Ignatius IV Sarrouf
Ignatius IV Sarrouf | |
|---|---|
Bishop) by Theodosius V Dahan | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Youssef Sarrouf 1742 |
| Died | 16 November 1812 (aged 69–70) |
Ignatius IV (Youssef) Sarrouf (or Aganatios Sarruf, 1742–1812) was Patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church in 1812. He is remembered for both his patriarchate (short and ended by his murder), and for having been, as metropolitan of Beirut, a leading figure in the early history of the Melkite Church.
Life
Early life
Youssef Sarrouf was born in 1742 in
priest. From 1773 for five years he was in Damascus where he became distinguished for his sermons and for raising funds for the patriarch. On 8 July 1778 Ignatius (Youssef) Sarrouf was consecrated metropolitan bishop of Beirut by Patriarch Theodosius V Dahan.[1]
Bishop of Beirut
His years as metropolitan of Beirut were marked by his attempt to reform the two Melkite
Rome.[2] Other clashes arose between Sarrouf and patriarch Agapios II Matar: for example in 1798 the patriarch created the new diocese of Gebail from a part of the diocese of Beirut and appointed a Chouerite monk, Clement Badra, to govern it. Sarrouf refused to leave the district. All these issues were taken to Rome that confirmed the dismissal of the Order of Saint Simeon, confirmed the creation of the diocese of Gebail (with the agreement that at the death of Clement Badra it returned under Beirut), but supported Sarrouf in enforcing his ten points of disciplinary reform for the monasteries (even if without success).[3] For the above reasons, in 1810 Ignatius Sarrouf, with other three bishops, strongly opposed the appointment of Maximos Mazloum
, the pupil of Germanos Adam, as bishop of Aleppo by Patriarch Agapios II Matar.
Patriarch
After the death of Agapios II Matar, two candidates competed for the election of the new Patriarch: the young
Rome. He had not the time to take a formal position against Germanos Adam and Maximos Mazloum because he was murdered by a Melkite layperson on 16 November 1812 for unknown reasons.[1] He was succeeded by Athanasius V Matar
, brother of the previous patriarch Agapios II Matar and partisan of Mazloum's party.
Notes
- ^ a b J.Hajjar (1995). "Ignace IV Sarrouf". Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques. Vol. 25. Paris: Letouzey et Ané. pp. 726–739.
- ^ J.Nasrallah (1988). "San Simeone". Dizionario degli Istituti di Perfezione. Vol. 8. Rome: Edizioni Paoline. pp. 631–632.
- ^ C.Karalevsky (1912). "Agapios III". Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques. Vol. 1. Paris: Letouzey et Ané. pp. 897–899.
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