Iraq, Iran, and
Turkey
Iraq
Christianity has been in Iraq since
Apostolic times. Today, Muslims account
for over 95 percent of Iraq’s 40 million people. Christians account for less than 1 percent
and of these about 300,000 are Catholic.
Catholics belong to one of five liturgical rites.
Chaldean
Rite
Most
Iraqi Catholics are Chaldean-rite and they number about 250,000. Chaldean Catholics in Iraq have two provinces
and three separate archdioceses that are immediately subject to the Chaldean
patriarch. The Archdiocese of Basra was
established as the Diocese of Perat-Maishan in 280 and became a metropolitan
archdiocese in 410. It was later
suppressed before becoming an archdiocese in 1954. The Archdiocese of Mosul began as a diocese
in 1800 before becoming an archdiocese in 1967.
The Archdiocese of Erbil was established in 1968 and its cathedral is in
Ankawa.
Province of the
Chaldean Patriarchal See of Baghdad
The Patriarchate of Baghdad was
established in the 3rd Century and became the Patriarchal See of the
Chaldean Patriarch in 1553. On the same
day, the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baghdad was created as the Patriarch’s
province. The Patriarch’s cathedral in
Baghdad is dedicated to Mary, Mother of Sorrows and it was built the 1890s.
From Wikipedia
The Province has three suffragan
dioceses in Iraq—there are others in other countries.
- The Diocese of Amadiyah was created in 1785. The cathedral is in Duhok.
- The Diocese of Akre was established in 1850, was suppressed in 1895, and was restored in 1910.
- The Diocese of Alquoch was established in 1960.
- The Diocese of Zaku was established in 2020.
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of
Kirkuk was established in 1789 and was renamed Kirkuk-Sulaimaniya in 2013. The Metropolitan Archdiocese has no suffragan
sees. The Metropolitan Cathedral in
Kirkuk is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Roman
Rite
There are about 3,000 Roman Rite Catholics in Iraq in 2
parishes. The Diocese of Baghdad was
established in 1632 and became an archdiocese in 1848. It is immediately subject to the Pope.
Armenian
Rite
There are 2,000 Armenian Rite Catholics in Iraq in 2
parishes. The Archdiocese of Baghdad was
established in 1954 and is immediately subject to the Armenian patriarch.
Greek-Melkite
Rite
There are only about 200 Greek-Melkite Catholics in Iraq
and they are under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Iraq. The Exarchate was established in 1838 and is
immediately subject to the Greek-Melkite Patriarch. There has been not bishop since 2004. There is only one parish—the cathedral in
Baghdad.
Syriac
Rite
Syrian Catholics number about 50,000 in Iraq and there
are three archdioceses and a patriarchal exarchate. All are immediately subject to the Syriac
patriarch. The Archdiocese of Mosul was
established in 1790, the Archdiocese of Baghdad was established in 1862, and the
Archdiocese of Hadib-Erbil was established in 2019. The Patriarchal Exarchate of Basra and the
Gulf was created in 1982. The cathedral
is in Basra.
Iran
Christianity has been in Iran since
Apostolic times. Today, Muslims account
for over 99 percent of Iran’s 83 million people. Catholics number about seven thousand and
belong to one of three liturgical rites.
Chaldean
Rite
There are about 5,000 Chaldean Rite Catholics in Iran. They fall under the jurisdiction of one of
four dioceses and fewer than a dozen parishes.
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Tehran was established
as the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sehna in 1853 and was renamed in 1971. The Metropolitan Archdiocese has no suffragan
sees. The Metropolitan Cathedral in
Tehran is dedicated to St. Joseph.
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Urmya (in northwestern
Iran) was established in 1890 and has one suffragan see—the Diocese of
Salmas. The Metropolitan Cathedral of
St. Mary the Mother of God in Urmya was originally built in the 1880s, but was
destroyed in 1918. It reopened in
1954. The Diocese of Salmas was
established in 1709. Salmas is in northwestern Iran.
The Archdiocese of Ahvaz was established in 1966 and is
immediately subject to the Chaldean patriarch.
The Cathedral is in Ahvaz, Iran (in the southwest near Kuwait).
Roman
Rite
There are 2,000 Roman Rite Catholics in Iran under the
jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Tehran-Isfahan.
The Archdiocese, which has 3 parishes, was established in 1629 and
became an archdiocese in 1910. It is
immediately subject to the Pope. The
Cathedral is in Tehran.
Armenian
Rite
There are 150 Armenian Rite Catholics in Iran under the
jurisdiction of the Diocese of Isfahan.
The Diocese, which has 1 parish, was established in 1850 and is part of
the Armenian Province of Cilicia (in Beirut, Lebanon). The Cathedral is in Isfahan in central Iran.
