Catholicos, plural Catholicoi, is a title used for the head of certain
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* Chri ...
es in some
Eastern Christian traditions. The title implies
autocephaly
Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern Or ...
and in some cases it is the title of the head of an autonomous church. The word comes from
ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...
, pl. , derived from (, "generally") from (, "down") and (, "whole"), meaning "concerning the whole, universal, general"; it originally designated a financial or civil office in the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
.
[Wigram, p. 91.] The name of the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
comes from the same word—however, the title "Catholicos" does not exist in its hierarchy.
The
Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
, some
Oriental Orthodox
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent ...
,
Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
, and
Eastern Catholic churches historically use this title;
[The Motu Proprio ''Cleri Sanctitati'' Canon 335] for example the
Armenian Apostolic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg
, icon_width = 100px
, icon_alt =
, image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, a ...
and the
Georgian Orthodox Church
The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
. In the Church of the East, the title was given to the church's head, the
Patriarch of the Church of the East. It is still used in two successor churches, the Assyrian Church of the East and the Ancient Church of the East, the heads of which are known as Catholicos-Patriarchs. In the Armenian Church there are two catholicoi: the supreme catholicos of Ejmiadzin and the catholicos of Cilicia. The title Catholicos-Patriarch is also used by the primate of the Armenian Catholic Church. In India, an
autocephalous
Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern O ...
Oriental Orthodox Church; and regional head of
Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church, an
autonomous Church within
Syriac Orthodox Church
, native_name_lang = syc
, image = St_George_Syriac_orthodox_church_in_Damascus.jpg
, imagewidth = 250
, alt = Cathedral of Saint George
, caption = Cathedral of Saint George, Damascus ...
, use this title. The first is known as
Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan
Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan are the titles used by the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, which is also called the Indian Orthodox Church, for the same bishop holding two offices of Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metr ...
and the latter as
Catholicos of India
The Catholicos of India, earlier known as the Catholicos of the East and Metropolitan of Malankara, is an ecclesiastical office in the Syriac Orthodox Church. He is the Catholicos (Maphrian) and spiritual leader and regional head of the Jaco ...
but unequally same according to the constitution of the
Syriac Orthodox Church
, native_name_lang = syc
, image = St_George_Syriac_orthodox_church_in_Damascus.jpg
, imagewidth = 250
, alt = Cathedral of Saint George
, caption = Cathedral of Saint George, Damascus ...
and the
Jacobite Syrian Christian Church.
Origin of the title
The earliest ecclesiastical use of the title Catholicos was by the
Bishop of Etchmiadzin, head of the
Armenian Apostolic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg
, icon_width = 100px
, icon_alt =
, image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, a ...
, in the 4th century
[ while still under the Patriarchate of Antioch.] Among the Armenians, catholicos was originally a simple title for the principal bishop of the country; he was subordinate to the See of Caesarea in Cappadocia.[
Sometime later, it was adopted by the Grand metropolitans of Seleucia-Ctesiphon in ]Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, who became the designated heads of the Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
. The first claim that the bishop of Selucia-Ctesiphon was superior to the other bishoprics and had (using a later term) ''patriarchal'' rights was made by Patriarch
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in c ...
Papa bar Aggai (c. 317 – c. 329). In the 5th century this was claim strengthened and Isaac (or ''Ishaq'', 399 – c. 410), who organized the Council of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, used the title of ''bishop of Selucia-Ctesiphon, Catholicos and Head over the bishops of all the Orient''. This line of Catholicos founded the Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
and the development of the East Syriac Rite
The East Syriac Rite or East Syrian Rite, also called the Edessan Rite, Assyrian Rite, Persian Rite, Chaldean Rite, Nestorian Rite, Babylonian Rite or Syro-Oriental Rite, is an Eastern Christian liturgical rite that employs the Divine Liturg ...
.
