PATRIARCHAL ENCYCLICAL ˆ ˋ ˎˆ ˆ ˎ ˆ ˋˎij ˆˋ ˋ ˓ˆ ˋij ˎˋˆ ˋ ˎ ˑİ ˘ˆ ˋ ˏ ˎˍˋ In The Name Of The Self-Existent Eternal, Omnipotent and Almighty God Ignatius Zakka I Iwas Patriarch Of The Apostolic See Of Antioch And All The East Supreme Head Of The Universal Syriac Orthodox Church The Thirteen Hundred Years Commemoration For the Passing Away of St. Jacob of Edessa (708+) unto the heavenly Abodes The Apostle Paul says: “Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith”. (Hebrews 13:7) We extend our apostolic benediction, best wishes and greetings to our brothers, His Beatitude Mor Basselios Thomas I, Catholicos of India, the Eminent Metropolitans; our spiritual children the venerable diocesan vicars, Very Reverend and Reverend priests, monks, deacons, and our blessed Syriac Orthodox people. May the divine providence embrace them through the prayers of the Virgin Mary the Mother of God, and the rest of the Martyrs and Saints. Amen. Dearly beloved… after inquiring about your welfare, we ask the Lord Almighty to keep you in perfect health of body and soul and grant you success in all your endeavors. On the occasion of the thirteen hundredth year for the passing away of St. Jacob of Edessa unto the heavenly abodes, it pleases us to declare this year, 2008, as the year of St. Jacob of Edessa throughout our Universal Syriac Orthodox Church. As we issue this Apostolic Encyclical, we would like to contemplate on the glorious life of this saint: St. Jacob was born in 633 A.D. in the village of A’ein Daba, which belonged to the region of Antioch. He studied in the monastery of Qen-neshrin that was established in the year 530 A.D. by St. John Bar Aftonia (+536 A.D.) on the shore of the Euphrates, facing Jarablus. Qen-neshrin was the center of knowledge which attracted Syriac Scholars up to the thirteenth century. St. Jacob became a monk there and studied Greek Language and Literature under the tutelage of St. Severius Sabokht, the famous philosopher, and delved into philosophy and theology. Later, he traveled to Alexandria to further his studies in philosophy and languages. Afterwards, he returned to Syria, where he became an ascetic and later he was ordained as a priest. In 684 AD, his friend, Athanasius II Al-balady (684-687 AD) Patriarch of Antioch, consecrated him as the Metropolitan of Edessa, thus acquiring the name“St. Jacob of Edessa”. There, he stayed four years. However, due to his burning zeal to adhere to the ecclesiastic canons, and his strong desire to restore order to the monasteries in his diocese, some monks and clerics resisted him, thus he was forced to expel them from their ranks. It is recorded, that at one time he gathered the books of canon law at the door of the monastery, where Patriarch Julianos was staying, along with some of the bishops who wished to be lenient in adhering to the canons- in order to go with the flow of the times- St. Jacob burnt the books of the Church canons, while screaming: “Here I stand burning the precepts which you trod upon with your feet, as you refuse to enforce them, and it became to you a non profitable burden”. With that, he resigned his episcopal duties, and left to stay at St. Jacob monastery in “Al-kashum” near Sumeisat. From there he moved to the monastery of Usibuna in the region of Antioch, where he stayed eleven years instructing the monks in the Greek language. Afterwards, he went to the monastery of Tel- Ada, northwest of Aleppo, where he remained nine years. At that time, his successor on the Episcopal See of Edessa, Metropolitan Habib passed away. The people of Edessa begged him to return to his old position and he accepted and returned to Edessa. Four months later, St Jacob went to Tel-Ada Monastery to retrieve his books and there he passed away on June 5, 708 AD and was buried at that Monastery. Indeed, St. Jacob of Edessa was a theologian, historian and a linguistic translator of Syriac and Greek. He interpreted the Holy Scriptures and was deservedly labeled as the Scriptures’exegete. He left over thirty volumes of books, some he wrote, others he translated or edited. These books dealt with different themes of the Holy Bible which he interpreted verse by verse. They also centered on theological, historical, ecclesiastical, philosophical, dogmatic and liturgical studies. St. Jacob introduced the use of the vowels in Syriac language. He is also the pioneer in Syriac grammar and was considered its founder. Moreover, he was known for inventing a new method in translation; while all other translators were following the literal method, he followed the meaning of the text instead. As we celebrate the thirteen hundred years of his passing away to the heavenly abodes, we are fulfilling what St. Paul had commanded us to do: “Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith” (Hebrews 13:7). Hence, we charge all our Syriac dioceses worldwide to celebrate this important and joyful occasion. Likewise, we urge you to combine the Holy Lent season with prayers and distribution of alms and to include in the sermons the legacy of this great saint, and to emulate his life, especially by adhering to our Church’s true and orthodox canons. May we continue to keep the apostolic teachings of our Church Fathers, and the canons of the ecumenical and local councils, like St. Jacob who taught the clergy and the people to obey them as he himself did, because canons were made to be obeyed by the faithful everywhere, in order to build up the souls and to return to God through true repentance, purity of heart, and good conduct. Beloved, may God make this happy commemoration a source of grace and blessings unto you through the intercession of the Holy Virgin Mary, Mother of God, along with the esteemed St. Jacob of Edessa and all the other saints and martyrs. As we approach this season of the Holy Lent, we implore the Lord to accept your fasting, prayers and alms. May He make you worthy to celebrate Easter with joy, happiness and good health for many more years to come. ... !ˎ ˋ ˒ˆ Our Father Who art in Heaven … Issued at our Patriarchal Headquarters in Damascus, Syria, the 8th day of February in the year of our Lord of 2008, the 28th year of our Patriarchal reign. .