Context: From Malankara to Levant

When Patriarch Abded Aloho II set sail from Malankara in September 1911 after enthroning Paulose Mar Koorilose (of Panampady) as the parallel Malankara Metropolitan against St. Dionysius the Illuminator, he had caused a severe division within the Church which wouldn't heal for decades, continuing to subsist until now. By asserting absolute, unconditional spiritual and temporal jurisdiction over Malankara and choosing as prelates and overseers those who submitted before his claims, the Church - yet not fully healed from the schism initiated by the Reformed - was separated into two factions, each having its own prelates, clergy, and formal bodies. The re-establishment of the Catholicate, initiated by Pat. Abded Mshiho II who arrived shortly afterwards, manifested the only solution towards peace: and even this peace was not actualized until much later.

This focus, centred around Malankara, is that which has been more or less provided by sources - both Syriac and Indian, academic and hagiographical. Often forgotten, either intentionally or unintentionally, are the acts of Pat. Abded Aloho with respect to the Church in Syria, and their consequences. As a recent scholarly study on this matter observes, "Syrian Orthodox sources generally brush over this unsavoury chapter [i.e. the Patriarchate of Abdullah] of its history", and "all noted sources have not addressed the decline the Church witnessed during and through his patriarchate" (Khalid S. Dinno, The Syrian Orthodox Christians in the Late Ottoman Period and Beyond: Crisis then Revival, p. 190).

Travels: Istanbul, England, India, and Egypt

Following his election and enthronement to the Patriarchal Seat in August 1906, Pat. Abded Aloho remained in the heartland of the Church for about two years, where he ordained a number of bishops and clergy. In March 1908, he left Mardin for Jerusalem, where he would consecrate St. Dionysius and Mar Koorilose in May, at the Monastery of St. Mark. After travelling to Istanbul where the Patriarch had an audience with the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II, he arrived in England to seek permission to travel to India, and stayed there for nearly a year.

The Patriarch and his companions reached Malankara by late 1909, residing there for two years. Evidently, the events that took place in Malankara during this period is a distinct chapter in history on its own, and will be addressed later in a future tract, for it is not relevant to the matter here. Leaving India on 8th October 1911, the party reached Egypt shortly afterwards, where it remained for nearly eight months. The intercontinental journey came to an end in April 1913 at Jerusalem: from where it had begun five years ago.

Flames within the Millet

Socio-political situations deteriorated over the years, combined with instability within the Ottoman State. The Patriarchal Deputy in Dayr al-Za'faran (Kurkmo Dayro) was of advanced age, unfit to keep the community in order. Many bishops were incapable of managing the affairs on their own, with no central figure to stand for the rights and needs of the millet (community). Uniate Syriac Catholics and Western missionaries, together with the Greek (Rum) Orthodox in certain regions, were actively attempting to take advantage of this situation within the Syriac Orthodox Church, luring both clergy and laity alike. Lack of material resources contributed to famines, and persecutions of various manners began to take place in many corners. In the midst of all of these, the relevant question was: where is the Patriarch, who was elected and consecrated to look after the affairs of the community, as recognized by the Ottomans?

Khouri Hanna Shamoun, a Syriac Orthodox priest in the village of Azikh, asks the same question to Met. Koorilose Jirjis, the Patriarchal Deputy:

After kissing your hands and begging for your prayers, which are always answered, we put forward to your elevated dignity that over the past year we have not received from you any letters or news. We are unhappy, because we do not know what has happened to our Syrian Taifa and we have no news about his Beatitude. We have become embarrassed towards other twa’if. They embarrass us when they find out that we receive no directions or follow-ups from you. .. We request you to inform us of his Beatitude’s condition and his whereabouts and why he has left the Antiochean Seat and has unnecessarily stayed away so far elsewhere... (Fr. Khouri Hanna Shamoun, Letter dat. Jan. 13, 1912; cf. “Appendix A 4.3”, in Khalid S. Dinno, Syrian Orthodox Christians in the Late Ottoman Period and Beyond, p. 358)

Unsurprisingly, then, the same flames spread among the bishops in the following months (assuming that they did not originate from the bishops in the first place!).

Episcopal Letters from Diyarbakır and Mardin

The following letter was addressed to Pat. Abded Aloho by the Patriarchal Deputy in Mardin and the Board of the Community, in early 1913.

