The patriarchate of Jerusalem has been in existence since the middle of tlie 17th century, when the catholi- cos Philippos conferred upon the archbishop of Jerusa- lem the right of consecrating, himself, the holy oil; and the archbishop consequently assumed the title of pa- triarch, and began to ordain bishops. The patriarch of Jerusalem, however, ceased long ago to exercise
these functions; aiid his powers have been greatly cur-' tailed, as the patriarch of Constantinople calls him to account wlien he jileascs. In order to guard as mucli as possible his own independence, the patriarcli procures from the Turkish government his own bcraf, and su)(- ports in Constantinople an agent of his own. He has to pay an annual tribute, not only to the Porte, but to the i)asha of Damascus. He is elected by his suffragan bishops, and has his residence in the monastery of St. .lames at Jerusalem. His income is derived from the same sources as tiiat of the patriarcli of Constantinople, tiie presents from the pilgrims to Jerusalem constituting an element of special importance.
In 1114 bishop David of Tornik made himself patri- arch of Aghtamar, in Lake Van, and assumed the title catholicos. The schism has continued to the pre.sent day; but the patriarchate is of little importance, since its jurisdiction extends hardly any farther than Lake Van. Tlie patriarch is elected by the bishops and cler- gy under his jurisdiction, and is supported by the rev- enue of the monastery on the island of Aghtamar.
The metropolitans, or archbishops, are not distinguish- ed from the bishops by any greater jurisdiction, but only by some honorar}' rights. The catholicos can only be elected out of their number. The bishops arc regularly elected from the unmarried vartabeds, and only occa- sionally, and by special permission of the catholicos or the patriarchs, from the monks, since, according to the Church law, a monk is not to become a bisliop. The bishop is generally elected by the clergy an<l the heads of families, and after the election he is presented for con- firmation to the catholicos or the patriarchs, who appoint several (generally three) bishops for examining the can- didate. It is required that he be fifty years of age, of legitimate descent for three generations, on both father's and mother's side, and well versed in the HoU' Script- ures and the canonical law. IManyof the metropolitans and bishops have no dioceses, but live in convents, and there hold the office of archimandrite. Many of them are at the same time vartabeds. The patriarch of Con- stantinople, according to the regulations made by the provincial council on Nov. 20, 1830, has under his juris- diction 18 archbishops, or metropolitans, and 35 bishops. The patriarchate of Sis embraces three towns and forty villages. Towards the close of the IGth century the patriarch of Sis still had 23 archbishops and bishojis under his jurisdiction. The diocese of the patriarch of Jerusalem embraces the churches of Palestine, Syria, Akra, and Triiwlis. His residence, in the monastery of JIar Yakub on Mount Zi(m, was built in the 11th cen- tury, belonged to the Armenians as early as 1238, and has been in their undisputed possession since 1666. Besides the patriarch, 5 bishops and more than 100 priests live in the monastery. The total number of siilTragan bishops is reported to be 14. The diocese of the patriarch of Aghtamar comprises two towns and thirty villages. In the second half of the 17th century he had under his jurisdiction from 8 to 9 bishops re- siding ill the monasteries on the shore of Lake Van. The population connected with the Armenian Church is estimated at about 2,400,000, of whom about 400,000 are in the European dominions of Turkey. See AitMii-
NIAN ('llL'RCII.
3. ()//ief Oiienfal Churches. — Besides the Greeks and Armenians, Turkey has two other Oriental churches — the so-called Ncstorians aw\ Jacobites. Both have been fully treated in former volumes of this Ci/clopmdia. See Jacoiutks ; Nestoiiians.
4. The Roman Catholic Church in Turkey. — There arc only a few tribes and congregations in the present do- minions of the Turkish empire which have always been in connection with the Church of Rome. They are chiefly to be found in Albania. The foundation of oth- er congregations dates from the time of the crusades, which established the Latin Church on a permanent basis in .Syria, I'alestine, and Cyprus. The rule of the Venetians in the Mediterranean Sea, and the commer-
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cial intercourse between the Balkan«peninsul?l and the Cathi>lic nations of Western Europe increased the num- ber of Latin congregations in all the large cities of the empire. Finally, the unceasing efforts of the numerous missionaries which the Church of Kome has supported in all parts of the empire have won over fractions of all the various Oriental Christian denominations in which the empire abounds. These fractions have been allowed by the pope to retain a number of national and ecclesi- astical peculiarities; and, while they have adopted the doctrines of the Komau Catholic Churcii, recognise the pope as the head of the Church Universal, and must be recognised themselves, in the fullest sense of tlie word, as part of the Roman Catholic Cliurch, they appear, especially in consequence of the retention at divine service of a rite different from the Latin, as a kind of semi- independent division of the Church. A correct view of the actual strength of the Roman Catholic Church in the Turkish empire is best obtained by re- viewing the several rites separately.