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123-465: Assyrian Church may refer to: Chaldean Catholic Church , an Eastern Christian church founded by and composed of ethnic Assyrians entered into communion with Rome Assyrian Church of the East , an Eastern Christian church Ancient Church of the East , an Eastern Christian denomination founded in 1968 Assyrian Evangelical Church , a Presbyterian church in

246-490: A bishop to be found for the see of ʿ Amadiya, and as Joseph Audo had failed to overcome the opposition of Yohannan's supporters to his appointment of metropolitan of Mosul, Gabriel Dambo and the Catholic missionaries agreed that he should be reassigned to ʿ Amadiya. Like Basil before him, however, he declined to trust his life to the good faith of Isma'il Pasha, and withdrew to Alqosh, where he continued to intrigue among

369-508: A celebrated West Syrian monastery near Mosul. The Malabar Christians informed the Vatican of Pandari's arrival in India in a letter of 17 January 1800, and Yohannan was asked to account for his actions. His explanation was accepted, and in a general consistory of 23 September 1801 the possibility of appointing him patriarch of Babylon was considered. Unfortunately for Yohannan, his position

492-762: A century and a half after the Holy See had conferred headship of the Chaldean Catholics on Joseph I of Amid, Pope Pius VIII granted recognition as Patriarch to Yohannan, whose (non-hereditary) patriarchal succession has since then lasted unbroken in the Chaldean Catholic Church. In 1838, the Kurds of Soran attacked the Rabban Hormizd Monastery and Alqosh, apparently thinking the villagers were Yazidis responsible for

615-457: A church [...] We have to separate what is ethnicity and what is religion [...] I myself, my sect is Chaldean, but ethnically, I am Assyrian." Earlier, he said: "Before I became a priest I was an Assyrian, before I became a bishop I was an Assyrian, I am an Assyrian today, tomorrow, forever, and I am proud of it." The Chaldean Catholic Church traces its beginnings to the Church of the East , which

738-583: A curious bargain with the Nestorian church in an attempt to continue the succession. He ordained his nephew Mansur Sefaro a priest, and in 1831 sent him to the Nestorian patriarch Shem ʿ on XVII Abraham (1820–61), who consecrated him at Urmi and appointed him metropolitan over the Nestorians of ʿ Amadiya. The new metropolitan took the name Eliya, the traditional name of the Chaldean patriarchs before

861-645: A half months by the Turkish authorities. Again, the governor of Baghdad intervened to secure their release. Yohannan's precarious relations with the Vatican survived a further test in 1801, only to sink further in 1802. In 1796 a delegation from the Malabar Christians arrived in Mosul and begged him to consecrate a bishop for them. Yohannan punctiliously wrote to the Vatican for guidance, but as Rome

984-764: A large immigration to the United States particularly to West Bloomfield and Oakland County in Southeast Michigan . Although the largest population resides in Southeast Michigan, there are populations in parts of California and Arizona as well, which all fall under the Eparchy of Saint Thomas the Apostle of Detroit . In addition, Canada in recent years has shown growing communities in provinces such as Ontario . In 2008, Bawai Soro of

1107-548: A member of the "Eliya line" family is part of the series of patriarchs of the Chaldean Catholic Church. For many centuries, from at least the time of Jerome (c. 347 – 420), the term "Chaldean" was a misnomer that indicated the Biblical Aramaic language and was still the normal name in the nineteenth century. Jerome did know that Aramaic was in the Bible, where he designated the biblical Aramaic (or Old Aramaic ) by

1230-421: A member of the "Eliya line" family, opposed Eliya XII (1778–1804), the last of that line to be elected in the normal way as patriarch. In 1780 Yohannan was irregularly elected patriarch, as Sulaqa had been in 1552. He won over to communion with Rome most followers of the "Eliyya line". The Holy See did not recognize him as patriarch, but in 1791 Pope Pius VI appointed him archbishop of Amid and administrator of

1353-454: A new Latin apostolic vicar had been appointed in Rome and was now on his way to Mosul, and the patriarch's enemies temporarily came into line to make a good first impression on this important official. But when after two months he had still not arrived, they resumed their duties in flat defiance of Yohannan's orders. One man only, a priest named Stephen, sent in his submission to the patriarch, and

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1476-467: A number of monks in the monastery of Rabban Hormizd rebelled against its administrator Yohannan Gwera, who enjoyed the support of the metropolitan Joseph Audo. Yohannan Hormizd upheld the rebels, and was also able to have Basil Asmar expelled from Telkepe , forcing him to take refuge in Amid. On 3 April 1827, shortly after Basil's arrival, Augustine Hindi died at Amid and was buried in a cemetery outside

1599-589: A polemical autobiography in Syriac , a fragment of which (breaking off in 1795) was translated into English by the Anglican missionary George Percy Badger and reproduced in his classic 1852 study of the Church of the East, The Nestorians and Their Rituals . His opponents responded with an equally intemperate history of the monastery of Rabban Hormizd under the headship of Gabriel Dambo of Mardin (1775–1832), which

1722-455: A profession of faith and a letter of submission to the Vatican. The Vatican was placed in a dilemma by this turn of events. If Yohannan's profession of faith was genuine, he might be the Catholic patriarch of Babylon the Vatican had long been hoping for, and his confirmation would be rapidly followed by the adoption of Catholicism by all the villages of the Mosul patriarchate. On the other hand, to confirm Yohannan's election would be to condone

1845-470: A profession of faith that Pope Clement XIV accepted, thus establishing communion in principle. When Eliya XI died in 1778, the metropolitans recognized as his successor Ishoyabb, who accordingly took the Eliya name ( Eliya XII ). To win support, Eliya made profession of the Catholic faith, but almost immediately renounced it and declared his support of the traditionalist (Nestorian) view. Yohannan Hormizd ,

1968-479: A teacher and scholar moved to Mosul. In 1808 he had no difficulty in persuading the Chaldean authorities and their Catholic missionary advisers to allow him to establish a seminary in the monastery of Rabban Hormizd. Before long he collected a number of pupils, who were vowed to poverty and celibacy, and was appointed lay superior of the seminary. An energetic and charismatic visionary, Gabriel had his own ideas of how things should be done, and had little patience with

