Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle
Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa | |
|---|---|
| Syriac Orthodox Church | |
| Incumbent: Yostinos Paulos Safar | |
| Style | Archbishop His Eminence |
The Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa is a nominally Metropolitan Archeparchy of the Syriac Orthodox Church.[1] The incumbent metropolitan of Zahle and Bekaa is Mor Yostinos Paulos Safar.[2]
History
Syriac Orthodox Christians took refuge at Zahle after the Hamidian massacres in 1895–1896 and the Sayfo.[3] The Church of Mar Jirjis (Saint George) at Zahle was consecrated in 1925.[4] Zahle was made part of the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Beirut and Damascus in 1933.[5] A school was added to the Church of Saint George at Zahle in 1934.[6] St Ephraim's Seminary at Zahle began construction in 1934 and was opened on 29 March 1939.[7] It was moved to Mosul in Iraq in 1946.[7] St Ephraim's Seminary was returned to Zahle in 1962 by Patriarch Ignatius Yaq'ub III and remained until it was moved again to Atshanneh in 1968.[8] The Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa was created in 1970.[5] It was united with the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Beirut in 1980.[5] The Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle and Bekaa was re-established in 1998.[9] There were 2 clergy at Zahle by 2005.[10] The Church of Saint Mary at Zahle was heavily damaged by a bomb on 27 March 2011.[11]
Ecclesiastical properties
The following ecclesiastical properties belong to the archdiocese:
- Church of Saint George, Zahle
- Church of Saint Mary, Zahle
List of bishops
The following is a list of incumbents of the see:[12]
- Severius Saliba Touma (2000–2004)
- Yostinos Paulos Safar (2005–present)
References
Citations
- ^ "Mor Yostinos Paulos Safar". Malankara Syriac Christian Resources. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
- ^ "Patriarchal Vicariate of Zahle". Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch: Archdiocese of the Western United States. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
- ^ Chaillot (1998), pp. 44, 62; Joseph (1983), p. 111.
- ^ Dinno (2017), p. 281.
- ^ a b c Fiey (1993), p. 180.
- ^ Chaillot (1998), p. 63.
- ^ a b Dinno (2017), p. 280.
- ^ "Patriarchate of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch". Malankara Syriac Christian Resources. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
- ^ "Constitution of the Syriac Orthodox Church". Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch: Archdiocese of the Western United States. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
- ^ "The Syriac Orthodox Church Today". Syriac Orthodox Resources. 20 November 2005. Retrieved 16 June 2025.
- ^ "Bomb Causes Heavy Damage to Church in Zahle". Orthodoxy Cognate PAGE. 28 March 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
- ^ "Archbishops of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch". Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch: Archdiocese of the Western United States. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
Bibliography
- Chaillot, Christine (1998). The Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch and All the East: A Brief Introduction to Its Life and Spirituality. Retrieved 19 November 2025.
- Dinno, Khalid S. (2017). The Syrian Orthodox Christians in the Late Ottoman Period and Beyond: Crisis then Revival. Gorgias Press. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- Fiey, Jean Maurice (1993). Pour un Oriens Christianus Novus: Répertoire des diocèses syriaques orientaux et occidentaux (in French). Retrieved 13 June 2025.
- Joseph, John (1983). Muslim-Christian Relations and Inter-Christian Rivalries in the Middle East: The Case of the Jacobites in an Age of Transition. SUNY Press. Retrieved 21 November 2024.