Balamand, Lebanon, October 20, 2023
The Holy Synod of the Antiochian Patriarchate resolved to restore Eucharistic communion with the Jerusalem Patriarchate today, after nearly a decade of broken communion, the Antiochian Patriarchate reports.
The Antiochian Synod broke communion with the Church in Jerusalem on April 29, 2014, over a dispute concerning the canonical jurisdiction of Qatar, to which both Local Churches lay claim.
For the Antiochian Church, it has long fallen within its Archdiocese of Baghdad, Kuwait, and the Arabian Peninsula. However, on March 4, 2013, the Patriarchate of Jerusalem elected Archimandrite Makarios as the head of its new Archdiocese of Qatar and later consecrated him as the Metropolitan of Qatar.
After attempts to resolve the dispute failed, the Antiochian Synod resolved to break communion.
However, now, although the Antiochian Patriarchate is not backing down on Qatar, it has nevertheless resolved to resume Eucharistic communion with the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
The Synod also notes the great need for prayer at this time and calls upon all parishes to raise fervent prayers for those suffering in the Holy Land this coming Sunday.
See the Patriarchate’s statement:
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