Re: CHAT: Religions (was: Visible planets)

--- John Cowan <cowan@...> wrote:
> Peter Bleackley scripsit:
>
> > I was under the impression that Arabic
> Christianity was considerably more
> > ancient than that, dating back to the early Church
> - I know that there are
> > Christian Churches in Iraq, where I don't think
> the crusaders ever set
> > foot.
>
> Indeed, though of course the term "Arabic
> Christianity" is unhistorical,
> since the use of Arabic outside Arabia itself is a
> by-product of the
> Islamic conquests.  But the original undivided
> Patriarchy of Antioch is
> as old as Christian ecclesiastical organization
> itself.
>
> I count seven Christian churches whose adherents are
> mostly
> Arabic-speaking today: the Assyrian Church of the
> East (so-called
> "Nestorian"), the Oriental Orthodox Syriac Church
> (so-called
> "Monophysite"), the Orthodox Syrian Church, the
> three Catholic
> counterparts of these (Chaldean, Syrian, and Melkite
> respectively),
> and the Maronite Catholic Church.  In addition,
> there are doubtless
> individual Arabs who are Latin Catholics or
> Protestants or belong to
> another Orthodox church.
>
I also understand that many Coptic churches in Egypt
have gone over to using Arabic in their liturgy, at
least in services designed to draw young people.

Adam

> --
> I suggest you call for help,                    John
> Cowan
> or learn the difficult art of mud-breathing.
> jcowan@reutershealth.com
>         --Great-Souled Sam
http://www.ccil.org/~cowan


=====
Fached il prori ul pañeveju djul atexindu mutu chu.
-- Carrajena proverb

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