Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, N.Y., 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-65).

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, N.Y., 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-65).

This thesis tries to discuss the consignation prayer (formula) of the West Syrian PRES as seen in the Nomocanon chapter 4.8 in relation to manuscripts before and after the time period of the Nomocanon. Liturgical and theological significances of the consignation prayer is also explored through this thesis. An inductive historical-critical method is applied for this study, with the help of the underlying theory that the Nomocanon of BarHebraeus has contributed to a liturgical centralisation within the West-Syrian tradition in relation to the consignation prayer of the PRES. The oldest manuscripts used in this study are dated to the 10th century and the recent ones to the 20th century, thus analysing and studying the liturgical development of the West-Syrian PRES’s consignation prayer.

This thesis tries to answer the question of how the night office sluthō d-lilyō has developed in the Syrian Orthodox Antiochian tradition as it is expressed in the Syrian Orthodox prayerbook of ܫܚܝܡܐ Šḥimō - which is the prayerbook used on ordinary weekdays and Saturdays throughout the liturgical year except for the great Lent. One of the main liturgical scholars of the 20th century, Robert F. Taft S.J. (+ 2018), refined the methods of Anton Baumstark (+ 1948) and Juan Mateos S.J. (+ 2003), and studied how the Liturgy and Liturgy of the Hours have grown during the centuries. This thesis uses the method(s) of Taft and studies how the night office has grown by comparing the structure of this office in six manuscripts from the Monastery of Mor Gabriel in Tur-’Abdin – one of the major monasteries in the Syrian Orthodox world. The oldest manuscript in our study is dated to 1474 C.E. (perhaps the oldest dated MS of the Šḥimō in the entire world). Few studies have looked into how the Šḥimō tradition has changed during the centuries and in this thesis we will take the night office as an example of liturgical growth and development.

Examining the role of women in the ministry of the Syrian Orthodox Church is not a new endeavor; however, it remains a complex one. This paper aims to delve into the roles assigned to women in church ministry according to canon law, exploring the reasons behind the failure of their implementation, and identifying the opportunities available for women in church ministry today. The creation narratives in the Book of Genesis 1:27 underscore the equality of both male and female, as they are created in the image of God. Biblical texts emphasize the invaluable role of women as supportive partners within the context of the church community (Romans:16:1-5). They are depicted as pillars of strength, offering their wisdom, compassion and dedication to nurturing the spiritual growth of others. This role as a helper (Genesis 2:20) is not one of subservience but rather of partnership and collaboration where both men and women work together harmoniously to fulfill the mission of the church and spread love and understanding.  Through this study, I have endeavored to elucidate the integral role of women in church ministry. The church must recognize and harness the considerable expertise that women possess across various fields of religious life. By doing so, their spiritual journey is enriched, enabling them to align more closely with the image of God and pursue their goals with greater specificity and purpose. This exploration also discusses into the establishment of the office of deaconess and highlights the myriad opportunities available for women in the ministry of the Syrian Orthodox Church today. By embracing and empowering women within the church, we uphold the values of equality and inclusivity and enrich our community’s spiritual fabric.

The ܫܚܝܡܐ Shhimo is the prayer book for normal weekdays of the Syrian Orthodox Church and it was officially printed for the first time in Dayro d-Kurkmo (Dayr Al-Zafaran) in 1890 with a printing press that Patriarch Ignatius Peter IV (+ 1894) had received in 1874 thanks to his visit to London and the Anglican Church. Prior to 1890 Shhimo was a diverse tradition expressed with different manuscripts in different monasteries showing a diverse use of different prayers and costumes. The second printing of Shhimo in 1913 and re-printing 1934, by the late Syrian Orthodox Patriarch Ephrem I Barsoum (+ 1957), was a reworked version of 1890 that included several important changes. This thesis will investigate what these changes were and what implications they carry for the understanding of Shhimo and for the Syrian Orthodox Church. In this paper we will also start to investigate the transmission process of the Shhimo and study some of the manuscripts prior to 1890.