2091-507: A total of 4,498 Chaldean Catholics in that country. Despite the internal discords of the reigns of Yohannan Hormizd (1830–1838), Nicholas I Zaya (1839–1847) and Joseph VI Audo (1847–1878), the 19th century was a period of considerable growth for the Chaldean church, in which its territorial jurisdiction was extended, its hierarchy strengthened and its membership nearly doubled. In 1850, the Anglican missionary George Percy Badger recorded

2214-400: A total of twelve vicariates. Tfinkdji's grand total of 101,610 Catholics in 199 villages is slightly exaggerated, as his figures included 2,310 nominal Catholics in twenty-one 'newly converted' or 'semi-Nestorian' villages in the dioceses of Amid, Seert and ʿ Aqra, but it is clear that the Chaldean Catholic Church had grown significantly since 1896. With around 100,000 believers in 1913,

2337-476: Is almost certainly far too low. Paulin Martin's statistical survey in 1867, after the creation of the dioceses of ʿ Aqra , Zakho , Basra and Sehna by Joseph Audo, recorded a total church membership of 70,268, more than three times higher than Badger's estimate. Most of the population figures in these statistics have been rounded up to the nearest thousand, and they may also have been exaggerated slightly, but

2460-487: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Chaldean Catholic Church The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom reports that, according to the Iraqi Christian Foundation, an agency of the Chaldean Catholic Church, approximately 80% of Iraqi Christians are of that church. In its own 2018 Report on Religious Freedom,

2583-670: Is given in Adrian Fortescue's Lesser Eastern Churches . The "Eastern Assyrians", who, if not Catholic, were presumed to be Nestorians, were distinguished from the "Western Assyrians" (those west of the Tigris River), who were looked on as Jacobites . It was as Patriarch of the "Eastern Assyrians" that Sulaqa's successor, Abdisho IV Maron , was accredited for participation in the Council of Trent . The names already in use (except that of "Nestorian") were thus applied to

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2706-523: Is remembered also for his clashes with Pope Pius IX mainly about his attempts to extend the Chaldean jurisdiction over the Malabar Catholics . This was a period of expansion for the Chaldean Catholic Church. The activity of the Turkish army and their Kurdish and Arab allies, partly in response to armed support for Russia in the territory of the Qochanis patriarchate, brought ruin also to

2829-447: Is unlikely to have placed a sympathetic construction on Yohannan Hormizd's previous record. The Sacred Congregation concluded that Yohannan Hormizd had not taken his suspension seriously, and on 24 May 1818 it was renewed. The appointments of Augustine Hindi and Giwargis of Alqosh were renewed by briefs of 26 June 1818, and Yohannan Hormizd was informed of the new sentence in a latter of 11 July 1818. Once again, Yohannan refused to accept

2952-691: The American states of Michigan , Illinois and California . In 2006, the Eparchy of Oceania , with the title of 'St Thomas the Apostle of Sydney of the Chaldeans' was set up with jurisdiction including the Chaldean Catholic communities of Australia and New Zealand . Its first Bishop, named by Pope Benedict XVI on 21 October 2006, was Archbishop Djibrail (Jibrail) Kassab , until this date, Archbishop of Bassorah in Iraq. There has been

3075-595: The Assyrian Church of the East and 1,000 Assyrian families were received into full communion with the Chaldean Catholic Church. On Friday, June 10, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI erected a new Chaldean Catholic eparchy in Toronto, Ontario , Canada and named Archbishop Yohannan Zora , who has worked alongside four priests with Catholics in Toronto (the largest community of Chaldeans ) for nearly 20 years and who

3198-500: The Catholic Church , but in the course of over a century, their link with Rome grew weak. The last to request and obtain formal papal recognition died in 1600. They adopted hereditary succession to the patriarchate, opposition to which had caused the 1552 schism. In 1672, Shimun XIII Dinkha formally broke communion with Rome, adopting a profession of faith that contradicted that of Rome, while he maintained his independence from

3321-511: The Catholic Church , on the basis of a decree of the Council of Florence , which accepted the profession of faith that Timothy, metropolitan of the Aramaic speakers in Cyprus , made in Aramaic, and which decreed that "nobody shall in future dare to call [...] Chaldeans, Nestorians". Previously, when there were as yet no Catholic Aramaic speakers of Mesopotamian origin, the term "Chaldean"

3444-606: The Council of Ephesus in 431 was a turning point in the history of the Church of the East. The Council condemned as heretical the Christology of Nestorius , whose reluctance to accord the Virgin Mary the title Theotokos "God-bearer, Mother of God" was taken as evidence that he believed two separate persons (as opposed to two united natures) to be present within Christ. The Sasanian Emperor provided refuge for those who in

3567-588: The First World War was made in 1913 by the Chaldean priest Joseph Tfinkdji, after a period of steady growth since 1896. It then consisted of the patriarchal archdiocese of Mosul and Baghdad, four other archdioceses ( Amid , Kirkuk , Seert and Urmi ), and eight dioceses ( ʿ Aqra , ʿ Amadiya , Gazarta , Mardin , Salmas , Sehna, Zakho and the newly created diocese of Van). Five more patriarchal vicariates had been established since 1896 (Ahwaz, Constantinople, Basra, Ashshar and Deir al-Zor), giving

3690-706: The Nestorian schism rejected the decrees of the Council of Ephesus enforced in the Byzantine Empire . In 484 he executed the pro-Roman Catholicos Babowai . Under the influence of Barsauma , Bishop of Nisibis , the Church of the East officially accepted as normative the teaching not of Nestorius himself, but of his teacher Theodore of Mopsuestia , whose writings the 553 Second Council of Constantinople condemned as Nestorian but some modern scholars view them as orthodox. The position thus assigned to Theodore in

3813-655: The Rabban Hormizd monks and the Catholic missionaries wrote jointly to the Propaganda calling for Yohannan's deposition, alleging that he was opposed to their order, that he incited the Kurds of Isma'il Pasha against them, and that he was endeavouring to lead the Chaldean proselytes back to Nestorianism. The Vatican was alarmed at these charges and on 15 February 1812 suspended Yohannan from his functions as archbishop of Mosul and patriarchal administrator and appointed Shem ʿ on Sayyegh apostolic vicar for Mosul and

