Melkite Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch


The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch, also known as the Melkite Catholic Church, and legally as the Rūm Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East, is an autocephalous Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See. It originates from the historic Church of Antioch, which according to tradition, was founded by the Apostles Peter and Paul. The church is headed by the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch and maintains its own distinct Byzantine liturgical tradition and ecclesiastical governance.
WWW melkitepat.org

History

The Melkite Greek Catholic Church traces its origins to the ancient Christian community of Antioch, one of the earliest centers of Christianity. After the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the Church of Antioch experienced divisions, leading to the formation of multiple branches. The term Melkite originally referred to those who accepted Chalcedonian Christology and remained aligned with the Byzantine emperor.
In 1724, a schism occurred within the Chalcedonian Melkite Church when Cyril VI Tanas was elected patriarch and sought communion with Rome. The portion of the Church that rejected communion with Rome remained within the Eastern Orthodox Church, forming the modern Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch.

Structure and leadership

The Melkite Catholic Patriarch of Antioch's complete title is:
Patriarch of Antioch and of All the East, of Alexandria and of Jerusalem of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, incorporating its other titular patriarchates. The patriarchal cathedral is the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition in Damascus, Syria. It was visited by Pope John Paul II in 2001.

Membership and distribution

The Melkite Greek Catholic Church has approximately 1.6 million members worldwide. Its territorial jurisdiction includes Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, and parts of Egypt and Iraq. The Melkite diaspora extends to Europe, the Americas, and Australia, where it has established parishes and eparchies.
The Church continues to maintain its Byzantine heritage while remaining fully Catholic, preserving the traditions of Eastern Christianity within the larger communion of the Catholic Church.

Proper province and archdiocese

The Patriarch also holds the office of Metropolitan of an empty Ecclesiastical province without an actual suffragan see, actually comprising only his proper Metropolitan Archeparchy of Damascus also, in . Like the Patriarchate, in Rome it depends only upon the Congregation for the Oriental Churches.
During a vacancy in the Patriarchate, the bishop of the permanent synod who is most senior by ordination serves as administrator in chief of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church.
, it pastorally served three thousand Catholics in eight parishes and one mission with: nine priests ; three deacons; thirtythree lay religious ; and ten seminarians.

Titular patriarchates

In continuation of the earlier Melkite patriarchates of the ancient sees of Alexandria and of Jerusalem, two titular patriarchates exist. These are however simply titles, vested in the residential Patriarch of Antioch, which also have Catholic residential counterparts:

List of eparchs and archeparchs

The following is a list of Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchs of Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem. Those Patriarchs who were born in Syria are indicated with a symbol 'α', those born in Egypt with 'β', and those born in Lebanon with 'γ'. Eparch is equivalent to bishop, and archeparch to archbishop:

Auxiliary bishops

The following is a list of auxiliary bishops of the episcopate of the See of Antioch:
  • François Abou Mokh BS, 1996 –
  • Isidore Battikha BA, –
  • Jean Mansour MSP, – 1997
  • François Abou Mokh BS, – 1992
  • Élias Nijmé BA, –
  • Saba Youakim BS, –
  • Nicolas Hajj, –
  • Néophytos Edelby BA, –
  • Pierre Kamel Medawar, MSP, – 1969