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Christianity in Syria
Our Lady of Saidnaya Monastery, one of the oldest monasteries in the world
Total population
~1 900 000 (2022 estimate)
Religions
Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, Maronite Church, Assyrian Church of the East, Syriac Orthodox Church, Syriac Catholic Church, Armenian Orthodox Church and Armenian Catholic Churches, some Protestant
Languages
Arabic, Syriac

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    Christianity in Syria has among the oldest Christian communities on Earth, dating back to the first century AD, and has been described as a "cradle of Christianity".[1] With its roots in the traditions of St. Paul the Apostle and St. Peter the Apostle, Syria quickly became a major center of early Christianity and produced many significant theologians and church leaders. Of the 325 bishops who took part in the First Council of Nicea in 325 AD, twenty were from Syria. Over the centuries, Syrian Christians have played a vital role in shaping Christian thought and practice, contributing to the development of various liturgical traditions, monastic movements, and theological schools. St. Paul the Apostle famously converted to Christianity on the road to Damascus, and Syria has produced three Popes: Pope Anicetus (157–168 AD), Pope Sergius I (687-701),[2] and Pope Gregory III (731–741 AD). Their legacy includes the establishment of some of the most ancient churches, monasteries, and pilgrimage sites, such as the 5th century remains of the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, Our Lady of Saidnaya Monastery, and the Cathedral of Constantine and Helen.[3]

    However, in recent times, the Syrian Christian community has faced numerous challenges, including ongoing and severe persecution, displacement, and emigration. Christians in Syria made up about 10% of the pre-war Syrian population but now makes up less than 2%, falling from 1.5 million in 2011 to just 300,000 in 2022 due to widespread persecution by Islamic terrorists and the impact of the Syrian Civil War. Christians in Syria have also been subjected to violence and discrimination by Islamic State fighters during their control of large areas of the country. Their churches have been converted into military headquarters, and their property confiscated. Persecution of Christians in Syria has further intensified since.[4][5][6] In Aleppo, the country's second largest city, the proportion of Christian residents fell from 12% pre-war to 1.4% in 2023 with more than 20 churches damaged during the war.[7] The city of Idlib has been almost entirely depopulated of its Christian population under Islamist rule.[8] Some governments and organisations including the United States have claimed that the persecution of Christians in the Middle East and North Africa, especially in Syria and Iraq, constitute an act of genocide.[9][10][11][12][13][14]

    The country's largest Christian denomination is the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch,[15][16] closely followed by the Maronite Church and the Assyrian Church of the East.[16] There is a small minority of Protestants in the country.[17]

    Overview

    In the late Ottoman rule, a large percentage of Syrian Christians emigrated from Syria, especially after the bloody chain of events that targeted Christians in particular in 1840, the 1860 massacre, and the Assyrian genocide. According to historian Philip Hitti, approximately 90,000 Syrians arrived in the United States between 1899 and 1919 (more than 90% of them Christians).[18] The Syrians referred include historical Syria or the Levant encompassing Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine. Syrian Christians tend to be relatively wealthy and highly educated.[19]

    According to the Catholic charity group Aid to the Church (ACN), number of Christians residing in Syria is estimated to have reduced from 2.1 million (10% of population) in 2011 to around 300,000 (less than 2%) in 2022. The decrease is due to large-scale emigration of Christians to Europe triggered by deteriorating living conditions caused by the civil war.[20] US State Department estimates that Syrian Christians comprise 2.5-3% of the total population inside Syria, as of 2022.[21]

    Origins

    Convent of Saint Thecla in Maaloula, Rif Dimashq

    The Christian population of Syria comprised 10% of the Syrian population before 2011.[22] Estimates of the number of Christians in Syria in 2022 range from less than 2% to around 2.5% of the total Syrian population.[16][23]

    Most Syrians are members of either the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch (700,000), or the Syriac Orthodox Church. The vast majority of Catholics belong to the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. Other Eastern Catholic churches include the Maronite Church, Syriac Catholic Church, Armenian Catholic Church, Chaldean Catholic Church; there is also a small number of Latin Church Catholics. The rest belong to the Eastern communions, which have existed in Syria since the earliest days of Christianity when all Christians were part of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The main Eastern groups are:

    Even though each group forms a separate community, Christians nevertheless cooperate increasingly. Roman Rite, Western Latin Church Catholicism and Protestantism were introduced by missionaries but only a small number of Syrians are members of Western rites.

