ECPA Cover: Ven. Andrei Rublev, 1410, Holy Trinity prefigured in the 3 angels’ visit to Abraham. ©/ Wikimedia Commons. Inside Cover: Holy Fire Orthodox ceremony celebrating the Feast of the Resurrection, in the Church of the Anastasis, site of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem. © Gali Tibbon, Getty Images. Pg. 3: Syriac Cross detail from the Rabbula Gospels. See caption on pg 21. Back Cover: Marvelous mosaic of Christ Pantocrator (“Ruler over All”) from the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, 1261 AD. ©/ Dianelos Georgoudis, Wikimedia Commons. Compiled By ECPACONTENTS The Eastern Catholic Pastoral Introduction p. 3 Association of So. Ca. (ECPA) 300 South Flower Street Part I — History Orange, CA 92868 The Concept and Origin of the Church p. 3 [email protected] Apostolic Church Development p. 4 The Metropolitan Centers p. 5 Main Editor The Five Patriarcates p. 5 Rev. Antoine Bakh Early Heresies and Councils p. 8 Divisions that Still Remain Today p. 9 Layout & Assistance Eliane Rached Cury Part II — Catholic Churches in Communion The Roman Tradition p. 11 Published By The Byzantine Tradition p. 14 The Eastern Catholic The Alexandrian Tradition p. 18 Pastoral Association The Antiochian (West Syrian) Tradition p. 20 of Southern California (ECPA) The Chaldean (East Syrian) Tradition p. 22 The Armenian Tradition p. 24 Compliments Jay & Rola Semaan Glossary of Terms p. 25 Timeline of the Communion of Churches p. 26 Copyrights Catholic Churches in Communion p. 27 © ECPA, 2nd Edition, May, 2016 Population of Non-Catholic Eastern Churches p. 28 ECPA gives permission to copy Population of Catholic Churches p. 29 this booklet for instructional Map p. 30 purposes only, but not to sell. Bibliography p. 31 2 The One Church and the Communion of Churches INTRODUCTION This booklet summarizes the development of all the Catholic churches in communion with one another that today manifest the same oneness that existed at the time of the Apostles through their common bond with the Successor of Peter. It is hoped that through this outline the reader will be able to view the splendor of the One Church shining forth through its multifaceted expressions within the communion of churches PART I - HISTORY Concept & Origin of the Church In the book of Genesis, beginning The Church has many names: “the with Adam and Eve before the fall, Bride of Christ”, “the Kingdom of we see the image of a harmonious God”, “the MysticalECPA Body of Christ”, church-family under God, namely, etc. (Rev. 21:9, Lk 17:21, Mt 16:16, Eph 4:12.) All a “paradise”. For a short time Adam Christians have an experience of and Eve lived in obedience to the what a church is and many have only law commanded them. (Gen. 2:17) studied its great effect on human They were familiar with hearing history. Yet, when we consider God move about in the Garden. (Gen the grand view of creation from 3:8). Luke refers to Adam as “son of beginning to end, there is a deeper God” (Lk 3:38) The Bible refers to this meaning to the concept of Church. kind of family-bond/contract as a The Fathers of the Church, that is, covenant. The sin of Adam and Eve the bishops and teachers of the early broke the unique covenant God church, taught that the Church is made with them; it seemed then that very ancient; it is the first of all that God’s plans for his church-family came to be, and the reason for which to include the human race would God created the universe1! The be destroyed. But God cannot be Church exists wherever Truth exists. defeated by evil. Although our first It is that part of creation which will parents and their descendants, fell endure to the end and which will into sin, God had a plan to bring all become glorified.(2 Cor. 5:17, Gal. 6:15. Rev. 21:5) peoples and nations back to him. 1Jurgens, W.A., The Faith of the Early Fathers, Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN, 1979, Vol. I, 82, 435 3 The story of Noah and his faithful covenant-family of God, must be family confirms for us God’s desire to united to Jesus Christ. The collective maintain a covenant with the human body in union with Christ is called race and to preserve the world from the Church. It includes the angels destruction. God later formed a and the faithful departed who have covenant with Abraham and his clan. gone before us. The mission of the God then renewed this covenant with Church is to baptize all nations Isaac, then Jacob (Israel,) who had into Christ. Jesus commanded his twelve sons that formed the twelve disciples, “Go therefore and make Tribes. Under Moses, the covenant disciples of all nations. Baptizing agreement of the Law formed at Sinai them in the name of the Father and encompassed a nation. Then, under of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, King