The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch (2)
The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate in Damascus
The Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate, whose history was covered in the first article, is unique among Catholic Patriarchates in that it is not limited to a single country but extends throughout the whole Levant. It also has several dioceses in the diaspora spread across other continents, except Africa.
Note: Bishops are at the head of an Eparchy (Diocese), and Archbishops are at the head of a Metropolitan (Archdiocese) and bear the title of Metropolitan.
The Patriarchate has three sees: the principal see in Damascus, which corresponds to the title of Patriarch of Antioch; another see in Cairo, with the title of Melkite Greek Patriarch of Alexandria; and a third in Jerusalem, with the title of Melkite Greek Patriarch of Jerusalem.
Syria includes three Metropolitans and an Archeparchy, a name used by the Melkites, but which is no longer retained in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. Syria has 170,000 Melkite faithful, but they are in steady decline due to emigration linked to the war.
Lebanon is divided into two Metropolitans and five Archeparchies. It is the country which contains the greatest number of faithful of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, who number more than 400,000. In the Holy Land, an Archeparchy brings together more than 50,000 Melkite faithful.
The Church still has an Eparchy in Jordan, where there are more than 30,000 faithful. There are also Exarchates—which are territorial divisions directly attached to the Patriarchate and managed by a priest—in Iraq, Kuwait, and Istanbul.
The diaspora has an Eparchy in Brazil, one in the United States, one in Canada, one in Australia, one in Mexico, as well as two Exarchates and various parishes in other countries of the world. Finally, several Orders and Congregations are attached to the Melkite Church.
The numerical significance of the Melkite Catholics is estimated at between 1.3 and 2 million faithful in the world. Half of these Melkites live in the Middle East.
Liturgy
The Mass or Divine Liturgy is celebrated among Melkite Greek Catholics mainly according to the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. It is divided into three parts:
Liturgy of Preparation
It takes place in the presence of only deacons and priests, in the apse, hidden from the faithful by the iconostasis. It symbolizes the hidden part of the earthly life of Christ.
The clergy (deacons and priests) enter the church, venerate the icons, put on the priestly vestments, then enter the apse; the priest and the deacons prepare the bread and wine for the Eucharist; there is a preliminary dialogue between the priest and the deacon.
Liturgy of the Catechumens
This part of the service is open to everyone: catechumens and baptized faithful are gathered in the nave.
It includes litanies, antiphons, hymns, then the Epistle and the Gospel, followed by the homily.
Liturgy of the Faithful
Formerly, only the faithful who could receive Communion were able to assist at this part of the service. In contemporary practice, all the faithful may remain.
There are also litanies, the Creed, then the Anaphora (Canon), the Our Father, and Communion.
(Sources : Patriarcat Grec-Melkite catholique/Wikipédia – FSSPX.Actualités)
Illustration : Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