    The schisms that brought about the many sects resulted from political and doctrinal disagreements. The doctrine most commonly at issue was the nature of Christ. In 431, the Nestorians were separated from the main body of the Church because of their belief in the dual character of Christ, i.e., that he had two distinct but inseparable "qnoma" (ܩܢܘܡܐ, close in meaning to, but not exactly the same as, hypostasis), the human Jesus and the divine Logos. Therefore, according to Nestorian belief, Mary was not the mother of God but only of the man Jesus. The Council of Chalcedon, representing the mainstream of Christianity, in 451 confirmed the dual nature of Christ in one person; Mary was therefore the mother of a single person, mystically and simultaneously both human and divine. The Miaphysites taught that the Logos took on an instance of humanity as His own in one nature. They were the precursors of the present-day Syrian and Armenian Orthodox churches.

    By the thirteenth century, breaks had developed between Eastern or Greek Christianity and Western or Latin Christianity. In the following centuries, however, especially during the Crusades, some of the Eastern churches professed the authority of the pope in Rome and entered into or re-affirmed communion with the Catholic Church. Today called the Eastern Catholic churches, they retain a distinctive language, canon law and liturgy.

    Eastern Orthodoxy

    Mariamite Cathedral of Damascus
    St. George's Cathedral in Hama
    Main article: Eastern Orthodoxy in Syria

    The largest Christian denomination in Syria is the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch (officially named the Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East), also known as the Melkite church after the 5th and 6th century Christian schisms, in which its clergy remained loyal to the Eastern Roman Emperor ("melek") of Constantinople.

    Adherents of that denomination generally call themselves "Rūm" which means "Eastern Romans" or "Asian Greeks" in Arabic. In that particular context, the term "Rūm" is used in preference to "Yūnāniyyūn" which means "European Greeks" or Ionians in Classical Arabic. The appellation "Greek" refers to the Koine Greek liturgy used in their traditional prayers and priestly rites.

    Members of the community sometimes also call themselves "Melkites", which literally means "supporters of the emperor" in Semitic languages – a reference to their past allegiance to Roman and Byzantine imperial rule. But, in the modern era, this designation tends to be more commonly used by followers of the local Melkite Catholic Church.

    Syrians from the Greek Orthodox Community are also present in the Hatay Province of Southern Turkey (bordering Northern Syria), and have been well represented within the Syrian diasporas of Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, the United States, Canada and Australia.

    Oriental Orthodoxy

    Traditional Christianity in Syria is also represented by Oriental Orthodox communities, that primarily belong to the ancient Syriac Orthodox Church, and also to the Armenian Apostolic Church.

    Syriac Orthodox Church

    Main article: Syriac Orthodox Church

    The Syriac Orthodox Church is the largest Oriental Orthodox Christian group in Syria. The Syriac Orthodox or Jacobite Church, whose liturgy is in Syriac, was severed from the favored church of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Orthodoxy), over the Chalcedonian controversy.

    Armenian Apostolic Church

    Armenian Genocide Martyrs Memorial Church in Deir ez-Zor
    Main article: Armenians in Syria

    The Armenian Apostolic Church is the second largest Oriental Orthodox Christian group in Syria. It uses an Armenian liturgy and its doctrine is Miaphysite (not monophysite, which is a mistaken term used or was used by the Chalcedonian Catholics and Chalcedonian Orthodox).

    Catholic Church

    Latin Church in Latakia
    Saint Francis of Assisi Church in Aleppo
    Cathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition in Damascus
    Saint Elijah Cathedral in Aleppo
    Main article: Catholicism in Syria

    Of the Eastern Catholic Churches the oldest is the Maronite, with ties to Rome dating at least from the twelfth century. Their status before then is unclear, some claiming it originally held to the Monothelite heresy up until 1215, while the Maronite Church claims it has always been in union with Rome. The liturgy is in Aramaic (Syriac). The Patriarchate of Antioch never recognized the mutual excommunications of Rome and Constantinople of 1054, so it was canonically still in union with both. After a disputed patriarchal election in 1724, it divided into two groups, one in union with Rome and the other with Constantinople. The term "Melkite" is in use mostly in reference to the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. Like its sister-church the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch ('Eastern Orthodox'), the Melkite Catholics both Greek and Arabic in its form of the liturgy. Most of the 375,000 Catholics in Syria belong to the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, the rest are members of the Latin Church, Maronites (52,000), Armenian or Syriac Rites.

