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Patriarch of the Melkite Catholic Church
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This is a list of Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchs of Antioch. This Eastern Catholic Church came back into visible communion with Rome in 1724, which caused Jeremias III to declare the action invalid and set up a counter ecclesial body that today is called the Orthodox Church of Antioch. The Melkite Catholic Church none the less represents the legal continuation of the original See of Antioch that traces its existence all the way back to St. Peter according to the Cannons of both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches. This claim is accepted by the Vatican and is not disputed by the Maronite Catholic Church (though it could be on historical grounds) [1] nor the Syriac Catholic Church (the legal continuation of what was the Syrian Orthodox Church, the current Syriac Orthodox Church being a later counter creation) [2] which both also have Patriarchs of Antioch. Recent Ecumenical meetings between the Melkite Catholic Church and the Patriarch of Constantinople show that the Eastern Orthodox do recognize the Melkite Catholic Church as the true See but stress the need for their own Patriarch in the area to continue to serve their faithful who choose not to be in communion with Rome.[3] [4] [5]
Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchs of Antioch
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