David, the covenant people teaching them to observe all that I became a kingdom. have commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the close of Somehow each successive covenant the age.” (Mt. 28:19-20) expanded to include more and more people as God’s plan to redeem all of mankind matured. Yet these Apostolic Church Development covenants were constantly broken After Pentecost, the Apostles because they depended on weak received great power (Acts 2), human beings. Finally, through the impelling them to evangelize not long awaited Messiah (Christos in only the tribes of Israel but all Greek), a completely new, eternal peoples. Leaving Jerusalem, many covenant was established that fulfilled went out into various regions of the all past covenants. The New Covenant world. Since they were Hebrews, the formed the ChurchECPA gathered from liturgical form they used followed among the nations - the church the custom of the Temple and the catholic! synagogues: they gathered, sang psalms, said prayers, had Scripture The word catholic was used since at readings and a homily. They also least the year 110 AD by St. Ignatius2, carried out the commandment Bishop of Antioch, to designate that Christ gave them at the Last Supper, church which is spread out all over forming a uniquely Christian way the world and is for all people, versus of worship through the “Breaking the church of the one nation- Israel. of the Bread”, namely, the Eucharist, The word catholic is from the Greek or Thanksgiving. The celebration of catholikos, meaning universal. This the Eucharistic Communion was new covenant cannot be undone for them, and would be for all the because it is based in Jesus Christ, apostolic churches, the very heart of the Son of God, who lives forever. Christian life and worship. All who wish to enter into this new 2. Escorted by prison guards to Rome in 110 AD, St. Ignatius wrote to the Church there asking them not to try to prevent his martyrdom for “I am God’s wheat, and I will be ground by the teeth of wild beasts, so that I may become the pure bread of Christ.” Ibid 53a. He also mentions the Presidency of the Church of Rome. 4 The Metropolitan Centers Although the Apostles along with other evangelists and their successors went to many places, the areas that accepted Christianity most readily were the cities. Metropolitan areas especially became strong centers of Christianity and influenced the surrounding areas. “Rock of the Multiplication” 5th cent. Mosaic, in the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha, on which Jesus is said to The early church spread and have multiplied the five loaves and two fish, symbolizing the developed in unique ways that were Eucharist. ©/ Berthold Werner, Wikimedia Commons characteristic to the metropolitan areas. Various liturgical traditions, the First Jewish-Roman War. One sometimes referred to as Rites, million Jews were killed. After it evolved according to the language, was rebuilt, it was again completely culture, and outlook of the people destroyed in 135 AD during the of the different areas of the world. second Jewish revolt. Unfortunately, Although all shared the common Jerusalem, the first church, never faith of the Apostles, each metro- recovered enough to preserve its politan church developed its own own distinctive tradition. Today, way of expressing that faith in the small Christian presence in that worship, and of explaining it in city is made up of all the other main theological writings. Churches in traditions of the church. the surrounding areas had to receive approval for theECPA ordination of their The growth of early Christianity bishops. The metropolises became came at the great price of thousands magnets that strongly influenced of Martyrs. Severe persecution, everything around them, including torture and executions of Christians church practice and civil politics. subsided after the edict of toleration The bishop of these centers was which Emperor Constantine granted called a patriarch (a formal way of Christians at Milan in 313 AD. After saying “father”) or pope (a familial that, Bishops began to feel free and way of saying “father”). had more ability to codify the Liturgy in order to preserve the essence of Christian worship from heresy. By The Five Patriarchates this time several patriarchates and Jerusalem liturgical customs had developed. In the first two centuries the major These served to enrich the Tradition metropolitan centers were Antioch, of the one Church. Alexandria, and Rome. Jerusalem also began as an influential Christian Antioch center, but in 70 AD the city was It was in Antioch that the word completely demolished along with Christian was first used (Acts 11:26) the Temple by the Romans during and where both Peter and Paul 5 preached.