Syriac Orthodox Church

The Syriac Orthodox Church (Classical Syriac: ܥܺܕܬܳܐ ܣܽܘܪܝܳܝܬܳܐ ܬܪܺܝܨܰܬ݂ ܫܽܘܒܚܳܐ, romanized: ʿIto Sūryoyto Trīṣath Shubḥo), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox denomination that originated from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 1.5 million followers worldwide. The church upholds the Miaphysite doctrine in Christology and employs the Liturgy of Saint James, associated with James the Just. Classical Syriac is the official and liturgical language of the church.

The supreme head of the Syriac Orthodox Church is the patriarch of Antioch, a bishop who, according to sacred tradition, continues the leadership passed down from Saint Peter. Since 2014, Ignatius Aphrem II has served as the Syriac Orthodox Antiochian patriarch. The Great Church of Antioch was the patriarchal seat and the headquarters of the church until c. 518, after which Severus of Antioch had to flee to Alexandria, Egypt. After the death of Severus, the patriarchal seat moved from Egypt to different monasteries like the Mor Bar Sauma Monastery; some patriarchs also set up headquarters in Antioch temporarily. Later, Mor Hananyo Monastery was declared as the patriarchal seat and the headquarters of the church from c. 1160 until 1932. In 1959, the patriarchal seat and headquarters were relocated to the Cathedral of Saint George in Bab Tuma, Damascus, Syria, due to conflicts in the region.

The Syriac Orthodox Church comprises 26 archdioceses and 13 patriarchal vicariates. It also has an autonomous maphrianate based in India, the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church.

The Syriac Orthodox Church became distinct in 512 when Severus, a leader who opposed the Council of Chalcedon, was chosen as patriarch after a synod was held at Laodicea, Syria. This happened after Emperor Anastasius I removed the previous patriarch, Flavian II, who supported Chalcedon. Severus's later removal in 518 was not recognized by majority of the Syriac speakers in and out of Antioch, and this led to the establishment of an independent Miaphysite patriarchate headed by Severus. In the 6th century, a bishop named Jacob Baradaeus helped strengthen this Miaphysite patriarchate. Meanwhile, those who supported Council of Chalcedon formed what later became the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and the Maronite Church.

Syriac-speaking Christians have referred to themselves as "Sūryoyē/Ōromōyē/Ōṯurōyē" in native Aramaic terms based on their ethnic identity. In most languages, a unique name has long been used to distinguish the church from the polity of Syria. In Arabic (the official language of Syria), the church is known as the "Kenissa Suryaniya" as the term "Suryani" identifies the Syriac language and people. Chalcedonians refer to the church as "Jacobite" (after Jacob Baradaeus) since the schism that followed the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451. English-speaking historians identified the church as the "Syrian Church". The English term "Syrian" was used to describe the community of Syriacs in ancient Syria. In the 15th century, the term "Orthodox" (from Greek: "orthodoxía"; "correct opinion") was used to identify churches that practiced the set of doctrines believed by the early Christians. Since 1922, the term "Syrian" started being used for things named after the Syrian Federation. Hence, in 2000, the Holy Synod ruled that the church be named as "Syriac Orthodox Church" after the Syriac language, the official liturgical language of the church.

Although the church is not ethnically exclusive, the main ethnic group in the community usually identifies as Assyrian and/or Aramean, which has resulted in inner conflicts. "Suryoye" is the term used to identify the Syriacs in the diaspora. Church traditions crystallized into ethnogenesis through the preservation of their stories and customs by the 12th century. Since the 1910s, the identity of Syriac Orthodoxy in the Ottoman Empire was principally religious and linguistic. The Syriac Orthodox identity included auxiliary cultural traditions of the Assyrian Empire and Aramean kingdoms, and was reflected as such in the works of historical figures such as Michael the Syrian. Formation of identity was also influenced by biblical interpretaton, leadership by clergymen, and their political situation.

In 1981, to address ongoing name conflicts in the diaspora, the Holy Synod stated that the church is known as the "Syrian Orthodox Church" (ʿIto Suryoyto Orthodoxoytho), its language the "Syriac language" (leshno Suryoyo), and its people "Suryoyo people" (ʿamo Suryoyo).

In recent works, Assyrian-American historian Sargon Donabed has pointed out that parishes in the US were originally using Assyrian designations in their official English names, also noting that in some cases those designations were later changed to Syrian and then to Syriac, while three parishes continued to use Assyrian designations. Today, the Assyrian Orthodox Church of the Virgin Mary in Paramus, New Jersey officially retains the Assyrian name in its parish.