and directives contained in, inter alia, the Apostolic Constitutions, a Syrian Orthodox Divine Liturgy, Egyptian canonical anthologies and even later fasting rule from Calabria (fifteenth century); and (3) hagiographical detail on Clement contained in medieval liturgical texts. Elzbieta Jastrzebowska (Il culto di s. Clemente a Chersoneso alia luce della ricerca archeologica, pp. 127-137 and 14 plates) demonstrates that archaeological research does not substantiate any early veneration of Clemens Romanus at Chersonesis, the purported location of his death and burial, prior to the seventh century. The sole church bearing his name was consecrated only in the nineteenth century. Here, as is often the case, written sources and archaeological evidence fail to match. …

Penance and Reconciliation in the Crusader States: Matthew Paris, Jacques de Vitry and the Eastern Christians

Medieval popes can scarcely have expected such spectacular results from a bull as Gregory EX achieved in 1237. His bull Cum hora undecima of 1235, a fundamental statement of the Church’s missionary function, gave specific licence to the Dominican William of Montferrat to preach, dispense the sacraments, absolve and excommunicate in the lands of schismatics and heretics of the East. Two years later, Philip, the Dominican provincial of the Holy Land, wrote to the pope announcing the conversion to Rome of the Syrian Orthodox (Jacobite) patriarch of Antioch, Ignatius II, the anticipated conversion of the Nestorian catholicos in Baghdad and possibly also the conversion of the Coptic patriarch. It was a staggering return from a mission only two years old, and represented a triumph for the Dominican Order as well as for the papacy.