    Popes of the Catholic Church

    Seven popes from Syria ascended the papal throne.[24][25] Many of them lived in Italy. Pope Gregory III,[26][27] was the last pope born outside Europe before Francis (elected in 2013).

    Numerical order Pontificate Portrait Name
    English · Regnal     		Personal name Place of birth Notes
    1 33 – 64/67 St Peter
    PETRUS     		Simon Peter

    		 Bethsaida, Galilea, Roman Empire Saint Peter was from village of Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire
    11 155 to 166 St Anicetus
    ANICETUS     		Anicitus Emesa, Syria Traditionally martyred; feast day 17 April
    82 12 July 685
    – 2 August 686
    (1 year+)     		John V
    Papa IOANNES Quintus     		  Antioch, Syria  
    84 15 December 687
    – 8 September 701
    (3 year+)     		St Sergius I
    Papa Sergius     		  Sicily, Italy Sergius I was born in Sicily, but he was from Syrian parentage[28]
    87 15 January 708
    to 4 February 708
    (21 days)     		Sisinnius
    Papa SISINNIUS     		  Syria  
    88 25 March 708
    – 9 April 715
    (7 years+)     		Constantine
    Papa COSTANTINUS sive CONSTANTINUS     		  Syria Last pope to visit Greece while in office, until John Paul II in 2001
    90 18 March 731
    to 28 November 741
    (10 years+)     		St Gregory III
    Papa GREGORIUS Tertius     		  Syria Third pope to bear the same name as his immediate predecessor.

    Protestant Churches

    In Syria, there is also a minority of Protestants. Protestantism was introduced by European missionaries and a small number of Syrians are members of Protestant denominations. The Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW) as the Protestant Church in Germany Diaspora agency actively supports persecuted Protestant Christians in Syria with aid projects.[29] A 2015 study estimates some 2,000 Muslim converted to Christianity in Syria, most of them belonging to some form of Protestantism.[30]

    By one estimate made by Elisabe Granli from University of Oslo, around 1,920 Syrian Druze converted to Christianity,[31] according to the same study Christian of Druze background (Druze converts to Christianity) still regard themselves as Druze,[31] and they claims that there is no contradiction between being Druze and being Christian.[31]

    Demographics

    See also: Demographics of Syria

    The number of Christians in Syria has been disputed for many decades. There has been no official census on religion in Syria since the 1960s.

    Christianity in Syria 1956[32]

      Eastern Orthodoxy (mainly Antiochian Greeks) (35.71%)
      Oriental Orthodoxy (mostly Armenians and Syriacs) (33.28%)
      Catholic Church (both Easterns and Latins) (26.24%)
      Protestantism (2.46%)
      Church of the East (2.31%)
    Christianity in Syria
    1943[33] % of population 1944[34] 1945[35] 1948[34] 1953[36] % of population 1956[32]
    Greek Orthodox 136 957 4,79 139 265 149 706 168 747 4,62 181 750
    Greek Catholics 46 733 1,63 47 522 50 423 55 880 1,53 60 124
    Armenians Orthodox 101 747 3,56 103 180 106 298 110 594 3,03 114 041
    Catholics 16 790 0,59 17 072 17 706 19 492 0,53 20 637
    Total Armenians 118 537 4,15 120 252 121 310 124 004 130 086 3,56 134 678
    Assyrians Syriac Orthodox 40 135 1,40 40 994 43 652 51 363 1,40 55 343
    Syriac Catholics 16 247 0,57 16 562 17 830 19 738 0,54 20 716
    ACOE 9 176 0,32 9 215 9 690 11 176 0,31 11 760
    Chaldeans 4 719 0,16 4 765 5 022 5 492 0,15 5 723
    Total Assyrians 70 277 2,45 71 536 76 194 87 769 2,40 93 542
    Maronites 13 349 0,47 13 621 14 797 16 530 0,45 19 291
    Latin Catholics 5 996 0,21 6 083 6 323 6 749 0,18 7 079
    Protestants 11 187 0,39 11 379 12 433 13 209 0,36 12 535
    Total Christians 403 036 14,09 409 658 414 911 433 880 478 970 13,10 508 999
    Total 2 860 411 100,00 2 901 316 2 949 919 3 092 703 3 655 904 100,00