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3936-470: The Sacred Congregation decided to appoint Yohannan archbishop of Mosul and administrator of the patriarchate of Babylon, granting him all the necessary powers to that end except the title and the insignia of the patriarch. For the next eight years Yohannan Hormizd seemed to justify the hopes placed in him. He lived on amicable terms with the Catholic missionaries and devoted his energies to

4059-759: The United States Department of State put the Chaldean Catholics at approximately 67% of the Christians in Iraq . The 2019 Country Guidance on Iraq of the European Union Agency for Asylum gives the same information as the United States Department of State. The Chaldean Catholic Church arose following a schism within the Church of the East . In 1552, the established "Eliya line" of patriarchs

4182-412: The Vatican seriously considered the possibility of suspending Yohannan Hormizd, and rumours that he had indeed been suspended were circulated by his opponents, eliciting a spirited letter of protest to the Vatican by his supporters on 15 October 1811. Yohannan Hormizd's opponents were eventually able to win over the pasha of Mosul to their side, who briefly imprisoned him. The missionaries, led by

4305-876: The Xi'an Stele ), a Tang dynasty tablet in Chinese script dating to 781 that documented 150 years of Christian history in China. Their most lasting addition was of the Saint Thomas Christians of the Malabar Coast in India , where they had around 10 million followers. However, a decline had already set in at the time of Yahballaha III (1281–1317), when the Church of the East reached its greatest geographical extent, it had in south and central Iraq and in south, central and east Persia only four dioceses, where at

4428-494: The schism of 1552 (Yohannan's own family), and shortly afterwards abandoned the pretence of being a Nestorian and was readmitted into the Chaldean church, ultimately becoming the first Chaldean bishop of ʿ Aqra in 1852. In spite of this account, it was presumably with the intention of excluding this nephew from being his successor that in 1837 Yohannan, aware that he had not long to live, designated Gregory Peter di Natale, metropolitan of Gazarta , as coadjutor and "guardian of

4551-537: The "Eliya line". Leadership of those who wished to be in communion with Rome then passed to the Archbishop of Amid Joseph I , recognized as Catholic patriarch, first by the Turkish civil authorities (1677), and then by Rome itself (1681). A century and a half later, in 1830, Rome conferred headship of the Catholics on Yohannan Hormizd . A member of the "Eliya line" family: he opposed Eliya XII (1778–1804),

4674-471: The "Josephite line". Joseph IV presented his resignation in 1780 and it was accepted in 1781, after which he handed over the administration of the patriarchate to his nephew, not yet a bishop, and retired to Rome, where he lived until 1791. Appointment of the nephew as patriarch would look like acceptance of the principle of hereditary succession. Besides, the Alqosh "Eliya line" was drawing closer to Rome, and

4797-407: The 1830s. The monks of the monastery of Rabban Hormizd still refused to acknowledge his authority, and were supported by the metropolitan Joseph Audo , who now claimed jurisdiction over the monastery on the grounds that it lay within his diocese of ʿ Amadiya. Yohannan Hormizd retaliated by suspending Audo and a number of Rabban Hormizd monks, but this action had little effect. A rumour spread that

4920-680: The 1964 schism between what are now called the Assyrian and the Ancient Church of the East. Dissent over the practice of hereditary succession to the Patriarchate, usually from uncle to nephew, led to the action in 1552 by a group of bishops from the northern regions of Amid and Salmas who elected as a rival Patriarch the abbot of Rabban Hormizd Monastery (which was the Patriarch's residence) Yohannan Sulaqa . "To strengthen

5043-465: The Alqosh-based "Eliya line" of patriarchs. The "Shimun line" eventually became the patriarchal line of what since 1976 is officially called the Assyrian Church of the East . Leadership of those who wished to be in communion with Rome then passed to Archbishop Joseph of Amid. In 1677 his leadership was recognized first by the Turkish civil authorities, and then in 1681 by Rome. (Until then,

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5166-423: The Catholic patriarchate. The violent protests of Joseph IV's nephew, who was then in Rome, and suspicions raised by others about the sincerity of Yohannan's conversion prevented this being put into effect. In 1793 it was agreed that Yohannan should withdraw from Amid to Mosul, the metropolitan see that he already held, but that the post of patriarch would not be conferred on his rival, Joseph IV's nephew. In 1802

5289-491: The Chaldean Catholic Church (1989–2003), who accepted the term Assyrian as descriptive of his nationality and ethnicity, commented: "When a portion of the Church of the East became Catholic in the 17th Century, the name given to the church was 'Chaldean' based on the Magi kings who were believed by some to have come from what once had been the land of the Chaldean, to Bethlehem. The name 'Chaldean' does not represent an ethnicity, just

5412-619: The Chaldean dioceses of Amid, Siirt and Gazarta and the metropolitans Addai Scher of Siirt and Philippe-Jacques Abraham of Gazarta were killed in 1915. In the 21st century, Father Ragheed Aziz Ganni , the pastor of the Chaldean Church of the Holy Spirit in Mosul, who graduated from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Angelicum in Rome in 2003 with a licentiate in ecumenical theology,

5535-488: The Chaldeans . The suppression of the Amid patriarchate and the union of the Chaldean dioceses under the patriarch of Babylon in 1830 marked the birth of the modern Chaldean Catholic Church . The new patriarch was awarded the pallium in a ceremony held in Baghdad on 6 April 1834. According to Badger, Yohannan Hormizd was unhappy with the thought of the unbroken succession of the Eliya line ending with his death, and made

5658-476: The Chaldeans and awarded the pallium (the traditional symbol of the Vatican's recognition of his succession). The decision was communicated to Yohannan Hormizd, now aged 74, in two papal bulls of the same date. Fifty years after his irregular succession to Eliya XI (d. 1778), Yohannan Hormizd was finally recognised as patriarch of the Chaldean Church and awarded the title patriarch of Babylon of

5781-524: The Chaldeans and with the local authorities of Mosul against Yohannan. As a result of these intrigues Yohannan was imprisoned for a third time by the Ottoman authorities, for four months. After Yohannan's release the charges made by his opponents were investigated by the Latin apostolic vicar Pierre-Alexander Coupperie, who travelled to Mosul to interview him. Yohannan was absolved of blame and restored to