At the beginning of the fourth century, Albania and Georgia (Iberia) were converted to Christianity, and the principal bishop of each of these countries bore the title of catholicos, although neither of them was autocephalous. They followed the Armenians in rejecting the Council of Chalcedon. At the end of the sixth, or beginning of the seventh, century the Georgian Catholicos asserted his independence and accepted Eastern Orthodoxy. Henceforward the Georgian Church underwent the same evolutions as the Greek. In 1783 Georgia was forced to abolish the office of its catholicos, and place itself under The Most Holy Synod of Russia, to which country it was united politically in 1801. The Albanian catholicos remained loyal to the Armenian Church, with the exception of a brief schism towards the end of the sixth century. Shortly afterwards Albania was assimilated partly with Armenia and partly with Georgia. There is no mention of any catholicos in Albania after the seventh century. It is asserted by some that the head of the Abyssinian Church, the Abuna, also bears the title of catholicos, but, although this name may have been applied to him by analogy, there is, to our knowledge, no authority for asserting that this title is used by the Abyssinian Church itself.[
]
Catholicos in various Churches
Autocephalous churches of East
The following are autocephalous
Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern O ...
churches of East Syriac Rite
The East Syriac Rite or East Syrian Rite, also called the Edessan Rite, Assyrian Rite, Persian Rite, Chaldean Rite, Nestorian Rite, Babylonian Rite or Syro-Oriental Rite, is an Eastern Christian liturgical rite that employs the Divine Liturg ...
that claim succession to the Catholicos of the East of Selucia-Ctesiphon from the Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
. Referred to as '' Nestorian'' in Western texts, the term Nestorian was formally renounced in 1976 by Dinkha IV.
Assyrian Church of the East
, Mar Awa III is the Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. One of the oldest Christian churches, it is a modern successor of the historical Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
. It traces its origins to the See of Seleucia-Ctesiphon in central Mesopotamia, which tradition holds was founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle (Tooma Shlikha) as well as Saint Mari and Saint Addai in AD 33 as asserted in the Doctrine of Addai
The ''Doctrine of Addai'' ( Syriac: ܡܠܦܢܘܬܐ ܕܐܕܝ ܫܠܝܚܐ ''Malp̄ānūṯā d-Addai Šlīḥā'') is a Syriac Christian text, written in the late 4th or early 5th century CE. It recounts the legend of the Image of Edessa as well as ...
.
It is one of the three Churches of the East that hold themselves distinct from Oriental
The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of '' Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the ...
and Eastern Orthodoxy
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonic ...
. The Assyrian Church of the East does not use the word "orthodox" in any of its service books or official correspondence, nor does it use any word which can be translated as "correct faith" or "correct doctrine," the rough translation of "orthodox". The adjectives "holy," "catholic," and "apostolic" were officially added to the Assyrian Church of the East's title in conformance with the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, which declares, "We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church." In this context, "holy" refers to being set apart for a purely sacred purpose; "apostolic" means founded by one of Jesus's own apostles; and "catholic" is the Greek word for "universal," indicating a worldwide church. In India, it is more often called the Chaldean Syrian Church
The Chaldean Syrian Church of India ( Classical Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ ܕܐܬܘܖ̈ܝܐ; Malayalam: / ''Kaldaya Suriyani Sabha'') is an Eastern Christian denomination, based in Thrissur, in India. It is organized as a metropolitan pro ...
. In the West it is often called the Nestorian Church
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
, due to its historical associations with Nestorianism
Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian theologian ...
, though the church itself considers the term pejorative and argues that this association is incorrect. The church declares that no other church has suffered as many martyrdoms as the Assyrian Church of the East.
The founders of Assyrian theology were Diodorus of Tarsus and Theodore of Mopsuestia, who taught at Antioch. The normative Christology of the Assyrian church was written by Babai the Great
Babai the Great ( , c. 551 – 628) was an early church father of the Church of the East. He set several of the foundational pillars of the Church, revived the monastic movement, and formulated its Christology in a systematic way. He served as a ...
(551–628) and is clearly distinct from the accusations directed toward Nestorius: his main Christological work is called the 'Book of the Union', and in it Babai teaches that the two (essences, or hypostases) are unmingled but everlastingly united in the one (personality) of Christ.
