Ignatius Jacob I ( syr, ܦܛܪܝܪܟܐ ܝܥܩܘܒ ܩܕܡܝܐ, ar, يعقوب الاول بطريرك انطاكية),
also known as Jacob al-Khuri or Jacob of al-Nabk, was the
Patriarch of Antioch
Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the bishop of Antioch (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). As the traditional "overseer" (ἐπίσκοπος, ''episkopos'', from which the word ''bishop'' is derived) of the first gentile Christian ...
and head 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, Damascu ...
from 1510/1512 until his death in 1517/1519.
Biography
Jacob was born at al-Aḥmadiyya, a village near
Ṣawro in
Tur Abdin
Tur Abdin ( syr, ܛܽܘܪ ܥܰܒ݂ܕܺܝܢ or ܛܘܼܪ ܥܲܒ݂ܕܝܼܢ, Ṭūr ʿAḇdīn) is a hilly region situated in southeast Turkey, including the eastern half of the Mardin Province, and Şırnak Province west of the Tigris, on the bor ...
, and was the son of the ''rahib'' (monk)
Maqdisi
Maqdisi ( ar, مقدسي) is an Arabic nisba referring to a Jerusalemite. It is derived from ''Bayt al-Maqdis'', an Arabic name for Jerusalem, by way of the Hebrew ''Beit HaMikdash'', the Temple in Jerusalem. Today, the common Arabic name of Jerus ...
Hasan, son of the ''rahib'' 'Abd Allah of the Muzawwiq family.
Aphram Barsoum suggests that Jacob's father and grandfather had likely been novice monks without ordination that had laicised, but retained the designation of monk, for which Jacob was known as "
al-Khuri". He became a monk and priest at the
monastery of Saint Moses the Abyssinian
Deir Mar Musa al-Habashi ( syr, ܕܝܪܐ ܪܡܪܝ ܡܘܫܐ ܟܘܫܝܐ ''deiro d-mor mūše kūšoyo''; ar, دير مار موسى الحبشي, ALA-LC: ''dayr mār Mūsá al-Ḥabashī''), literally the Monastery of Saint Moses the Abyssinian, ...
, near
Al-Nabek
An-Nabek or Al-Nabek ( ar, ٱلنَّبْك, an-Nabk) is a Syrian city administratively belonging to Rif Dimashq and the capital of the Qalamoun. Located north of Damascus and south of Homs. It has an altitude of 1255 meters. According to the ...
in
Syria, and studied under the ''malphono'' (theological doctor) monk-priest Moses, son of 'Ubayd of
Sadad
The SADAD payment system was established by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) to be the national electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) service provider for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom o ...
. Here, he became proficient in
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
* Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages ...
and
calligraphy, and befriended the monk David of
Homs. For this, he gained the sobriquet "Nabki" or "of Al-Nabk", which led later writers to erroneously claim he was from Syria, whilst others gave
Damascus as his place of birth.
Jacob subsequently travelled to the
monastery of Saint Ananias, and from there to the monastery of Saint Abay, near
Qeleth, in 1480. He also visited the
monastery of the Syrians in Egypt in 1482. He is noted to have moved to the monastery of Saint Balai in Tur Abdin by 1487 and later resided at the monastery of Saint Ananias in 1489. Joseph al-Gurji, future
archbishop of Jerusalem, studied under Jacob at some point. In 1496, he was ordained as archbishop of
Amida by Patriarch
Ignatius Noah of Lebanon
Ignatius Noah of Lebanon ( syr, ܦܛܪܝܪܟܐ ܢܘܚ ܠܒܢܢܝܐ, ar, البطريرك نوح اللبناني), also known as Nūḥ Pūnīqoyo or Nūḥ al-Bqūfānī, was the Patriarch of Antioch and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from ...
, upon which he assumed the name Philoxenus, alongside Dionysius David, who was appointed as archbishop of
Ma‘dan. The deacon Nur al-Din, son of Shallila, composed an ode in praise of Jacob's conduct in this office, a copy of which was later found by
Aphrem Barsoum.
