Ignatius Jacob II was the

Patriarch of Antioch The Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the bishop of Antioch (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). As the traditional "overseer" (, , from which the word ''bishop'' is derived) of the first gentile Christian community, the position has ...

and head of the

Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...

from 1847 until his death in 1871.

Biography

Jacob was born at the village of Qal'at Mara east of Mor Hananyo in 1800. He was the son of Yousif Kapso and when he reached adulthood, he left his village to

Tur Abdin Tur Abdin (; ; ; or ) 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 Syria–Turkey border, border with Syria and famed since Late Antiquity for ...

and started to study under Ignatius Yunan at the Monastery of MOR Elias near a village called Hbob. He became a monk in 1818 and in 1819 he was elevated to the rank of Monk-Priest. In 1831, Patriarch Ignatius George V ordained him as ecumenical metropolitan as Cyril and appointed him as metropolitan of Mor Hananyo and

Mardin Mardin (; ; romanized: ''Mārdīn''; ; ) is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqids, Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris ...

. After his ordination, he traveled to

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

that was part of

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

at that time and contacted the

Nicholas I of Russia Nicholas I, group=pron (Russian language, Russian: Николай I Павлович; – ) was Emperor of Russia, List of rulers of Partitioned Poland#Kings of the Kingdom of Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 18 ...

looking for help in taking back the churches and monasteries that were takien over by the schismic part of the church. In 1844, he was appointed Patriarchal Vicar in the city of

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

where he bought a house and converted it to a church after obtaining the necessary permits and called this church St. Mary. While he was in Istanbul, he bought a small printing press with Syriac fonts and published two books. The first was a prayer book in

Garshuni Garshuni or Karshuni (Syriac alphabet: , Arabic alphabet: ) are Arabic writings using the Syriac alphabet. The word "Garshuni", derived from the word "grasha" which literally translates as "pulling", was used by George Kiraz to coin the term " gar ...

and the second was the book of

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

in Syriac. After he finished printing the two books, he headed back to Mardin and Mor Hananyo to distribute these two books and visit his family and to collect funds to pay the debts that Patriarch Ignatius Elias II incurred during his legal pursues to claim back the Syriac Orthodox churches in

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

Patriarchal consecration

Upon arriving to Diyarbakir, Cyril Jacob heard that the Patriarch Ignatius Elias II died. so he continued his was to Mor Hananyo and

. In the monastery a synod was held and all the Metropolitans who participated in the Synod voted to elect Cyril Jacob as the new Patriarch for the

. When the two Metropolitans from

and

Mor Mattai Monastery Dayro d-Mor Mattai (; ; ''The Monastery of St. Matthew'' or ''Dayro d-Mor Mattai'') is a Syriac Orthodox Church monastery on Mount Alfaf in northern Iraq. Located 20 kilometers northeast of the city of Mosul, it is recognized as one of the oldest ...

arrived after the election, they both approved the election of Cyril Jacob. He was consecrated as a Patriarch shortly after. One of the other decisions of the Synod is appointing Metropolitan Julius Peter as metropolitan of Damascus who later was elected as a new Patriarch after Jacob II death and assumed the name

Ignatius Peter IV Mor Ignatius Peter IV (1798 – 8 October 1894), also known as Ignatius Peter III, was the Patriarch of Antioch, and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1872 until his death in 1894. He is regarded by many as the architect of the modern ...

In 1852 he selected Basil Behnam IV to be the new Syriac Orthodox Church Mapherian of the East and he stayed until he died in 1859. After Basil Behnam IV death, the Mapherianate office was abolished

Episcopal succession

During Ignatius Jacob II time as Patriarch and Metropolitan, he had the duty to ordain and consecrate one Mapherian and many Metropolitans in the Syria Orthodox church in addition to tens of priests, monks, and deacons. # Basil Behnam IV (1852-1859). Mapherian of the East # Philoxinous Zaytoun of Anhil (1848-1855). Metropolitan of

Midyat Midyat (, , , ) is a municipality and district of Mardin Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,241 km2, and its population is 120,069 (2022). In the modern era, the town is populated by Kurds, Mhallami Arabs and Assyrians. The old Estel neighborho ...

# Cyril Denha (1858-1871). Bishop of Monastery of St. Matthew # Julius Abdulnasih (1858). Metropolitan of Amid # Abdulmassih (1860). Metropolitan of Diyarbakir # Disyonius Behnam (1860). Metropolitan of Ma'adan # Cyril George (1860-1917). Ecumenical Metropolitan, then Metropolitan of Mosul (1862-1864), al-Bushairiyya, Diyarbakr, and al-Ruha (Edessa). # Disyonius Behnam (1864–1911). Metropolitan of

Death

Ignatius Jacob II died in February 12, 1871 after what looked like a stroke and he was buried near the South alter at the St. Mary Church, Diyarbakır.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacob II 1800 births 1871 deaths Syriac Orthodox Patriarchs of Antioch 19th-century clergy from the Ottoman Empire 19th-century Oriental Orthodox archbishops