In the town of Södertälje, a great number of ecclesiastical denominations are represented, a majority of which with roots in the Middle East. To a person attending several various Christian services at many different churches, the diversified ecclesiastical scene offers many similarities among the different denominations, as well as many differences between them. An obvious difference is the view of ministry. In the Church of Sweden women may be ordained, whereas this is not possible in the Chaldean-Catholic Church or the Syrian-Orthodox Church. This paper describes how some ordinary worshippers, members of the Chaldean-Catholic Church or the Syrian-Orthodox Church, look upon their own religious practices in view of the fact that they belong to minority denominations in a secularized society in which the Church of Sweden is the major church. This paper has a Theological as well as a Sociological perspective, since these two perspectives have a reciprocal effect on each other regarding the creating of identities of both informants and churches. An important aspect of this paper is the informants’ view of the relationship between priesthood and gender. It will be obvious that the informants’ opinions of who may be allowed to take Holy Orders depend more on the person’s eligibility than on gender, irrespective of traditions in their denominations. In spite of the fact that women are not ordained in either of the churches dealt with in this paper, the informants hold the view that this may change with time. Instead, they mean that this is one in a row of adaptations that should be carried out by their churches, in order for them to be able to continue to exist in Södertälje and to achieve an ongoing increase in numbers. However, the question of priesthood and gender is complicated, partly due to traditions in their home countries, but also since the bodies of men and women, respectively, are regarded differently in Orthodox theology, not least so in comparison with that of the Church of Sweden. In this paper the informants also express questions arisen from encounters between their respective home countries and Sweden. Primarily, those questions are about the possible effects that may occur when ecclesiastical traditions meet secular values. That affects the informants’ views of culture and nationality, as well as the meaning of being an individual in a group, profoundly marked by church traditions in a society as individualistic as Sweden. / I Södertälje finns ett stort antal kyrkliga samfund representerade, flertalet med rötter i Mellanöstern. Det kyrkliga landskapet medför att det för den kyrkobesökare som rör sig i flera olika kyrkorum, är lätt att upptäcka många likheter mellan de olika kyrkliga samfunden, men också flera skillnader. En påtaglig skillnad är synen på prästämbetet. I Svenska kyrkan kan kvinnor vara präster, medan detta inte är möjligt i Kaldeisk-katolska kyrkan eller i Syrisk-ortodoxa kyrkan.   Den här uppsatsen handlar om hur några vanliga gudstjänstdeltagare, medlemmar i Kaldeisk-katolska kyrkan eller Syrisk-ortodoxa kyrkan, ser på de egna kyrkotraditionerna och -praktikerna i ljuset av att vara minoritetskyrkor i ett sekulärt samhälle där Svenska kyrkan är majoritetskyrka. Uppsatsen har ett teologiskt såväl som ett samhällsorienterat perspektiv. Anledningen till det är att dessa två perspektiv har en ömsesidig påverkan på varandra beträffande informanternas - och kyrkornas - identitetsskapande. En viktig ansats i uppsatsen är vilken syn på relationen prästämbete och kön informanterna ger uttryck för. Uppsatsen visar att informanternas uppfattning om vem som kan vigas till präst är mer beroende av personlig lämplighet än av kön, oaktat att de kyrkotraditioner de tillhör säger något annat. Trots att kvinnor inte vigs till präster i någon av de kyrkor som uppsatsen belyser, menar informanterna att det på sikt inte alls skulle vara en omöjlighet. Det är istället en i raden av anpassningar som de menar att deras kyrkor bör göra, för att fortsätta att leva och verka i Södertälje och för att tillväxten av medlemmar ska vara god. Dock visar det sig att frågan om prästämbete och kön inte är okomplicerad. Det beror dels på traditioner från hemländerna, men också på att mannens och kvinnans kropp betraktas på olika sätt i ortodox teologi, inte minst jämfört med Svenska kyrkans teologi. I uppsatsen ger informanterna också uttryck för frågor som har väckts genom mötet mellan deras respektive hemländer och Sverige. Främst handlar detta om vad som kan hända när kyrkliga traditioner möter sekulära värderingar. Detta påverkar deras syn på såväl kultur och nationalitet som vad det innebär att vara individ i en grupp, som starkt präglas av kyrkliga traditioner, i ett samhälle som är så individcentrerat som Sverige.