5904-447: The Church of the East had become divided into three patriarchates: According to his autobiography, Yohannan Hormizd was born in 1760 in Alqosh to an Assyrian family. His father, the deacon Hanna (Yohannan), was the brother of the Mosul patriarch Eliya XI Denha (1722–1778). The Vatican opened a correspondence with both the Mosul and Qochanis patriarchs in 1770. At this period hereditary succession (normally from uncle to nephew as

6027-491: The Church of the East to distance itself increasingly from that in the Roman Empire. Although in a time of peace their 420 council explicitly accepted the decrees of some "western" councils, including that of Nicaea, in 424 they determined that thenceforth they would refer disciplinary or theological problems to no external power, especially not to any "western" bishop or council. The theological controversy that followed

6150-609: The Church of the East was reinforced in several subsequent synods in spite of the opposing teaching of Henana of Adiabeme . After its split with the West and its adoption of a theology that some called Nestorianism, the Church of the East expanded rapidly in the medieval period due to missionary work. Between 500 and 1400, its geographical horizon extended well beyond its heartland in present-day northern Iraq , northeastern Syria , and southeastern Turkey , setting up communities throughout Central Asia and as far as China (as witnessed by

6273-554: The Middle East Assyrian Pentecostal Church , a Reformed Eastern Christian denomination Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Urmia , a Russian Orthodox mission to ethnic Assyrians See also [ edit ] Assyrian (disambiguation) Assyrian Orthodox Church (disambiguation) Syriac Orthodox Church Syriac Catholic Church Chaldean Catholic Church Topics referred to by

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6396-483: The Nestorians of the large Erbil villages of ʿ Aïnqawa, Armuta and Shaqlawa to Catholicism and encouraging them to withdraw their loyalty from his cousin. Yohannan was elected patriarch in 1780, and his supporters bribed the governor of Mosul to use his influence to obtain a firman from Constantinople , granting him authority over both the Chaldean Christians and the Nestorians. Yohannan then sent

6519-400: The Patriarch from whom he had broken away, he ordained two metropolitans and three other bishops, thus initiating a new ecclesiastical hierarchy under what is known as the "Shimun line" of patriarchs, who soon moved from Amid eastward, settling, after many intervening places, in the isolated village of Qudshanis under Persian rule. Sulaqa's earliest successors entered into communion with

6642-516: The Vatican appointed him patriarchal administrator of the Amid patriarchate, recalling La ʿ zar Hindi to Rome to leave him a free hand. This appointment led to strenuous protests from La ʿ zar Hindi, his vicar-general Joseph ʿ Attar and the clergy of Amid, and on 3 February 1793 Yohannan Hormizd's appointment was rescinded. At about the same time the Mosul missionaries began to report disquieting rumours about his performance of his duties. He

6765-404: The Vatican, and Pope Clement XIV wrote to Eliya on 12 December 1772 to commend his zeal and to urge him to bring over his people to Catholicism. Earlier in the same year, however, Eliya had deposed Isho ʿ yahb from his metropolitan rank, apparently alarmed by his ambition, and ordained the twelve-year-old Yohannan Hormizd, another nephew, as a deacon. Four years later, on 22 May 1776, Yohannan

6888-408: The assembly decided to send a letter to the Vatican to ask for his suspension to be lifted. Unfortunately, these good intentions were frustrated, as the letter's courier was killed en route and the letter never reached its destination. The Vatican, ignorant of the rapprochement between Yohannan Hormizd and his opponents, was briefed on the affairs of the Chaldean Church early in 1818 by Campanile, who

7011-477: The authority of the Alqosh patriarch over Amid, which had been Sulaqa's residence but which his successors abandoned on having to move eastward into Safavid Iran , had been accepted by the Turkish authorities.) All the (non-hereditary) successors in Amid of Joseph I, who in 1696 resigned for health reasons and lived on in Rome until 1707, took the name Joseph: Joseph II (1696–1713), Joseph III (1713–1757), Joseph IV (1757–1781) . For that reason, they are known as

7134-575: The birth of the since unbroken patriarchal line of the Chaldean Catholic Church . Yohannan Hormizd died in 1838 and his successor Nicholas I Zay ʿ a was chosen by the Vatican, ending the centuries-old practice of hereditary succession. Yohannan Hormizd's career, first as patriarchal administrator and finally as patriarch, was dogged by disputes. Most of the surviving contemporary accounts of his patriarchate are partisan, and must be used with care. Yohannan Hormizd himself wrote

7257-413: The city's walls. His death ended the 146-year independent existence of the Amid patriarchate. Basil Asmar, who had endeared himself to the clergy and people of Amid, was appointed Hindi's successor as metropolitan of Amid in 1828, and the Vatican confirmed the appointment. Amid reverted to a metropolitan diocese of the Chaldean Church, and the Amid patriarchate came to an end. Basil's appointment required

7380-679: The civil authorities in Baghdad held the balance between Muhammad, governor of Mosul, who supported Yohannan Hormizd, and Isma'il, governor of ʿ Amadiya, who sheltered Isho ʿ yahb and his followers. In 1788 Yohannan's nephew Shem ʿ on was arrested on a visit to the village of Bir Sivi in the Zakho district on Isma'il's orders, and was only released by the joint efforts of the governor of Mosul and Sulaiman, governor of Baghdad. In 1792 Yohannan and his two brothers went to ʿ Amadiya on business, and were arrested, beaten and imprisoned for three and

7503-669: The contemporary accounts was reflected in the texts of several later Chaldean authors, notably Giamil and Tfinkdji. Stephane Bello, writing in 1939 with access to the Vatican archives, was the first scholar to write a dispassionate account of Yohannan Hormizd's career. He has been followed more recently by Habbi. Much of the recent scholarship on Yohannan Hormizd is in French or German, but convenient English summaries of his career were made by David Wilmshurst in 2000 and by Christoph Baumer in 2006. In 2003 Wilhelm Baum and Dietmar Winkler devoted three paragraphs to Yohannan Hormizd. By 1760

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7626-685: The conversion to Catholicism of the villages under his authority. In May 1790, on the advice of the missionaries, he consecrated his nephew Shem ʿ on metropolitan, and in August of the same year sent him to the Zibar district, where he converted the Nestorian villages of Arena and Barzane. The following year he sent Shem ʿ on to Mengesh in the Sapna district, where he was equally successful. The high point of this honeymoon period came in February 1791, when