    Status of Christians in Syria

    Damascus was one of the first regions to receive Christianity during the ministry of St Peter. There were more Christians in Damascus than anywhere else. With the military expansion of the Islamic Umayyad empire into Syria and Anatolia, non-Muslims who retained their native faiths were required to pay a tax (jizya) equivalent to the Islamic Zakat, and were permitted to own land; they were, however, not eligible for Islamic social welfare as Muslims were.[37]

    Damascus still contains a sizeable proportion of Christians, with some churches all over the city, but particularly in the district of Bab Touma (The Gate of Thomas in Aramaic and Arabic). Masses are held every Sunday and civil servants are given Sunday mornings off to allow them to attend church, even though Sunday is a working day in Syria. Schools in Christian-dominated districts have Saturday and Sunday as the weekend, while the official Syrian weekend falls on Friday and Saturday.

    Integration

    The old Christian quarter of Jdeydeh, Aleppo

    Christians engage in every aspect of Syrian life and Syrian Christians are relatively wealthy and more highly educated than other Syrian religious groups.[19] Following in the traditions of Paul, who practiced his preaching and ministry in the marketplace, Syrian Christians are participants in the economy, the academic, scientific, engineering, arts, and intellectual life, entertainment, and the Politics of Syria. Many Syrian Christians are public sector and private sector managers and directors, while some are local administrators, members of Parliament, and ministers in the government. A number of Syrian Christians are also officers in the armed forces of Syria. They have preferred to mix in with Muslims rather than form all-Christian units and brigades, and fought alongside their Muslim compatriots against Israeli forces in the various Arab–Israeli conflicts of the 20th century. In addition to their daily work, Syrian Christians also participate in volunteer activities in the less developed areas of Syria. As a result, Syrian Christians are generally viewed by other Syrians as an asset to the larger community. In September 2017, the deputy Hammouda Sabbagh, a Syriac Orthodox Christian and member of the Ba'ath Party, was elected speaker of parliament with 193 votes out of 252.[38]

    Separation

    Syrian Christians are more urbanized than Muslims; many live either in or around Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Hama, or Latakia. In the 18th century, Christians were relatively wealthier than Muslims in Aleppo.[39][40] Syrian Christians have their own courts that deal with civil cases like marriage, divorce and inheritance based on Bible teachings.

    The Constitution of Syria states that the President of Syria has to be a Muslim;[16] this was as a result of popular demand at the time the constitution was written. However, Syria does not profess a state religion.

    On 31 January 1973, Hafez al-Assad implemented the new constitution (after reaching power through a military coup in 1970), which led to a national crisis. Unlike previous constitutions, this one did not require that the president of Syria to be of the Islamic faith, leading to fierce demonstrations in Hama, Homs and Aleppo organized by the Muslim Brotherhood and the ulama. They labeled Assad as the "enemy of Allah" and called for a jihad against his rule.[41] Robert D. Kaplan has compared Assad's coming to power to "a Jew becoming tsar in Russia – an unprecedented development shocking to the Sunni majority population which had monopolized power for so many centuries."[42]

    The government survived a series of armed revolts by Islamists, mainly members of the Muslim Brotherhood, from 1976 until 1982.

    Freedom of religion in the 2020s

    In 2023, the country was scored 2 out of 4 for religious freedom,[43] with the government controlling the appointment of Muslim religious leaders, restricted proselytizing, a ban on conversion of Muslims and active terror threats.