Ancient Church of the East
, Addai II is the Catholicos of the Ancient Church of the East, which split from the Assyrian Church of the East
The Assyrian Church of the East,, ar, كنيسة المشرق الآشورية sometimes called Church of the East, officially the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East,; ar, كنيسة المشرق الآشورية الرسول� ...
in the 1960s.
Eastern Orthodox Church
Georgian Orthodox Church
The title of catholicos is also used in the Georgian Church, whose head carries the title Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia.
* Catholicos of Georgian Orthodox Church
The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
** Ilia II
Ilia may refer to:
Science and medicine
*''Apatura ilia'' or lesser purple emperor, a butterfly
*Ilium (bone) (plural: "ilia"), pelvic bone
People
* Ilia (name), numerous
** Ilia II, the current Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia
Places
* Ili ...
is the current (as of 22 February 2012) Catholicos of the Georgian Orthodox Church.
Oriental Orthodox Churches
Armenian Apostolic Church
In the Armenian Church there are two catholicoi: the supreme catholicos of Ejmiadzin and the catholicos of Cilicia. The Catholicos of Etchmiadzin
Vagharshapat ( hy, Վաղարշապատ ) is the 4th-largest city in Armenia and the most populous municipal community of Armavir Province, located about west of the capital Yerevan, and north of the closed Turkish-Armenian border. It is com ...
presides over the Supreme Spiritual Council of the Armenian Apostolic Church and is the head of the world's 7 million Armenian Orthodox Christians. The primacy of honour of the Catholicossate of Etchmiadzin has always been recognized by the Catholicossate of Cilicia.
* Catholicos of Etchmiadzin (''Chief Shepherd and Pontiff to all Armenians dispersed throughout the world'') of the Armenian Apostolic Church
** Karekin II is the current Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
* Catholicossate of the Great House of Cilicia, residing in Antelias
Antelias ( ar, أنطلياس) is a city in Lebanon in the Matn District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate. It is located around 5 km to the north of Beirut.
Etymology
The name is originally Greek, ἀντήλιος – from ἀντί(an ...
, Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...
** Aram I is the present Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia.
Syriac Orthodox Church
In the seventh century, the Syriac Orthodox Christians
, native_name_lang = syc
, image = St_George_Syriac_orthodox_church_in_Damascus.jpg
, imagewidth = 250
, alt = Cathedral of Saint George
, caption = Cathedral of Saint George, Damascu ...
who lived in Persia began using the title for its Catholicos / Maphrian, who was originally the head of the Syriac Orthodox Christian community in Persia. This office ranked second in the Syriac Orthodox church hierarchy after the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, until it was abolished in 1860 and reinstated in the India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
of the East on 1964.
Today, the title is known as Catholicos / Maphrian of India or Catholicos of India
The Catholicos of India, earlier known as the Catholicos of the East and Metropolitan of Malankara, is an ecclesiastical office in the Syriac Orthodox Church. He is the Catholicos (Maphrian) and spiritual leader and regional head of the Jaco ...
of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church headquartered at Puthencruz near Kochi in Kerala is an integral branch of Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch headed by Ignatius Aphrem II Patriarch of Antioch. The current Catholicos of the church is Baselios Thomas I.
Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church
According to th
constitution
of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church
The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church (MOSC) also known as the Indian Orthodox Church (IOC) or simply as the Malankara Church, is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church headquartered in Devalokam, near Kottayam, India. The church serve ...
(Indian Orthodox Church) the head or primate bears the title Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan
Malankara Metropolitan is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of the Malankara Syrian Church, previously by the Government of Travancore and Cochin in South India. This title was awarded by a proclamation from the King of Travancore and ...
. The church is based at Devalokam near Kottayam in Kerala. As of 2021, the current head is Baselios Marthoma Mathews III
Baselios Marthoma Mathews III (born 12 February 1949) is the present Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, serving as its primate. He was enthroned as the 22nd Malankara Metropolitan on 14 Oct ...
. He is currently the 9th Catholicos of the East since it was relocated to India and 92nd Primate on the Apostolic throne of Saint Thomas.