Turkey
Christianity has been in Turkey
since Apostolic times. Today, Muslims
account for over 99 percent of Turkey’s 81 million people. Catholics number about 50-75 thousand and belong
to one of five liturgical rites.
Roman
Rite
Roman Rite Catholic make up the majority of Catholics in
Turkey. The 30,000 Roman Rite Catholics
belong to one of three dioceses: the
Metropolitan Archdiocese of Izmir (located in western Turkey), the Apostolic
Vicariate of Anatolia, and the Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul.
Izmir is the same as Smyrna, one of the seven churches
in the Book of Revelation (and the only still in existence). The Christian community dates to Apostolic
times and claims to have been founded by John the Apostle. St. Polycarp later served as bishop. Officially, the Metropolitan Archdiocese of
Izmir was established as the Archdiocese of Smyrna in 1346, was suppressed in
1575, restored as an apostolic vicariate in 1625, before being raised to the
Metropolitan Archdiocese of Izmir (Smyrna) in 1818. Despite being a metropolitan archdiocese, it
has no suffragan dioceses.
St. John’s Cathedral was built in a neo-classical style
between 1862 and 1874. The beautifully
decorated church was mostly destroyed during the Turkish War of Independence
(1922-1925) and most of the Catholic community left. In an attempt to save the Cathedral, the
Archbishop entered into an agreement with the U.S. military in 1965 to use it
as a chapel. Unfortunately, this caused
distrust in the larger Muslim community and the agreement was cancelled in
2013. See izmirkatedrali.com.
The Apostolic Vicariate of Istanbul was established in
1742 as the Apostolic Vicariate of Constantinople and was renamed in 1990. It is immediately subject to the Pope. The cathedral is in Istanbul. The Apostolic Vicariate of Anatolia is
immediately subject to the Pope. It
began as the mission sui juris of Trabzon in 1931 and acquired its current name
and status in 1990. There are cathedrals
in Iskenderun and Mersin (both in southern Turkey).
Armenian
Rite
There
are 3,000 Armenian Catholics in Turkey.
The Patriarch of the Armenian Rite is officially headquartered in
Cilicia (a region in southern Turkey), but is now based in Beirut,
Lebanon. (See my blog on Lebanon of April
8, 2019.) The Armenian Archdiocese of
Istanbul was established in 1830, suppressed in 1867, and restored in
1928. It is immediately subject to the
Armenian Patriarch.
Chaldean
Rite
There
are 30,000 Chaldean Catholics in Turkey under the jurisdiction of the Chaldean Archdiocese
of Diarbekir. (Diarbekir is in
southeastern Turkey.) The Archdiocese,
which is immediately subject to the Chaldean Patriarch, was established as a
diocese in 1553. It became an
archdiocese in 1966.
Greek
Catholic Rite
There
are only about two dozen Greek Catholics in Turkey. They are under the jurisdiction of the Greek
Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Istanbul, which was established in 1911 and
acquired its current name in 1936. The
Exarchate is immediately subject to the Pope.
Its last bishop died in 1957 and it has had apostolic administrators
ever since.
Syriac
Rite
Syriac
Rite Catholics in Turkey number about 2,000 and are under the jurisdiction of
the Syriac Patriarchal Exarchate of Turkey, which was established in 1908 and
is immediately subject to the Syriac Patriarch.
Definitions
The Catholic Church is mostly
divided into ecclesiastical provinces—a province consists of a metropolitan archdiocese
and one or more dioceses. The province and the archdiocese are led by an
archbishop. Each of the dioceses is called a suffragan diocese and is led
by a bishop. Archbishops have some
responsibilities for the province, but all bishops answer directly to the
Pope. There are also archdioceses that are not part of a province that
are directly under the jurisdiction of the Pope. There are also jurisdictions below the level
of a diocese. These include apostolic
vicariates and apostolic prefectures. Both are missionary territories
below the level of a diocese. The difference is that a vicar apostolic
holds the rank of a bishop and the prefect apostolic is a priest, but not a
bishop. There is also a jurisdiction
called a mission sui juris. A mission
sui juris may be part of a province and is often administered by a bishop of
another diocese.
Most Catholics in the world belong
to the Latin or Roman rite. Rite refers
to liturgical practices, ecclesiastical discipline, and spiritual
heritage. Many Catholics belong to one
of two dozen Eastern rite churches. Eastern rite churches trace their
heritage to Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Eastern rite churches
sometimes use different terminologies. For example, a diocese might be
called an eparchy and is led by an eparch. A vicariate apostolic is
called an exarchy and is led by an exarch.
A patriarchal exarchate is an exarchy directly subject to the Patriarch.
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