Syriac Orthodox Church

The **Syriac Orthodox Church** (), fully known as the **Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch**, is an Oriental Orthodox church that developed from the Church of Antioch. Classical Syriac is the official and liturgical language of the church. The patriarch of the church and the see of Antioch is Ignatius Aphrem II, who has led the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch since 2014.

With 1.5 million followers worldwide, it employs the Liturgy of St. James in its West-Syriac rite. The church upholds the doctrines of the Nicene Creed, Miaphysitism, and sacraments. The patriarchate is currently located in Cathedral of Saint George in Bab Tuma, Damascus, Syria.

## Institutions

The Syriac Orthodox Church has many institutions, including seminaries and colleges. It comprises 26 archdioceses and 13 patriarchal vicariates. It also has an autonomous maphrianate based in India, the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church. In 1934, the patriarch at the time, Afrem I Barsoum, established the St. Ephrem Clerical School in Zahlé, Lebanon. The school was moved to Mosul, Iraq in 1946. Many figures who would later be part of the church graduated from this school. A church in New Jersey, USA has the title of "Assyrian Orthodox Church".

In 1990, the Order of St. Jacob Baradaeus was established for nuns of the church.

## Views

Per sacred tradition, the church was established by‌ St. Peter at Antioch. It then developed its own unique structure, separate from the Imperial Church, following the deposition of Severus the Great by the Council of Chalcedon in 451, which the Syriac Orthodox Church does not acknowledge. Thus, the church recognizes and adheres to the first three ecumenical councils: Nicea, Constantinople, and Ephesus.

The church adheres to the doctrine of Miaphysitism, which states that the two natures of Christ — divine and human — are fully united into one composite nature. It believes in the seven sacraments, which are: Baptism, Chrismation, Eucharist, Confession, Anointing of the Sick (also known as Unction), Holy Orders, and Matrimony. It upholds the mystery of the Incarnation and venerates the Virgin Mary as _Theotokos_ (God-bearer).

In recent times, the church hierarchy has generally supported an Aramean ideology, driven by an anti-Assyrian stance, which has evolved into a sectarian and vocal anti-Assyrianism.

## Other websites

- Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate Official Website
- Syriac Orthodox Department of Syriac Studies
- Syriac Orthodox Resources

## Infobox (religion)

- **icon**: Patriarchal Emblem of Syriac Orthodox Church.svg
- **name**: Syriac Orthodox Church
- **image**: DSC 1523 Catedral siríaca en Damasco.JPG
- **caption**: The Cathedral of Saint George in Damascus, Syria
- **main classification**: Eastern Christianity
- **orientation**: Syriac Christianity (Western)
- **scripture**: Peshitta
- **theology**: Oriental Orthodox theology
 (Miaphysite)
- **polity**: Episcopal polity, Episcopal
- **structure**: Koinonia, Communion
- **leader title**: Patriarch
- **leader name**: Ignatius Aphrem II
- **area**: Middle East, India, and diaspora
- **language**: Classical Syriac
- **liturgy**: Syro-Antiochene Rite
 (West Syriac Rite: Divine Liturgy of Saint James)
- **headquarters**: Cathedral of Saint George, Damascus, Syria (since 1959)
- **branched from**: Church of Antioch
- **members**: Appriximately 1.4 to 1.7 million followers
- **independence**: 512
- **separations**: Syriac Catholic Church (1662)