JACOBITES (SYRIAN)

The title Jacobite, which appears after a.d. 575, comes from the name of James baradai, who organized a faction within the Syrian Orthodox Church. Consecrated bishop of Edessa (543) by the exiled patriarch of Alexandria at the instigation of Empress Theodora (1) and the Ghassanid Prince Harith, James Baradai ordained 30 bishops and thousands of priests and deacons during frequent trips through the Orient from Persia to Egypt.

The Syrian Jacobites trace their lineage to Sergius of Antioch (558–561), although the actual schism that gave rise to the name occurred during the patriarchate of Paul the Black (d. 581) and was healed after his death with the election of his successor, Peter of Callinicum (581–591). The name Jacobite was applied by the Byzantine Orthodox to differentiate the non–Chalcedonian Syrian Oriental Orthodox Church, which is not in communion with either Constantinople or Rome. Outstanding churchmen were Denis of Tellmahrē, James of Edessa, Michael of Antioch, and Gregorius ibn al–’Ibrī.

The Jacobites played an important role during the occupation of Syria by the Arabs, whom they received as liberators from the yoke of Byzantium. During the dynasty of the ’abbĀsids, they were held in great esteem at the court of baghdad.

While the Jacobite patriarch was never able to establish a firm residence in Antioch, he had his see successively in various monasteries and exercised jurisdiction over the churches located in the Sassanid Empire of Persia through a primate called Maphriān, who was a sort of universal delegate of the patriarch. In the 12th century the Jacobite patriarchate numbered 2 million faithful with 20 metropolitans and 103 eparchs, or bishops, in Syria, Mesopotamia, and Cyprus. Internal problems, including a schism (1364–94), gradually weakened the church's membership and integrity, and by the 17th century it was reduced to 20 bishoprics. Since 1293 the Jacobite Patriarch of Antioch has taken the name of Ignatius on election.

Bibliography: c. l. spiessens, "Les Patriarches d'Antioche," L'Orient syrien 7 (1962) 389–434. Oriente Cattolico: Cenni storici e statistiche (Vatican City 1962). r. roberson, The Eastern Christian Churches: A Brief Survey (Rome 1999).

[e. el hayek/eds.]