After the death of the patriarch Ignatius Noah in 1509, a synod was convened at the monastery of Saint Ananias in the same year and Severus Yeshu, archbishop of the monastery of Saint Abay, was elected as his successor as patriarch of Antioch. However, for reasons unknown, Jacob was also appointed as patriarch of Antioch in 1510 or 1512, assuming the name Ignatius, whilst Yeshu was still patriarch. In addition, the bishops of Syria ordained Athanasius bar Subay of
Al-Nabek
An-Nabek or Al-Nabek ( ar, ٱلنَّبْك, an-Nabk) is a Syrian city administratively belonging to Rif Dimashq and the capital of the Qalamoun. Located north of Damascus and south of Homs. It has an altitude of 1255 meters. According to the ...
as patriarch in 1511 in opposition to Yeshu and Jacob. According to David Wilmshurst, Jacob and Yeshu ruled concurrent with one another until 1519, whilst Aphrem Barsoum notes that Athanasius bar Subay simultaneously claimed the patriarchal office until his death likely at some point between 1514 and 1518.
In a ''homologia'' (confession) found at
Edessa
Edessa (; grc, Ἔδεσσα, Édessa) was an ancient city ('' polis'') in Upper Mesopotamia, founded during the Hellenistic period by King Seleucus I Nicator (), founder of the Seleucid Empire. It later became capital of the Kingdom of Os ...
, it is recorded that Jacob ordained deacon Abd Allah for the
church of Saint Mary at
Amida and deacon Ghazal for the churches of Saint
Ahudemmeh
Ahudemmeh ( syr, ܐܚܘܕܐܡܗ, ar, مار احودامه) was the Grand Metropolitan of the East and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church of the East from 559 until his execution in 575. He was known as the Apostle of the Arabs, and is commemo ...
and
Saint Thomas at
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
on 6 August 1512. He served as patriarch of Antioch until his death in 1517 or 1519.
Works
A number of works written by Jacob on various subjects have survived, including a ''
Beth Gazo Beth Gazo ( ; literary "the house of treasure") is a Syriac liturgical book that contains a collection of Syriac chants and melodies. The book is considered a reference of Syriac Hymnody and without it clerics belonging to the West Syriac Traditi ...
'' (Za'faran MS. 124), written in 1488. Several lines of his poetry on the subject of repentance are attested in a grammar book at
Midyat
Midyat ( ku, Midyad, Syriac: ܡܕܝܕ ''Mëḏyaḏ'', Turoyo: ''Miḏyoyo'', ar, مديات) is a town in the Mardin Province of Turkey. The ancient city is the center of a centuries-old Hurrian town in Upper Mesopotamia. In its long history, t ...
, as well as his comments on some festivals are contained in a ''homologia'' (Paris Library MS. 112). He also wrote a historical tract including the chronicles of David of Homs, that were later found at the
monastery of the Cross
The Monastery of the Cross ( ar, دير الصليب, ''Dayr al-Salīb''; he, מנזר המצלבה; ka, ჯვრის მონასტერი, ''jvris monast'eri'') is an Eastern Orthodox monastery near the Nayot neighborhood of Jerusa ...
. Jacob is further credited with a manuscript on the canons of baptism, marriage, and repentance, found at the library at Edessa.
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
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Syriac Patriarchs of Antioch from 512 to 1783
15th-century Oriental Orthodox archbishops
16th-century Oriental Orthodox archbishops
Syriac writers
1510s deaths
Year of birth unknown
16th-century Syriac Orthodox Church bishops
15th-century Syriac Orthodox Church bishops
Oriental Orthodox bishops in the Ottoman Empire
16th-century writers from the Ottoman Empire
15th-century births
16th-century calligraphers
15th-century calligraphers
15th-century poets
16th-century poets
{{Bishop-stub