7749-424: The declining Delhi Sultanate . Timur's conquests devastated most Assyrian bishoprics and destroyed the 4000-year-old cultural and religious capital of Assur . After the destruction brought on by Timur, the massive and organized Church of the East structure was largely reduced to its region of origin, with the exception of the Saint Thomas Christians in India. The Church of the East has seen many disputes about

7872-472: The distasteful practice of hereditary succession. There was also the possibility that Yohannan's submission was no more sincere than Isho ʿ yahb's had been two years earlier. The Vatican's initial response was therefore to inform Raphael Terconuski, the superior of the Catholic mission at Mosul, that Yohannan Hormizd's profession of faith appeared to be satisfactory, but that his election was to be considered null. On 18 February 1783, having considered further,

7995-645: The end of the ninth century it had at least 54, and Yahballaha himself died at the hands of a Muslim mob. Around 1400, the Turco-Mongol nomadic conqueror Timur arose out of the Eurasian Steppe to lead military campaigns all across Western , Southern and Central Asia , ultimately seizing much of the Muslim world after defeating the Mamluks of Egypt and Syria , the emerging Ottoman Empire , and

8118-466: The exercise of his jurisdiction. Gabriel Dambo was then in Rome, to lobby more effectively against his rival, and he and his supporters declared Coupperie's decision invalid and insisted that they would not accept Yohannan's authority unless he was absolved personally by the pope. Coupperie therefore persuaded a number of influential Chaldeans to join him in a written appeal to the Vatican for Yohannan's reinstatement. Couperrie died shortly afterwards, and

8241-399: The existing church (not a new one) for which the request to consecrate its patriarch was made by emissaries who gave the impression that the patriarchal see was vacant. Shimun VIII Yohannan Sulaqa returned home in the same year and, unable to take possession of the traditional patriarchal seat near Alqosh , resided in Amid . Before being put to death at the instigation of the partisans of

8364-410: The last of that line to be elected in the normal way as patriarch, was himself irregularly elected in 1780, as Sulaqa had been in 1552, and won over to communion with Rome most of the followers of the Eliya line . The "Shimun line" that in 1553 entered communion with Rome and broke it off in 1672, is now that of the church that in 1976 officially adopted the name " Assyrian Church of the East ", while

8487-415: The late patriarch's preference the Latin missionaries supported Isho ʿ yahb, who shortly afterwards succeeded his uncle as patriarch, taking the name Eliya XII (1778-1804), without open opposition from the young Yohannan. In May 1779, as soon as he had obtained his firman of office from the Ottoman civil authorities, Isho ʿ yahb abandoned his Catholic profession of faith. The notables of Mosul, with

8610-405: The latter was appointed metropolitan of Amid and administrator of the patriarchate, but not patriarch. Nonetheless, he became commonly known as Joseph V . He died in 1828. Yohannan's rival for the Alqosh title of patriarch had died in 1804, with his followers so reduced in number that they did not elect any successor for him, thus bringing the Alqosh or Eliya line to an end. Finally then, in 1830,

8733-436: The leaders of the Chaldean Church. If the new seminary was to succeed it needed its own income, and Gabriel insisted, probably correctly, that a large proportion of the property then in the hands of the patriarchal family was originally owned by the monastery of Rabban Hormizd and should rightly revert to it. Yohannan Hormizd, understandably, did not agree. This single issue would have been sufficient to poison relations between

8856-632: The letter to the missionary Leopold Sebastien, who was leaving for Rome. The letters do not seem to have produced any immediate effect, but doubtless added to the concern in the Vatican about Yohannan Hormizd's reliability. Some years later Yohannan Hormizd faced another challenge to his authority from a Baghdad merchant named Gabriel Dambo, one of the most remarkable figures of the nineteenth century Chaldean church. A Chaldean Christian born in Mardin in 1775, Dambo had made sufficient money by middle age to be able to retire from business, and he decided to devote

8979-573: The light of this vindication of the patriarch's behaviour, an attempt was made by the monastery's superior Yohannan Gwera to put his side of the story. He travelled to Rome, accompanied by the monks Mikha'il Jammala and Peter, and eventually obtained a papal audience. The response of the Vatican authorities to the monks' complaints was lukewarm. They were assured that their allegations would be investigated but were also censured for their disobedience. On 13 October 1837, conscious that he had not long to live, Yohannan designated as coadjutor and 'guardian of

9102-491: The membership of the Chaldean Catholic Church at this period was certainly closer to 70,000 than to Badger's 20,000. A statistical survey of the Chaldean Catholic Church made in 1896 by J. B. Chabot included, for the first time, details of several patriarchal vicariates established in the second half of the 19th century for the small Chaldean communities in Adana, Aleppo, Beirut, Cairo, Damascus, Edessa, Kermanshah and Teheran; for

9225-541: The membership of the Chaldean church was only slightly smaller than that of the Qudshanis patriarchate (probably 120,000 East Syriac Christians at most, including the population of the nominally Russian Orthodox villages in the Urmi district). Its congregations were concentrated in far fewer villages than those of the Qudshanis patriarchate, and with 296 priests, a ratio of roughly three priests for every thousand believers, it

9348-516: The mission stations established in the 1890s in several towns and villages in the Qudshanis patriarchate; and for the newly created Chaldean diocese of Urmi. According to Chabot, there were mission stations in the town of Serai d’Mahmideh in Taimar and in the Hakkari villages of Mar Behısho ʿ , Sat, Zarne and 'Salamakka' (Ragula d'Salabakkan). The last survey of the Chaldean Catholic Church before

9471-616: The monastery of Rabban Hormizd and the College of the Propaganda for the education of its bishops. Seventeen Chaldean bishops were consecrated between 1879 and 1913, of whom only one (Stephen Yohannan Qaynaya) was entirely educated in the monastery of Rabban Hormizd. Six bishops were educated at the College of the Propaganda (Joseph Gabriel Adamo, Toma Audo , Jeremy Timothy Maqdasi, Isaac Khudabakhash, Theodore Msayeh and Peter ʿ Aziz). The future patriarch Yousef VI Emmanuel II Thomas

