Ancient Church of the East

The Ancient Church of the East (Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܥܬܝܩܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ ʿĒtā ʿAttīqtā d'Maḏnəḥā, Arabic: كنيسة المشرق القديمة‎) was established in 1968. It follows the traditions of one of the oldest Christian churches, the Church of the East, whose origins trace back to the See of Seleucia-Ctesiphon in central Mesopotamia. But as a result of the schism, it became independent of the Assyrian Church of the East.

Baghdad is the seat of the Ancient Church of the East and Mar Thoma Darmo its first Catholicos-Patriarch (1968–1969). The present head of the church is Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Addai II since 1970. It is considered the most traditionalist in the Eastern Rite churches.

Establishment

The Ancient Church of the East was established in opposition to a reform introduced in the Assyrian Church of the East of using the Gregorian Calendar rather than using the traditional Julian calendar that is off by 13 days. The schism arose in the Assyrian Church of the East in 1964 in resistance to these changes made to the church traditions, thereby causing a separate Ancient Church of the East to be established and headquartered in Baghdad.

In 1968, the followers of the newly established church elected a rival catholicos-patriarch Mar Thoma Darmo while Mar Shimun XXIII continued as the official head of the Assyrian Church of the East. The elected catholicos-patriarch Mar Thoma Darmo was a native of Mesopotamia, a former Metropolitan of the Assyrian Church of the East in India from 1952 to 1968 based at Thrissur, India. He became the head of the Ancient Church of the East in October 1968 and relocated to Baghdad.

Following Patriarch Mar Thoma Darmo's death in 1969, Mar Addai II was elected to head the Ancient Church of the East in February 1970.

Organization

The head of the church is the Patriarch of the Church of the East, who also bears the title of Catholicos, presently Mar Addai II. The Ancient Church of the East has an ordained clergy divided into the three traditional orders of deacon, priest (or presbyter), and bishop. It also has an episcopal polity, meaning it is organized into dioceses, each headed by a bishop and made up of several individual parish communities overseen by priests. Dioceses are organized into provinces under the authority of a metropolitan bishop.

Archdioceses and dioceses

The Ancient Church of the East is divided into a number of archdioceses and dioceses as follows:

• Patriarchal Archdiocese of Baghdad and Basra (Baghdad, Iraq) - Overseen by H.H. Mar Addai II Catholicos Patriarch
• Archdiocese of Kirkuk (Kirkuk, Iraq) - Overseen by Archbishop Mar Narsai Toma
• Archdiocese of Nineveh (Mosul, Iraq) - Overseen by Archbishop Mar Toma Gewargis
• Archdiocese of Australia and New Zealand - Overseen by Archbishop Mar Yacoub Daniel
• Archdiocese of Europe (Mainz, Germany) - Overseen by Archbishop Timothaus Mar Shallita
• Diocese of USA and Canada (Chicago, Illinois) - Overseen by Bishop Mar Emmanuel Eilya
• Diocese of California (Modesto, California) - Overseen by Bishop Mar Daniel Yako
• Diocese of Baghdad and Syria (Baghdad, Iraq) - Overseen by Bishop Mar Zaia Khoshaba
• Diocese of Dohuk (Dohuk, Iraq) - Overseen by Bishop Mar Aprem Daweed
• Diocese of St. Zaia Cathedral Sydney - Overseen by Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel

Calendar issues

In June 2010, the Ancient Church of the East Synod officially declared that the church will begin starting 2010 to celebrate Christmas on the 25 December of each year according to the Gregorian calendar. From its establishment, the church had continued to celebrate Christmas on January 7 of each year. This move will mean that both the Ancient Church of the East and the Assyrian Church of the East will follow the same calendar. The calendar issue was one of the main reasons the Church of the East had split.^[3] Easter will continue to be celebrated according to the Julian calendar.

This latest move by the Ancient Church of the East comes as a reconciliatory gesture to encourage efforts for talks for reunification. A joint holy synod between the two churches was postponed and is expected to be held at some future date.

List of Catholicoi-Patriarchs of the Ancient Church of the East

Prior to 1964

The Ancient Church of the East acknowledges the traditional lineage of the Patriarchs of the Church of the East from Thoma Shlikha, (Saint Thomas) (c. 33-c. 77) until the schism 1964-1967 and considers itself a true continuation of this lineage.

During the reign of Mar Shimun XXIII, in 1964, a schism appeared in the Assyrian Church of the East causing the establishment of the Ancient Church of the East. The seat of the new church remained vacant for three years before Mar Thoma Darmo was assigned as Patriarch the Ancient Church of the East, while Mar Shimun XXIII continued as the official head of the Assyrian Church of the East.

1964–present

• Vacant (1964–1967) – first period of the schism
• Mar Thoma Darmo (1968–1969)
• Mar Addai II (1970–present)

See also

Assyrians portal

• Church of the East
• Assyrian Church of the East
• East Syrian Rite
• List of Patriarchs of the Church of the East
• Chaldean Syrian Church in India (also known as Assyrian Church of the East in India)
• Chaldean Catholic Church
• Assyrian people

References

• Mar Aprem Mooken, The Assyrian Church of the East in the Twentieth Century. Mōrān ’Eth’ō, 18. (Kottayam: St. Ephrem Ecumenical Research Institute, 2003).
• Bishop James Hess, Nestorian Apostolic Bishop, "Bishops at Large", by Bishop Alan Bain published in the UK. 1985
• Most Rev James H Hess, "A Directory of Autocephalous Bishops" by Bishop Karl Pruter, St Willibrord Press, USA, 1985
• Rev George Badger (Anglican priest and protege of the Archbishop of Canterbury), "Nestorians and Their Rituals", published by Oxford University c. 1860.
• The Thirty Nine Articles of the Church of England, as published in the Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England, Cambridge University Press, 1968
• "The Pearl (Marganitha), On The Truth of Christianity" Written in the year 1298 AD by Mar Odisho, Metropolitan of Suwa and Armenia. Translated and published in English by the late Patriarch, Shimun (Simon) XXIII, in 1964.

External links

• Karoz / Karozota website
• St Zaia Cathedral, Diocese of Australia