Assyrian Church of the East

==Organization==
{{See also|Dioceses of the Church of the East after 1552}}
[[File:Church of Saint Mary - Urmia - Iran - کلیسای ننه مریم، ارومیه - ایران.jpg|thumb|200px|[[St. Mary Church, Urmia|Saint Mary Church]]: an ancient Assyrian church located in the city of [[Urmia]], [[West Azerbaijan province]], [[Iran]]]]
The Assyrian Church of the East is governed by an [[episcopal polity]], the same as other apostolic churches. The church maintains a system of geographical [[parish]]es organized into [[diocese]]s and [[Diocese|archdioceses]]. The [[Catholicos|Catholicos-Patriarch]] is the head of the church. Its synod is composed of bishops who oversee individual dioceses and metropolitans who oversee episcopal dioceses in their territorial jurisdiction.

The [[Chaldean Syrian Church]], which encompasses [[India]] and the [[Persian Gulf]], is the largest diocese of the church. Its history goes back to the [[Church of the East]] that established a presence in [[Kerala]], but the two communities maintained only a sporadic connection for several centuries, and consistent relations were only established with the arrival of the [[Portuguese India|Portuguese in India]] around 1500. The church is represented by the Assyrian Church of the East and is in [[Koinonia|communion]] with it.

Membership is estimated to 385,000 adherents,<ref name="Rassam 2005 166"/> although some{{which|date=August 2021}} sources say as high as 500,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.syriacstudies.com/2012/10/05/the-church-of-the-east-mark-dickens/ |title=The Church of the East – Mark Dickens |publisher=The American Foundation for Syriac Studies|date=2012-10-05 |access-date=2012-12-25}}</ref> According to scholar James Minahan around 19% of the [[Assyrian people]] belong to the Assyrian Church of the East.<ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C|first=James|last= Minahan|year= 2002| isbn=9780313321092| page =206|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|quote=The Assyrians, although closely assiociated with their Christian religion, are divided among a number of Christian sects. The largest denominations are the Chaldean Catholic Church with about 45% of the Assyrian population, the Syriac Orthodox with 26%, the Assyrian Church of the East with 19%, the free Orthodox Church of Antioch or Syriac Catholic Church with 4%, and various Protestant sects with a combined 6%.}}</ref> In its own 2018 Report on Religious Freedom, the [[United States Department of State]] put the Assyrian Church of the East adherents at approximately 20% of the [[Christianity in Iraq|Christians in Iraq]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/IRAQ-2018-INTERNATIONAL-RELIGIOUS-FREEDOM-REPORT.pdf|title=Iraq 2018 International Religious Freedom Report, p. 3|accessdate=17 April 2023}}</ref>

===Hierarchy===
[[File:Qudshanis-Hakkari Mar Shimon house.jpg|thumb|200x200px|Residence of the Patriarch in [[Qudshanis]], [[Ottoman Empire]] (1692–1918).]]
The patriarchal seat was moved several times throughout history. Up to the 1804, patriarchs of the senior Eliya line resided in the ancient [[Rabban Hormizd Monastery]], while patriarchs of the junior Shimun line resided in the Cathedral Church of Mar Shallita, in the village of [[Qudshanis]] in the [[Hakkari (historical region)|Hakkari Mountains]] of the [[Ottoman Empire]], and continued to do so up to the [[World War I|First World War]]. After the beginning of conflict in 1915, the patriarchs temporarily resided between [[Urmia]] and [[Salmas]], and after 1918 the patriarchs resided in [[Mosul]].

After the [[Simele massacre]] of 1933, the then Patriarch [[Shimun XXI Eshai]] was exiled to [[Cyprus]] due to his agitation for [[Assyrian independence movement|independence]]. In 1940, he was welcomed to the [[United States]] where he set up his residence in [[Chicago]], and administered the United States and [[Canada]] as his patriarchal province. The patriarchate was then moved to [[Modesto, California]] in 1954, and finally to [[San Francisco]] in 1958 due to health issues. After the assassination of the patriarch and the election of [[Dinkha IV]] in 1976, the patriarchate was temporarily located in [[Tehran]], where the new patriarch was living at the time.

After the [[Iran–Iraq War]] and the [[Iranian Revolution]], the patriarchate again returned to [[Chicago]], where it remained until 2015, when it reestablished itself in the [[Middle East]] by organizing in [[Erbil]]'s [[Ankawa]] district in [[Iraq]] after [[Gewargis III]] was consecrated as Catholicos-Patriarch. The Diocese of Eastern United States served as the patriarch's province from 1994 until 2012.

Due to the unstable political, religious and economic situation in the church's historical homeland of the Middle East, many of the church members now reside in [[Western world|Western countries]]. Churches and dioceses have been established throughout [[Europe]], [[United States|America]], and [[Oceania]].{{sfn|Hunter|2014|p=614-615}} The largest expatriate concentration of church members is in the United States, mainly situated in [[Illinois]] and [[California]].

