Abstract
A Concise History of the Antiochian Orthodox Church
Father Hieromonach Seraphim El Khoury
This summary attempts to briefly recount the history of the Antiochian Orthodox Church from the early Christian era to the present day. It begins by mentioning the founding of the city of Antioch, which became the capital of the Roman province of Syria and was the center of Eastern Christianity during the time that the Lord Jesus lived on earth and thereafter. It was in Antioch that the disciples of Jesus Christ were first called Christians, and from there, the apostle Paul’s missionary journeys to the nations began. The apostle Peter also resided there for a long time (34-41 AD), making him, along with the apostle Paul, considered founders of the church. The history of the Church of Antioch went through difficult periods due to Jewish and later Roman persecutions, and the land of the Church of Antioch, the capital of the East, was sanctified by millions of martyrs and confessors.
Later, after Constantine’s victory over Licinius in 324 AD, the persecutions ceased, but the Apostolic Church of Antioch had to face heresies based on Gnostic and various philosophical ideas and respond to them. This led to many of its flock separating from the Orthodox faith and the formation of other Christian groups, each carrying the name of the Church of Antioch without bearing the pure Orthodox thought transmitted from the time of the apostles and established through tradition and the writings of the holy fathers. The following section of the article studies the role of the Church of Antioch during the Ecumenical Councils and the emergence of other Christian denominations (Assyrian, Syriac, Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Malabar, and Maronite, etc.), as well as the flourishing of monasteries and monastic life and the significant contribution of the saints of the Antiochian Church in the fields of theology and liturgy, in addition to
the martyrs and saints of the Antiochian Church during this era.
During the period (633-638 AD), the Muslim Arabs managed to control all of Syria and Palestine and later on Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, and a large part of Africa. The Arab Islamic rule continued for about three centuries, leading to widespread changes at all levels in the internal life of the Church of Antioch. This paragraph briefly highlights the prominent cultural role of Christians in the life of the Arab state, as well as the martyrs of the church who watered the land of the East with their blood during this era and thereafter, while briefly mentioning the ecclesiastical and monastic flourishing that accompanied the subsequent period, the period of Byzantine re-control over the Levant (969-1084 AD).
As for the following historical period, the Crusader rule (1096- 1268 AD), the Crusader rule was mostly limited to the coasts and western mountains up to the water divide. The interior, like Aleppo, Hama, Homs, Baalbek, and Damascus, remained in the hands of the Muslim Seljuk princes. Three Crusader principalities and a kingdom emerged in the country: the Principality of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, the Principality of Tripoli, and the Latin Kingdom in Jerusalem. The new political and ecclesiastical conditions led to the imposition of Latin patriarchs and priests on the Orthodox people, demanding that the priests acknowledge the pope and his sovereignty. The Orthodox refused to become followers of the Latin political and religious approach, so they outwardly demonstrated obedience to them but internally continued their Orthodoxy. In Antioch and the major cities, the Divine Liturgy was held according to the Latin rite, elevating the presidency of the Latin patriarch and the pope. However, in the remote villages and towns, the Orthodox priests continued to hold the Liturgy according to the Byzantine rite and elevate the presidency of their patriarch. This era was also characterized by the flourishing of
church, monastery, and castle construction by the Crusaders. Later, when the Mamluks expelled the Crusaders in 1268, they took their place until 1517 and inflicted great destruction on the city of Antioch, reducing it to a small village amidst great ruins. Then, Emperor Michael IV negotiated with Baibars, the Sultan of the Mamluks, regarding the patriarchs of the Antiochian See. The Sultan recognized their presidency and allowed their transfer from Antioch to Damascus, which has since become the center of the Antiochian Orthodox Patriarchate, in addition to the old official headquarters in Antioch. The Mamluk rule was marked by severe persecution against Christians and significant destruction of their churches and endowments. The ecclesiastical synaxarion records a large number of Christian martyrs who preferred death for their faith in Christ over denying their faith and embracing Islam—unfortunately, ecclesiastical history has not preserved the names of most of them. At the same time, we notice a significant decrease in the number of Christians resulting from the martyrdom of many on the one hand and the conversion of others to Islam for fear of their lives on the other.
In 1516, the Ottomans arrived in Syria after their victory at the Battle of Marj Dabiq. The beginning of Ottoman rule was marked by restrictions on Christians, leading to the martyrdom of many and the conversion of others to Islam due to fear, poverty, threats, and lack of faith. From the second half of the 17th century, Western missionary efforts began to interfere in the affairs of Eastern Christian churches, exploiting the ignorance and poverty of the Orthodox people, which led to the emergence of Uniate Catholic churches in the East (Greek Catholics, Armenian Catholics, Syriac Catholics, Chaldeans, and the final union of the Maronites with the Church of Rome, in addition to the Latin Church that had been present since the Crusader era). Later, evangelical missionary movements led to the emergence of evangelical sects and others in the Middle East. During the second period of Ottoman
rule, the importance of aid provided by believers from Wallachia, Romania, and later Russia to pay off the debts of the Antiochian Church and help its poor members became prominent.
Regarding the Greek guardianship over the Antiochian patriarchal throne (1724-1891), which had many benefits in curbing Catholic and evangelical poaching movements, it also had some negatives due to the narrow-mindedness, rigidity, and racism of some Greek patriarchs. This led to the Antiochian patriarchal crisis (1891-1909), which ended with the re-election of Patriarch Melatios Doumani of the Antiochian patriarchal synod in 1899 and the subsequent restoration of ecclesiastical communion with the Greek churches in 1909.
The Ottomans withdrew from the Levant following the Great Arab Revolt and World War I in October 1918. This was followed by the French occupation of Syria and Lebanon and the British occupation of Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, and the Arab countries, until the independence of Lebanon in 1945 and Syria in 1946. Here, at the conclusion of the article, is a summary of the recent ecclesiastical historical developments during the 20th century and up to the beginning of the current century, especially during the French rule in Syria and Lebanon and after the independence phase, briefly, such as the patriarchal crisis (1928-1933) and the crisis of the independent Eastern Orthodox Church (1935- 1941), among others. Additionally, a final analytical description of the Antiochian Church in the present era is provided.