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
In 1959, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria
The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي� ...
granted autocephaly to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...
. Abuna Basilios was consecrated the first Patriarch Catholicos of the Ethiopian Church by the Coptic Pope Cyril VI at St. Mark's Cathedral in Cairo on 28 June 1959. The title is "Patriarch and Catholicos of Ethiopia, Ichege of the See of St. Tekle Haymanot, Archbishop of Axum".
Catholic Church
Some Eastern Catholic Churches
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of ...
use the title "Catholicos."
Armenian Catholic Church
The leader of the Armenian Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg
, imagewidth = 260px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illumina ...
(of Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
), in full communion
Full communion is a communion or relationship of full agreement among different Christian denominations that share certain essential principles of Christian theology. Views vary among denominations on exactly what constitutes full communion, but ...
with the Pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
, uses the title "Catholicos".
As of March 14, 2022, Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian
Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, I.C.P.B. ( hy, Ռաֆայել Պետրոս ԻԱ. Մինասյան; born 24 November 1946) is a Lebanese-born hierarch who serves as the 21st patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Church. He previously serve ...
is the Catholicos-Patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Church. His full title is officially "'' Catholicos-Patriarch of the House of Cilicia''".[List of patriarchs, other Christian leaders who gathered with Pope Francis in Bari](_blank)
/ref>
Chaldean Catholic Church
The Chaldean Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = syc
, image = Assyrian Church.png
, imagewidth = 200px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Our Lady of Sorrows Baghdad, Iraq
, abbreviation =
, type ...
(of East Syriac Rite
The East Syriac Rite or East Syrian Rite, also called the Edessan Rite, Assyrian Rite, Persian Rite, Chaldean Rite, Nestorian Rite, Babylonian Rite or Syro-Oriental Rite, is an Eastern Christian liturgical rite that employs the Divine Liturg ...
) is in full communion with the Pope. Although derived from the historical Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
, whose leader was initially styled Major Metropolitan and Catholicos and later Patriarch (see Church of the East#Organisation and structure), it seems to use only the title of "Patriarch".
, Louis Raphaël I Sako
Louis Raphaël I Sako ( ar, لويس روفائيل ساكو; born 4 July 1948) is a Chaldean Catholic prelate who has served as Patriarch of Baghdad since 1 February 2013. Pope Francis made him a cardinal on 28 June 2018.
Biography Early l ...
is the Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans.
Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, also known as the Malankara Syrian Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' particular church in full communion with the worldwide Catholic Church possessing self-governance under the Code of ...
of West Syriac Rite in full communion with the Pope is a major archiepiscopal church, a rank granted to the Eastern Catholic Church
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of ...
by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
on 10 February 2005. Accordingly it is headed by Major Archbishop Moran Mor Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
Baselios Cleemis
Baselios Cleemis (born 15 June 1959) is the current major archbishop-catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. He was named to the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church by Pope Benedict XVI on 24 November 2012.
At the moment of h ...
Catholica Bava since 2007.[of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church](_blank)
/ref>
He is referred to as Catholicos-patriarch of the Syro Malankara Catholic Church. In this context, the use of the title "Catholicos" indicates parity between him and his peers in the autocephalous Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church
The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church (MOSC) also known as the Indian Orthodox Church (IOC) or simply as the Malankara Church, is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church headquartered in Devalokam, near Kottayam, India. The church serve ...
and in the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church, which remains part of the Syriac Orthodox Church
, native_name_lang = syc
, image = St_George_Syriac_orthodox_church_in_Damascus.jpg
, imagewidth = 250
, alt = Cathedral of Saint George
, caption = Cathedral of Saint George, Damascus ...
.
References
Sources
*
*
*
* {{Cite book, last=Wigram, first=William Ainger, author-link=William Ainger Wigram, title=An Introduction to the History of the Assyrian Church or The Church of the Sassanid Persian Empire 100-640 A.D., year=1910, location=London, publisher=Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, isbn=9780837080789, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zUYKAQAAMAAJ
Ecclesiastical titles
Eastern Christian ecclesiastical offices
Bishops by type
Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
Christian terminology