Melquitas

The term melquitas mean 'imperial'. So they were called by monofisitas of Egypt, Syria and Palestine, the Christians who followed the faith of the Emperor (in Syriac Malka) Byzantium, the Patriarchate of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem, following the Council of Chalcedon. The communities that were still linked to Constantinople some small nucleus in Egypt and more numerous in Syria. The Patriarchate of Jerusalem, however, remained totally united in not letting the curd non calcedonianos.
Initially, the various churches melquitas of Syria, Palestine and Egypt retained their own rite and discipline but, in time, the church of Constantinople states as dominant among the other meters, and they ended up accepting the ritual and discipline constantinopolitanas, thus the term m. came to designate the Byzantine Rite of Christian living outside the patriarchate of Constantinople. Arabic domination (from s. VII) even more inclined toward Constantinople this initial trend of Syrians, Egyptians and Jerusalemites Hellenize, because they release more animosity because it appeared to the Arabs as suspects by their political kinship with Byzantium. The Byzantine reconquest of part of Syria, in the s. X uneven relationships of the Patriarchate of Constantinople Antioqu a respect, to occupy the seat of patriarchal hierarchies strictly Byzantine origin. The cross-favored further increasing the Byzantine influence on melquitas because not tolerate Latinos living high Greek hierarchy where they put in Latinas, those forced to live at times in the capital of the Empire, Constantinople, they received protection and defended as a church (see R. Grousset, Histoire des Croisades, 3 vol. Paris 1934-36). These circumstances logically brought the replacement of the rites of the original Byzantine Rite, accepting even the Byzantine ecclesiastical law. Thus, in the s. XII melquita asked the Patriarch of Alexandria to the famous Balzamon canonist Theodore, Patriarch of Antioch, on the ritual and discipline, and received a favorable response to the introduction of the customs in the Byzantine Alexandria (cf. G. de Vries, Oriente Cristiano Leri e Oggi, Rome 1950, 69)
Given the dependence of patriarchies Antioque o, Alexandrian and Jerusalem regarding constantinopolitano, separation of Constantinople in communion with Rome after Miguel Cerulario will also affect them. In Antioquia, to s. XI, the Pope's name was not mentioned in the liturgy, but the patriarch Peter, appointed by the Emperor the year 1052, the Pope advised his choice. At the time of treatment Cerulario while maintaining unity with Rome, but soon resigned under pressure from Cerulario, his successor, Theodosius III, was addicted to Cerulario. With regard to Jerusalem and Alexandria have no specific information on how to proceed in time Cerulario, with respect to notices of election and liturgical terms. The crusades, as already mentioned, help to unite the Eastern Patriarchs in Constantinople. But in each case is difficult to comment because there is no data of a "partitioning" in the formal sense and full, conscious and volente, or one to "permanently eficiente (cf. H. Lammens, ficielles of Relations between Romaine et la Cour d'egypte les Sultans Mamelouks, "Revue de I'Orient Chretien ", VIII, 1930, 101)
The Turkish Ottoman empire helped further the absorption of all the Byzantine East from s. XVI. The Turks established, for all its Byzantine Empire, the Patriarch of Constantinople as the sole head of religion and politics. In this new situation, if the Christians did not accept the Captaincy monofisitas to them by the Turks, m. received without reluctance and moved more and more in the absorption of Greece.
From s. XVII part of the unit returned to melquitas with Rome. In the Patriarchate of Antioquia began attempts at unity in times of Gregory XIII (1583) and were later assisted by the establishment of Aleppo Capuchin missionaries, Jesuits and Carmelites. For nearly a century, there is a constant balancing between the union and separation, supported by several Patriarchs melquitas, finally, with Cyril VI (1724-59) began the uninterrupted series of patriarchs m. Catholics, while still parallel melquitas Orthodox patriarchs. In 1829 the Catholic melquitas could, like other Christians, grouped under their own civil Patriarch (GRANT Ottoman), and in 1833 the patriarchal seat was established in Damascus. In the Patriarchate of Alexandria and Jerusalem were born communities m.

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