9594-451: The monastery of Rabban Hormizd were consecrated metropolitan bishops at Amid by Hindi in March 1825: the future patriarch Joseph Audo for Mosul, Lawrent Sho ʿ a for Baghdad , and Basil Asmar for ʿ Amadiya. Two other bishops perhaps consecrated on the same occasion, Mikha'il Kattula and Ignatius Dashto, were sent to Seert and Mardin , traditional sees of the Amid patriarchate, but

9717-479: The murder of a Kurdish chieftain, and killed over 300 Chaldean Catholics, including Gabriel Dambo, the refounder of the monastery, and other monks. In 1846, the Ottoman Empire , which had previously classified as Nestorians those who called themselves Chaldeans, granted them recognition as a distinct millet . The most famous patriarch of the Chaldean Church in the 19th century was Joseph VI Audo who

9840-741: The opposing Christology upheld in Rome. This occurred not only in the Amid-Mardin area for which by Turkish decree Joseph I was patriarch, but also in the city of Mosul, where by 1700 nearly all the East Syrians were Catholics. The Rabban Hormizd Monastery, which was the seat of the "Eliya line" of patriarchs is 2 km from the village of Alqosh and about 45 km north of the city of Mosul. In view of this situation, Patriarch Eliya XI wrote to Pope Clement XII and his successor Benedict XIV in 1735, 1749 and 1756, asking for union. Then, in 1771, both he and his designated successor Ishoyabb made

9963-436: The other three returned to their home villages north of Mosul; Basil Asmar to Telkepe , Lawrent Sho ʿ a to Tel Isqof and Joseph Audo to Alqosh . There each of the three metropolitans began ordaining priests and deacons, in a direct challenge to Yohannan's authority. Meanwhile, the Vatican reconsidered the condemnation of Yohannan Hormizd in the light of fresh information, and on 25 November 1826 publicly absolved him. At

10086-426: The patriarchs themselves remained celibate) was in force in both patriarchates. Eliya XI had consecrated his nephew Isho ʿ yahb a metropolitan in 1745 and had also bestowed upon him the traditional title natar kursya ('guardian of the throne'), thereby designating him his presumptive successor. Eliya XI and his nephew Isho ʿ yahb both made Catholic professions of faith in 1771 in response to this overture from

10209-552: The population of the Chaldean Catholic Church as 2,743 Chaldean families, or just under 20,000 persons. Badger's figures cannot be squared with the figure of just over 4,000 Chaldean families recorded by Fulgence de Sainte Marie in 1796 nor with slightly later figures provided by Paulin Martin in 1867. Badger is known to have classified as Nestorian a considerable number of villages in the ʿ Aqra district which were Chaldean at this period, and he also failed to include several important Chaldean villages in other dioceses. His estimate

10332-475: The position of Catholicos. A synod in 539 decided that neither of the two claimants, Elisha and Narsai , who had been elected by rival groups of bishops in 524, was legitimate. Similar conflicts occurred between Barsauma and Acacius of Seleucia-Ctesiphon and between Hnanisho I and Yohannan the Leper . The 1552 conflict was not merely between two individuals but extended to two rival lines of patriarchs, like

10455-545: The position of their candidate the bishops sent him to Rome to negotiate a new union". By tradition, a patriarch could be ordained only by someone of archiepiscopal (metropolitan) rank, a rank to which only members of that one family were promoted. So Sulaqa travelled to Rome, where, presented as the new patriarch elect, he entered communion with the Catholic Church and was ordained by Pope Julius III and recognized as patriarch. The title or description under which he

10578-440: The priest Giwargis of Alqosh apostolic vicar for the patriarchate of Babylon . Both men were placed under the direct authority of Augustine Hindi , who was named apostolic delegate for the affairs of the patriarchate of Babylon . While this decision temporarily placed the two Catholic patriarchates under a single trustworthy authority, it was from the Vatican's point of view little more than a makeshift, as Hindi could never command

10701-421: The priest Giwargis of Alqosh apostolic vicar of Mosul, 'during the absence of the said archbishop', on 4 October 1811. This decision sent a clear signal that the Vatican's patience with Yohannan Hormizd was, for the moment, almost at an end. Yohannan Hormizd was eventually ransomed by his supporters and returned to Mosul , where he had several of his opponents imprisoned. After a series of mutual recriminations,

10824-441: The priest Joseph Campanile, immediately took steps to replace him, and Campanile on his own authority consecrated the priest Shem ʿ on Sayyegh bishop of Mosul. He was later reproved by the Vatican for this abusive consecration, and Augustine Hindi was ordered to send Shem ʿ on to Mosul merely as a priest. At the same time, learning of Yohannan Hormizd's imprisonment, the Vatican appointed Augustine Hindi apostolic delegate and

10947-547: The pro-Catholic faction within its followers was becoming predominant. For various reasons, including the ecclesiastical as well as political turbulence in Europe after the French Revolution , Rome was long unable to choose between two rival claimants to headship of the Chaldean Catholics. The 1672 adoption by the "Shimun line" of patriarchs of Nestorian doctrine had been followed in some areas by widespread adoption of

11070-457: The rest of his life to the service of the Church. The once-thriving monastery of Rabban Hormizd near Alqosh had been abandoned for many years, and he dreamed of reviving its monastic life and restoring it to its former glory. He paved the way by giving free lessons in Baghdad to young Chaldean Christians in Arabic , grammar, logic and rhetoric, and after winning a formidable reputation as

11193-459: The right of succession. The reason given in the bull for this decision was the growing infirmity of the patriarch and the desirability of avoiding inconvenience and harm should the patriarchate suddenly become vacant. Zay ʿ a was Persian by birth, from Khosrowa , and as such could lay claim to the protection of the foreign consuls in Turkey . He had also been educated at the Propaganda , and it

11316-642: The rule of the Sasanian Empire , which overthrew the Parthians in 224, the Church of the East continued to develop its distinctive identity by use of the Syriac language and Syriac script . One "Persian" bishop was at the First Council of Nicaea (325). There is no mention of Persian participation in the First Council of Constantinople (381), in which also the Western part of the Roman Empire

