Ignatius Saba I (), also known as Ignatius Sobo of Salah or Ignatius Sobo Ṣalḥoyo, was the

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

Patriarch of Tur Abdin From 1364 to 1816 the region of Tur Abdin constituted a distinct patriarchate within the Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, den ...

from 1364 until his death in 1389.

Biography

Butrus (Peter) Saba was the son of the priest Abu al-Hasan, son of Saliba, son of the priest Behnam of the village of

Salah ''Salah'' (, also spelled ''salat'') is the practice of formal worship in Islam, consisting of a series of ritual prayers performed at prescribed times daily. These prayers, which consist of units known as ''rak'ah'', include a specific s ...

. He was the nephew of the bishops Basil Barsoum and Aziz, archbishop of Salah. Saba was consecrated as archbishop of Salah by the Patriarch Ignatius Ismail of

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 ...

in 1354, upon which he assumed the name Basil. In 1364, Ismail heard criticism of Saba from a monk named George, and promptly excommunicated Saba without investigation. Saba attempted to speak with Ismail at the patriarchal residence at the monastery of Saint Ananias, but was rebuked and refused entry. After having waited at the gate of the monastery for three days, he left and rallied support for his cause by writing letters to the bishops of

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 ...

. Saba returned to the patriarchal residence, accompanied by a number of notables and clergymen, including the bishops Yuhanna Yeshu of Qartmin and Philoxenus of Hah, but he was again refused entry and waited outside the monastery for four days. Saba's supporters resented Ismail's inaction and proclaimed him as patriarch at his residence at the monastery of Saint Jacob at Salah, in opposition to Ismail's patriarchate of Mardin. He received a decree from al-Malik al-Adil Fakhr al-Din Sulayman I al-Ayyubi, Melik of Hasankeyf, thereby confirming his patriarchate within his domain, and Saba was consecrated as

and

Hasankeyf Hasankeyf is a town located along the Tigris, in the Hasankeyf District, Batman Province, Turkey. It was declared a natural conservation area by Turkey in 1981. Despite local and international objections, the city and its archaeological sites ...

on the

Feast of the Transfiguration The Feast of the Transfiguration is celebrated by various Christian communities in honor of the transfiguration of Jesus. The origins of the feast are less than certain and may have derived from the dedication of three basilicas on Mount Tabor.' ...

on 6 August in the same year, upon which he assumed the name Ignatius. Saba's ascension as patriarch of Tur Abdin has been noted to reflect the political division between the

Artuqid The Artuqid dynasty (alternatively Artukid, Ortoqid, or Ortokid; Old Anatolian Turkish: , , pl. ; ; ) was established in 1102 as a Turkish Anatolian Beylik (Principality) of the Seljuk Empire. It formed a Turkoman dynasty rooted in the Oghuz ...

emirate of Mardin and

Ayyubid The Ayyubid dynasty (), also known as the Ayyubid Sultanate, was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egyp ...

emirate of Hasankeyf. He served as patriarch of Tur Abdin until his death in 1389, and he was buried at the monastery of Saint Jacob at Salah.

Episcopal succession

As patriarch, Saba ordained the following bishops: #Malke, archbishop of Midyat, he was killed in 1393 amidst

Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...

's invasion. #Yuhanna Tuma of Basibrina, bishop of Qartmin before 1371–1394. #Philoxenus Yeshu of Beth Kustan, bishop of the Monastery of the Cross and Hah in 1368–1410.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{authority control 14th-century births 14th-century Oriental Orthodox archbishops Syriac Orthodox Church bishops 1389 deaths