Saint Mary Church of the Holy Belt explained

Building Name:Saint Mary of the Holy Belt Cathedral
Location:Homs, Syria
Religious Affiliation:Syriac Orthodox
Consecration Year:59 AD
Architecture Type:Church

Saint Mary of the Holy Belt (Um Al Zennar) Cathedral[1] (shortened to Arabic: كنيسة أم الزنار; ) is a historical Syriac Orthodox cathedral in Homs, Syria. It is the seat of the Syriac Orthodox Archbishop of Homs and Hama.

This is one of the prominent church of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church which is also a Marian Pilgrim Centre. The present structure dates from the mid-nineteenth century, but the site over which the church is built is claimed to have been one of Christian worship since 59 AD. The church once served as the headquarters of the universal church. [2] According to Ross Burns, the church may rest on Byzantine foundations.[3] According to Joseph Nasrallah, the existence of a church dedicated to Mary in Homs is attested as early as 478.[4]

The church contains a venerated Holy Girdle that is supposed to be a section of the belt of Mary, mother of Jesus.[5] The church was damaged during confrontations between the armed opposition and the security forces in the 2011–2012 Syrian unrest.[6]

In 2012, reportedly confrontations caused extensive damage to the exterior of the church.[7] The church was rebuilt by an extensive effort of the faithful and the Divine Liturgy was celebrated.

Other relics

This is the Syriac church's equivalent of the Cincture of the Theotokos of the Greek Orthodox Church and Girdle of Thomas of the Catholic Church.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Saint Mary of the Holy Belt (Um al Zennar) – Christians of Syria. Christians in Syria. ACN Syria – Aid to the Church in Need in Syria . 2019-06-07 . 2019-06-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190607112632/https://www.christiansofsyria.org/locations/saint-mary-of-the-holy-belt-um-al-zennar/ . dead .
  2. Book: Andrew Beattie. Timothy Pepper. The Rough Guide to Syria. 2001. 155. Rough Guides . 9781858287188.
  3. Book: Ross Burns. 2009. Monuments of Syria: A Guide. 171. I.B.Tauris . 9780857714893.
  4. Book: fr. Joseph Nasrallah. Marie dans l'épigraphie, les monuments et l'art du patriarcat du IIIe au VIIe siècle. 1972. 1. Beirut. 65.
  5. Web site: Biographie de Sainta Marie. Syrian Orthodox Archbishopric of Homs and Hama. 7 April 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120314082641/http://zunoro.net/biographie-de-sainta-marie/. 14 March 2012.
  6. News: Gallagher. Tom. Christians in Syria struggle amid violent clashes. 7 April 2012. 29 March 2012. 24 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160624012558/http://ncronline.org/news/global/christians-syria-struggle-amid-violent-clashes. dead.
  7. News: كاتدرائية "أم الزنار" في حمص تتعرض لدمار جزئي . 5 June 2012 . Linga.org . 10 June 2012.