===Archdioceses===
# Archdiocese of India [[Chaldean Syrian Church]] – remains in communion and is the biggest province of the church with close to 30 active churches, primary and secondary schools, hospitals etc.
# Archdiocese of Iraq – covers the indigenous territory of the church in [[Iraq]]. The archdiocese's territory includes the cities and surroundings of [[Baghdad]], [[Basra]], [[Kirkuk]], and [[Mosul]].
# Archdiocese of Australia, New Zealand and Lebanon – established in October 1984.

===Dioceses===
[[File:Interieur eglise orumieh.jpg|thumb|200px|An ancient Assyrian church in the city of [[Urmia]], [[Iran]]]]
[[File:Dimitrov, S.Kirill Assyrian church - panoramio.jpg|thumb|200px|Saint Kirill Assyrian church in [[Dimitrov, Armenia]]]]
[[File:Saint Hurmizd cathedral in Sydney11.jpg|thumb|200px|Saint Hurmizd cathedral in [[Greenfield Park, New South Wales|Greenfield Park]], [[Sydney]]]]
# Diocese of Syria – jurisdiction lies throughout all Syria, particularly in the [[al-Hasakah Governorate]], where most of the community resides in [[al-Hasakah]], [[Qamishli]] and the 35 villages along the [[Khabur (Euphrates)|Khabur River]]. There are also small communities in [[Damascus]] and [[Aleppo]].
# Diocese of Iran – territory includes the capital [[Tehran]], the [[Urmia]] and [[Salmas]] plains.
# Diocese of Nohadra and Russia – established in 1999 with jurisdiction includes the indigenous communities of [[Duhok|Dohuk]], along with [[Russia]] and ex-Soviet states such as [[Armenia]].
# Diocese of Scandinavia and Germany – territory lies in western Europe and includes [[Denmark]], [[Sweden]], [[Germany]], [[Finland]] and [[Norway]].
# Diocese of Eastern USA – formerly the patriarchal archdiocese from 1994 until 2012. The territory includes the large [[Illinois]] community, along with smaller parishes in [[Michigan]], [[New England]] and [[New York (state)|New York]].
# Diocese of California – jurisdiction includes parishes in Western USA and northern California. Some of the parishes are [[San Francisco]], [[San Jose, California|San Jose]], [[Modesto, California|Modesto]], [[Turlock, California|Turlock]], [[Ceres, California|Ceres]], [[Seattle]], and [[Sacramento]].
# Diocese of Western USA-South – jurisdiction includes parishes in [[Arizona]] and southern [[California]].
# Diocese of Canada – includes the territory of [[Toronto]], [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]], [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]] and all [[Canada]].
# Diocese of [[Erbil]] 
# Diocese of Victoria and New Zealand – includes [[Melbourne]] and New Zealand.
#Diocese of Western Europe – territory lies in Western Europe and includes the [[United Kingdom]], [[France]], [[Belgium]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Austria]], the [[Netherlands]] and [[Greece]].
# Diocese of Bagdad, [[Ukraine]] and [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]].

===Members of the Holy Synod===
''{{As of|September 2021}}:''

# Mar [[Awa III]]: 122nd Catholicos-Patriarch
# [[Mar Awgin Kuriakose]]:  Metropolitan of Malabar and India
# [[Meelis Zaia]]: Metropolitan of Australia, New Zealand and Lebanon
# [[Aprim Khamis]]: Bishop of Western United States
# [[Emmanuel Yosip|Emmanual Yousip]]: Bishop of Canada
# Odisho Awraham: Bishop of Scandinavia and Germany
# [[Aprem Natniel]]: Bishop of Syria
# [[Mar Iskhaq Yosip]]: Bishop of Dohuk (Northern Iraq) and Russia<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.assyrianchurch.com/his-grace-mar-iskhaq-yosip-visits-moscow-russia/267|title=His Grace Mar Iskhaq Yosip Visits Moscow, Russia | date=5 October 2007|publisher=Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East|accessdate=5 May 2011}}</ref>
# [[Yohannan Yoseph]]:<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.churchoftheeastindia.org/Mar-Awgin-Kuriakose.php |title = Church of the East - India}}</ref> Bishop in India
# Narsai Benyamin: Bishop of Iran
# Paulus Benjamin: Bishop of the Eastern United States
# Abris Awshalem: Bishop of Kirkuk and Diana
# Benyamin Elya: Bishop of Victoria & New Zealand
# Awraham Youkhanis:<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.ncca.org.au/ncca-newsletter/may-2019-3/item/1730-our-churches-20190532 |title = Our Churches}}</ref> Bishop of Western Europe
# Elia Tamras:<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://orthodoxia.ch/en/name/1871/show | title=Elia Isaac Tamrs - Names - Orthodoxia}}</ref> Bishop of Baghdad, Ukraine and Georgia.

''Retired:''
* [[Aprem Mooken]]:  Metropolitan Emeritus of Malabar and India
* [[Sargis Yosip]]: Bishop Emeritus of Baghdad (residing in Modesto, California)