Greek Orthodox Patriarch ofJerusalem | |
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| Archbishopric | |
| Eastern Orthodox | |
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| Incumbent: Patriarch Theophilos III | |
| Style | His Most Godly Beatitude |
| Information | |
| First holder | James the Just |
| Established | 33 (founded);[1] 531 (granted title of patriarch) |
| Cathedral | Church of the Holy Sepulchre |
| Website | |
| jerusalem-patriarchate | |
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TheGreek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem orEastern Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem, officiallyPatriarch of Jerusalem (Greek:Πατριάρχης Ιεροσολύμων;Arabic:بطريرك القدس;Hebrew:פטריארך ירושלים), is the headbishop of theGreek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, ranking fourth of ninepatriarchs in theEastern Orthodox Church. Since 2005, the Eastern Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem has beenTheophilos III. Thepatriarch is styled "Patriarch of the Holy City ofJerusalem and allHoly Land,Syria, beyond theJordan River,Cana ofGalilee, and HolyZion." The patriarch is the head of theBrotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, and the religious leader of about 130,000 Eastern Orthodox Christians in theHoly Land,[2] most of themArab Christians inIsrael and Palestine.
The patriarchate traces its line of succession to the first Christian bishops of Jerusalem, the first beingJames the Just in the 1st century AD. Jerusalem was grantedautocephaly in 451 by theCouncil of Chalcedon and in 531 became one of the initial fivepatriarchates.
On the importance ofJerusalem in Christianity, theCatholic Encyclopedia reads:
During the first Christian centuries the church at this place (referring to thecenacle) was the centre ofChristianity in Jerusalem, "Holy and glorious Sion, mother of all churches". Certainly no spot in Christendom can be more venerable than the place of the Last Supper, which became the first Christian church.[3]
In theApostolic Age the Christian Church was organized as an indefinite number of local Churches that in the initial years looked to that at Jerusalem as its main centre and point of reference.James the Just, who was martyred around 62, is described as the first bishop of Jerusalem. Roman persecutions following theJewish revolts against Rome in the later 1st and 2nd centuries also affected the city's Christian community, and led to Jerusalem gradually being eclipsed in prominence by other sees, particularly those ofConstantinople,Antioch,Alexandria, andRome. However, increasedpilgrimage during and after the reign ofConstantine the Great increased the fortunes of the see of Jerusalem, and in 325 theFirst Council of Nicaea attributed special honor, but notmetropolitan status (then the highest rank in the Church), to the bishop of Jerusalem.[4] Jerusalem continued to be a bishopric until 451, when theCouncil of Chalcedon granted Jerusalem independence from themetropolitan of Antioch and from any other higher-ranking bishop, granted what is now known asautocephaly, in the council's seventh session whose "Decree on the Jurisdiction of Jerusalem and Antioch" contains: "the bishop of Jerusalem, or rather the most holy Church which is under him, shall have under his own power the three Palestines".[5] This led to Jerusalem becoming apatriarchate, one of the five patriarchates known as thepentarchy, when the title of "patriarch" was created in 531 byJustinian I.[6][7]
When theGreat Schism took place in 1054 the Patriarch of Jerusalem and the other three Eastern Patriarchs formed theEastern Orthodox Church, and the Patriarch of Rome (i.e. thePope) formed theRoman Catholic Church.[citation needed]
In 1099 theCrusaders appointed aLatin patriarch. As a result, the Eastern Orthodox patriarchs lived in exile inConstantinople until 1187.
Today, the headquarters of the patriarchate is theChurch of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
The number of Eastern Orthodox Christians in theHoly Land is estimated to be about 200,000. A majority of Church members areArab citizens of Israel andPalestinianArabs, and there are also a small number ofAssyrians,Greeks andGeorgians.
In 2005,Patriarch Irenaios was deposed by theHoly Synod of Jerusalem after being accused of involvement in the sale of church land inEast Jerusalem toIsraeli investors. A special Pan-OrthodoxSynod was convened inConstantinople (Istanbul) to review the decision of the Holy Synod of Jerusalem. The Pan-Orthodox Synod under the presidency of theEcumenical Patriarch of ConstantinopleBartholomew I, overwhelmingly confirmed the decision of theBrotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre and struck Irenaios' name from thediptychs.Metropolitan Cornelius of Petra was chosen to serve aslocum tenens pending the election of a replacement for Irenaios. On August 22, 2005,Theophilos, the former Archbishop ofTabor, was elected as the 141st Patriarch of Jerusalem.
TheCouncil of Chalcedon in 451 raised the bishop of Jerusalem to the rank ofpatriarch (seePentarchy). However,Byzantine politics meant that Jerusalem passed from the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Antioch to theGreek authorities in Constantinople. For centuries, Eastern Orthodox clergy, such as theBrotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, dominated the Jerusalem church.
As a result of theFirst Crusade in 1099, aLatin Patriarchate was created, with residence in Jerusalem from 1099 to 1187. Eastern Orthodox patriarchs continued to be appointed, but resided in Constantinople.
In 1187, the Latin patriarch was forced to flee the city of Jerusalem due to theMuslim reconquest of Jerusalem. The office remained and appointments continued to be made by theCatholic Church, with the Latin patriarch residing in the Frankish-controlled Levant until 1374, and subsequently in Rome until modern times. The Eastern Orthodox patriarchs at this period were.
| Styles of The Patriarch | |
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| Reference style | His Most Godly Beatitude |
| Spoken style | Your Beatitude |
| Religious style | Patriarch |
| Posthumous style | N/A |
Traditional ecclesiastical jurisdictions ofprimates inChristianity, sorted according to earliestapostolic legacy and branched where multiple denominational claimants: bold blue =Catholic Church,light blue =Eastern Orthodox Church (* unrecognized),bold/light green =Oriental Orthodoxy,italic blue =Nestorianism,bold italic blue =pre-schism | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Bishops of Jerusalem (until 451) |
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| Patriarchs of Jerusalem (from 451) |
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§: in exile atConstantinople due to theLatin rule over Jerusalem | ||