    In the same year, the country was ranked as the 12th most difficult place in the world to be a Christian.[44]

    Christian cities/areas

    Christians spread throughout Syria and have sizable populations in some cities/areas; important cities/areas are:

    Syrian Christians during the Civil War

    See also: Christians during the Syrian civil war
    Lady of Peace Cathedral in Homs city, destroyed by attacks from Assad government forces.[47]

    Syrian Christians, in line with their fellow citizens, have been badly affected by the Syrian Civil War. According to Syrian law, all Syrian men of adult age with brothers are eligible for military conscription, including Christians.[48][49]

    Christian population in Syria has significantly diminished due to the departure of many Christians from the country amidst the Syrian civil war.[50] In the first five years after the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, at least half of Syria's Christians had left the country,[6][51] but as the situation began to stabilize in 2017 following recent army gains, return of electricity and water to many areas and stability returning to many government controlled regions, some Christians began returning to Syria, most notably in the city of Homs.[52][53][54] Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO), an Assyrian opposition group affiliated with the Syrian National Revolutionary Coalition (SNRC), estimated that approximately two-thirds of Syrian Christians had left the country by 2021. The estimate was also verified by other Christian organizations in Syria.[55]

    During the Syrian civil war, several attacks by ISIS have targeted Syrian Christians, including the 2015 al-Qamishli bombings and the July 2016 Qamishli bombings. In January 2016, YPG militias conducted a surprise attack on Assyrian checkpoints in Qamishli, in a predominantly Assyrian area, killing one Assyrian and wounding three others.[56][57] More than 120 churches and Christian places of worship have been destroyed since the Syrian civil war began in 2011.[58] In November 2021, the Armenian Catholic Church of the Martyrs in Raqqa's city center was rebuilt by the aid group called the Free Burma Rangers.[59][60]

    Following a visit to Syria, to participante in a conference that brought together representatives of the Syrian churches and NGOs working with them in the country, Regina Lynch, project director for Aid to the Church in Need, described the difficult situation the local communities endure, but added that "for many Christians, the war has had a positive effect on the faith, and, in spite of everything, it has been an opportunity for the Church to put its teaching on charity and forgiveness into action".[61]

    Syrian Christian politician George Sabra, former head of Syrian Interim Government and former President of Istanbul-based Syrian National Council

    Prominent Christian figures have been involved in revolutionary activities of the Syrian opposition; through peaceful demonstrations as well as armed resistance. After the deadly clampdown launched by Assad regime deteriorated into a civil war, many Christians volunteered in various humanitarian organizations like the Syrian Civil Defence. Throughout the course of the civil war, members of Christian community and religious centres have been attacked, either by pro-Assad forces or militias affiliated with opposition groups.[62][63] As of 2019, around 61% of churches damaged in the Syrian civil war has been targeted by pro-Ba'athist forces. Out of the 124 documented incidents of violence against Christian religious centres between 2011 and 2019; 75 attacks were perpetrated by militant forces loyal to the Assad regime and 33 by various factions of the opposition.[64][65][66]

    Various human rights organizations have criticized the regime for deliberately launching large-scale attacks on Christian churches and arresting Christian citizens.[67] In April 2013, Gregorios Ibrahim, the Archbishop of Syrian Orthodox Church in Aleppo, lamenting the vast exodus of a third of Syria's Christians from Syria, as well as indiscriminate attacks on Syrian cities and civilian areas since the civil war began.[63][68] A week after issuing the statement, the Archbishop was abducted and has remained missing ever since; allegedly by Al-Nusra Front before being handed over to ISIS.[69] Ba'athist regime has also passed a discriminatory military conscription law which enables government authorities to seize properties of Syrians and their families accused of draft evasion. The law disproportionately targets Sunni and Christian families across Syria, who constitute the vast majority of the Syrian refugee population.[16]

    According to various reports, the total population of Syrian Christians residing in Syria has been reduced from 1.5 million before 2011 to around 300,000 as of 2022 (less than 2% of population). Rather than the persecution by IS during 2014-17, the decline has been mainly due to large-scale emigration of native Christians due to subsequent deterioration of living conditions in the war-torn country. Many rural and young Christians view emigration to Europe as a way to advance career opportunities in education and employment, in addition to providing better prospects for their families.[70][71][20]

    Notable Christians

    See also

    References

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    Further reading

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