11439-481: The same prestige in the Mosul district as a member of the old patriarchal family. Yohannan Hormizd's suspension lasted for six years. At first he refused to accept the validity of the Vatican's decision, and issued threats against his opponents. Eventually he decided to seek a reconciliation with them, and a meeting was held on 20 February 1818 at Alqosh , attended by a hundred clergymen and notables, in which he agreed to apologise in writing for his misdeeds. In return,

11562-427: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Assyrian Church . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Assyrian_Church&oldid=1256426260 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

11685-432: The same time, to restore the peace of the Chaldean Church, it urged the 66-year-old former patriarchal administrator to renounce his claims to the archdiocese of Mosul and to retire quietly. Yohannan, vindicated by the Vatican's absolution and supported by the local civil authorities, stubbornly refused to retire. Instead, he fought back against his opponents. In 1827, during the absence of the superior Gabriel Dambo in Rome,

11808-472: The support of the Latin missionaries , deposed him and unanimously chose Shem ʿ on of Amid , the Chaldean metropolitan of Mardin (1758–88), as patriarch in his place. Shem ʿ on however declined to accept the honour, and Isho ʿ yahb's opponents were obliged to turn instead to the young Yohannan Hormizd, who had demonstrated his zeal for the Catholic cause since Isho ʿ yahb's volte face by converting

11931-591: The term "Chaldean" continued to apply to all associated with the Church of the East tradition, whether they were in communion with Rome or not. It indicated not race or nationality, but only language or religion. Throughout the 19th century, it continued to be used of East Syriac Christians, whether "Nestorian" or Catholic, and this usage continued into the 20th century. In 1852 George Percy Badger distinguished those whom he called Chaldeans from those whom he called Nestorians, but by religion alone, never by language, race or nationality. Patriarch Raphael I Bidawid of

12054-519: The term 'Chaldean.' Jerome implied that one reason the books of Tobit and Judith are undeserving of inclusion within the biblical canon is because they were written in Chaldean. Because he translated the Hebrew Bible , he would naturally recognize each time which language would be much more difficult for him when the passages changed from Hebrew to Chaldean. Only in 1445 did it begin to be used to mean Aramaic speakers in communion with

12177-518: The throne". The feud between Gabriel Dambo and Yohannan Hormizd ended in 1832, when Alqosh was pillaged by Kör Muhammad, chief of the Soran Kurds of Rawanduz . Gabriel Dambo was among the hundreds of East Syrians killed by the Kurds, and was succeeded as superior of the monastery of Rabban Hormizd by Yohannan Gwera. Despite the death of his chief rival, the patriarch's troubles continued throughout

12300-453: The throne' Gregory Peter di Natale, metropolitan of Gazarta , presumably with the intention of excluding his nephew Eliya from the patriarchal dignity. However, he did not promise the succession to his coadjutor, and in order to ensure that the hereditary principle would play no part in the selection of the next patriarch the Vatican appointed by a bull of 25 September 1838 Nicholas Zay ʿ a , metropolitan of Salmas , Yohannan's coadjutor with

12423-469: The two men, but there were other causes of friction as well. The new seminary had attracted men who disliked Yohannan Hormizd and wanted more vigorous leadership. The monks rallied around their superior and made no secret of their distaste for the patriarchal administrator. They were joined by the Catholic missionaries, who shared their admiration for Gabriel, and by a number of influential priests, notably Yohannan of Tel Isqof and Yohannan of Alqosh. In 1809

12546-443: The validity of the sentence, and for the next few years continued to assert his authority wherever he could, abetted by the civil authorities at ʿ Amadiya. The Rabban Hormizd monks refused to have anything to do with him and accepted the authority of Augustine Hindi (the colophon of manuscripts copied in the monastery at this period dutifully mention the patriarchal administrator Mar Augustine, not Mar Yohannan). Three monks of

12669-482: Was applied with explicit reference to their " Nestorian " religion. Thus Jacques de Vitry wrote of them in 1220/1 that "they denied that Mary was the Mother of God and claimed that Christ existed in two persons. They consecrated leavened bread and used the 'Chaldean' (Syriac) language". The decree of the Council of Florence was directed against use of "Chaldean" to signify "non-Catholic." Outside of Catholic Church usage,

12792-491: Was appointed priest of Telkepe. The patriarch now sent the metropolitan Gregory Peter di Natale to Mosul, accompanied by a priest named Andrew to represent the apostolic vicar Laurent Trioche, to inquire into the conduct of the Rabban Hormizd monks. Joseph Audo thereupon retired to Amid, where he was welcomed by its metropolitan Basil, and the delegates condemned the obstinacy of the monks and returned to Baghdad. In

12915-468: Was consecrated a metropolitan by Eliya XI and named natar kursya in his turn. If his uncle had lived a few years longer, Yohannan's succession would probably have been assured, but the patriarch was among the victims of a plague which swept through the Mosul district in 1778, and died in the village of Alqosh on 29 April 1778. On the following day his nephews Isho ʿ yahb and Yohannan both made Catholic professions of faith and were reconciled. Despite

13038-459: Was controversial, and was marked by a series of conflicts with his own bishops and also with the Vatican. Suspended from his functions in 1812 and again in 1818, he was reinstated by the Vatican in 1828. In 1830, following the death of the Amid patriarchal administrator Augustine Hindi , he was recognised by the Vatican as patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans and the Mosul and Amid patriarchates were united under his leadership. This event marked

13161-473: Was disturbing. For his part, Yohannan accused the missionaries of arrogance and mischief-making, and on his request the apostolic vicar of Baghdad , Fulgence de Sainte Marie, was sent to Mosul as apostolic vicar in 1796 to report on the situation. While his relations with the Vatican were cooling, Yohannan Hormizd also had to deal with the opposition of his cousin Isho ʿ yahb, who continued to assert that he

13284-593: Was founded in the Parthian Empire . The Acts of the Apostles mentions Parthians as among those to whom the apostles preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:9). Thomas the Apostle , Thaddeus of Edessa , and Bartholomew the Apostle are reputed to be its founders. One of the modern Churches that boast descent from it says it is "the Church in Babylon" spoken of in 1 Peter 5:13 and that he visited it. Under