We informed your Eminence in previous letters of the decline in the entire milla. We no longer know which matter we should address first and which we should postpone. Two days ago we expressed the sad conditions in Kharput. The conditions in Midyat are several times worse. We still receive, daily, telegrams from the various bishoprics expressing their grievances with each other and the infighting that is going on, no doubt with dire consequences, while your Beatitude continues to postpone resolution of the issues from month to month. .. If you desire the diminution of the milla, we are acting to remove the blame that might be placed on us, and you would have to answer to what is happening. There is no value in repeated correspondence, for the condition of the milla no longer allows delay. We therefore repeat our request for a speedy positive resolution. (Patriarchal Vicar in Mardin and Milla Board, Letter dat. Mar. 6, 1913; cf. “Appendix A 4.5”, in ibid., p. 361)

Yet another letter was addressed to Pat. Abded Aloho by the Episcopal Board of Diyarbakır, in mid-1913.

We, the members of the Board, have agreed to write this letter to inform you about the dysfunctional state of our milla (taifa) which is losing enormously, materially and morally. All these losses have been incurred through mismanagement and because of ignoring the calls of the milla for your return to the [Patriarchal] Seat. Being away from this Seat has caused our milla to abdicate its rights and to lose its opportunities for progress. If you are thinking of abandoning your duties, as has been the case for such a long period of time, then how unfortunate is this poor milla! Who will answer for that before Almighty God on the Day of Reckoning for this neglect and for not asking about the rights of the milla, while the other milal [plural of milla] are devouring us from every side? Who is the shepherd, who is the head and who is the one who is responsible before God and before the living conscience? ...

All these losses have been incurred as a result of your being away from the Seat for such a long time. We have written many times requesting your return, and each time you say that our call is unnecessary. Yet, although it has been two and half years since your return from India, yet you are still moving between Syria and Jerusalem. (Bishopric Board of Diyarbakir, Letter dat. May 10, 1913; cf. “Appendix A 4.4”, in ibid., p. 359)

Personal Letters from the Millet

Besides formal letters from the Church, including those cited above, individuals too wrote and addressed letters to Pat. Abded Aloho, concerning the distress faced by the community. Compared to the relatively vague details found in the former set of documents, the latter preserve more detailed information, particularly concerning the cunning interests of Catholics and Melkites.

Dear Sir, the decline in the taifa, coupled with non-concern during your time has never been witnessed at any other by our fathers and grandfathers.. These matters will mark a black blot on the history of your Patriarchate, that will never be removed by coming generations. Suffice it to say that since your return from your tour of India four of your bishops have moved to other churches.. If you did not ask about your flock, who is then to ask about them? Would it be the chiefs of the Papist? Or would it be the Probates [Protestants]? who are both ready to snatch our milla to themselves? So, if you are a true father, a decent shepherd, it is your duty to return to the [Patriarchal] Seat and to enquire about your sheep. Otherwise the milla would disintegrate and then you know you would answer to that before the throne of God. (Elias Shamoun, Letter dat. Aug. 1, 1913; cf. “Appendix A 4.6”, in ibid., p. 362)

Thus, based on our mutual love and respect, we dare express what is our duty in accordance with our conscience and state that it is not permissible by the tenets of Church law and the tenets of proper administration that you abandon the milla with no caretaker while you stay in Jerusalem as if the matter is of no concern to you. We do not believe that the Creator who entrusted you with the flock would accept this from you, in accordance with the promises you made on your installation on the Antiochian See. Now we have received some blame for that [your negligence] which we feel is justified. .. Is it permissible that the sheep are left to be devoured by the wolves while the chief of its shepherds remains unaware of all this? Some write to say that His Beatitude’s actions are deliberate, proving Tarazi right and others said about him. (Antoun Abdelnour, Letter dat. Dec. 12, 1913; cf. “Appendix A 4.7”, in ibid., pp. 363-4)

The latter source refers to the rumours propagated by Syriac Catholic sources (e.g. Philippe de Tarrazi) that Pat. Abded Aloho was working for the Catholics and a potential reunion with the See of Rome, even after being enthroned as the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch. Apparently, many within the Church began to suspect that this indeed was the case, due to the inattention and unconcern of the Patriarch towards the affairs of the Church. Dinno 2017 (who should be wholly credited for discovering this nearly-forgotten chapter of history) notes: "The question of his [i.e. Pat. Abded Aloho's] real allegiance to his office as patriarch, thus remain a troubling one."

Aftermath

Matters progressively worsened as months passed by, and Pat. Abded Aloho continued to reside in Jerusalem until his death in November 1915, ignoring all the requests and pleas of the Church citing his ailments. The same year witnessed the Sayfo (lit. "the sword"), the genocide and large-scale deportation of Syriac Christians by Ottoman and pro-Ottoman Muslim forces in Caucasia (and parts of Syria). The Syriac Orthodox Church thereby suffered immense and severe damage as a community, from which it still continues to recover.