13407-446: Was hoped that after Yohannan's death he would loyally implement Vatican policy. Yohannan, meanwhile, had died a few weeks earlier, on 16 August 1838. His family, which had provided successive patriarchs since the middle of the fifteenth century, now renounced its hereditary right of succession but insisted on keeping the title Abuna as the family name henceforward. Nicholas Zay ʿ a duly succeeded Yohannan Hormizd as patriarch, but

13530-543: Was immediately undermined by renewed complaints from a section of the Chaldean church. On this occasion his opponents, supported by the Latin missionaries, impugned his orthodoxy and accused him of embezzling monastic property. In 1802 the priest Yohannan Mushe of Tel Isqof was despatched to Rome with letters demanding the dismissal of both Yohannan and his nephew Shem ʿ on, metropolitan of ʿ Amadiya. He had only sufficient funds to reach Saida in Syria , where he entrusted

13653-474: Was killed on 3 June 2007 in Mosul alongside the subdeacons Basman Yousef Daud, Wahid Hanna Isho, and Gassan Isam Bidawed, after he celebrated mass. Ganni has since been declared a Servant of God . Chaldean Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho and three companions were abducted on 29 February 2008, in Mosul, and murdered a few days later. There are many Chaldeans in diaspora in the Western world , primarily in

13776-569: Was not involved. The Council of Seleucia-Ctesiphon of 410, held in the Sasanian capital, recognized the city's bishop Isaac as Catholicos , with authority throughout the Church of the East. The persistent military conflicts between the Sasanians and the by then Christianized Roman Empire made the Persians suspect the Church of the East of sympathizing with the enemy. This in turn induced

13899-411: Was opposed by a rival patriarch, Sulaqa , who initiated what is called the "Shimun line". He, and his early successors, entered into communion with the Catholic Church , but in the course of over a century loosened their link with Rome and under Shimun XIII Dinkha , openly renounced it in 1672, by adopting a profession of faith that contradicted that of Rome, while they maintained their independence from

14022-805: Was previously an ad hominem Archbishop (he will retain this rank as head of the eparchy) and the Archbishop of the Archdiocese (Archeparchy) of Ahvaz (since 1974). The new eparchy, or diocese, will be known as the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of Mar Addai . There are 38,000 Chaldean Catholics in Canada. Archbishop Zora was born in Batnaya , Iraq , on March 15, 1939. He was ordained in 1962 and worked in Iraqi parishes before being transferred to Iran in 1969. The 2006 Australian census counted

14145-481: Was published in a French translation by M. Brière in 1910 and 1911. Both texts provide spirited accounts of the intrigues that followed Yohannan's election as patriarch in 1780. Neither can be trusted on matters of interpretation, but if read judiciously they shed valuable light on the politics of the Chaldean Church in the late eighteenth- and early-nineteenth centuries and provide a wealth of factual detail omitted in many accounts of this period. The partisan spirit of

14268-530: Was rather more effectively served by its clergy. Only about a dozen Chaldean villages, mainly in the Seert and ʿ Aqra districts, did not have their own priests in 1913. Tfinkdji's statistics also highlight the effect on the Chaldean Catholic Church of the educational reforms of the patriarch Joseph VI Audo . The Chaldean Catholic Church on the eve of the First World War was becoming less dependent on

14391-547: Was recognized as patriarch is given variously as "Patriarch of Mosul in Eastern Syria"; "Patriarch of the Church of the Chaldeans of Mosul"; "Patriarch of the Chaldeans"; "Patriarch of Mosul"; or "Patriarch of the Eastern Assyrians", this last being the version given by Pietro Strozzi on the second-last unnumbered page before page 1 of his De Dogmatibus Chaldaeorum , of which an English translation

14514-415: Was said, among other things, to have released a monk from his vows for a payment of 73 piastres, to have used liturgical books full of errors, to have visited families without a companion, and to have feasted in the house of a newly-wed couple. Although each of these incidents was relatively minor in itself, and could equally have been explained by mere imprudence rather than active corruption, their frequency

14637-413: Was succeeded as apostolic vicar by his assistant Laurent Trioche, who was consecrated a bishop for the purpose by Yohannan and the metropolitan Lawrent Sho ʿ a of Kirkuk on the Vatican's instructions. Like his predecessor, Trioche took Yohannan's part, and in a consistory held in the Vatican on 5 July 1830 it was agreed that Yohannan should be relieved of the archdiocese of Mosul, confirmed as patriarch of

14760-408: Was the last hereditary patriarch of the Eliya line of the Church of the East and the first patriarch of a united Chaldean Church . After the death of his uncle Eliya XI in 1778, he claimed the patriarchal throne in 1780 and made a Catholic profession of faith. In 1783, he was recognized by the Vatican as patriarchal administrator and archbishop of Mosul. His career as patriarchal administrator

14883-493: Was the rightful patriarch. After Yohannan's irregular election in 1780 Isho ʿ yahb withdrew to ʿ Amadiya , whose governor Isma'il gave him 'the Nestorian dioceses of the mountain' to govern. He made another Catholic profession of faith on 7 April 1783 in an attempt to regain the sympathies of the missionaries, and to preserve the patriarchate within his family consecrated his nephew Hnanisho ʿ metropolitan in 1784. Several years of bitter faction-fighting followed, in which

15006-709: Was then under French occupation he did not receive a reply, and in 1798 consecrated the Indian priest Paul Pandari as a bishop for the Malabar Christians. As many of the Malabar Christians were now in communion with the Syriac Orthodox Church , which had replaced the Church of the East as the main focus of loyalty among the Syrian Christians of India three centuries earlier, Yohannan tactfully appointed Pandari bishop 'of Mar Behnam',

15129-688: Was trained in the seminary of Ghazir near Beirut . Of the other nine bishops, two ( Addai Sher and Francis David) were trained in the Syro-Chaldean seminary in Mosul, and seven (Philip Ya ʿ qob Abraham, Ya ʿ qob Yohannan Sahhar, Eliya Joseph Khayyat, Shlemun Sabbagh, Ya ʿ qob Awgin Manna, Hormizd Stephen Jibri and Israel Audo  [ Wikidata ] ) in the patriarchal seminary in Mosul. Yohannan VIII Hormizd Yohannan VIII Hormizd (often referred to by European missionaries as John Hormez or Hanna Hormizd ) (1760–1838)

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