St. Aphraim Syriac Orthodox Church - Washington, DC

See of Antioch, where believers were first called “Christians” (Acts 11: 26). Established by Saint Peter the Apostle (AD 37), the Church of Antioch was the first to convert Jews and Gentiles in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Syriac Orthodox Church adheres to the doctrine of the three Ecumenical Councils of Nicea (AD 325), Constantinople (AD 381) and Ephesus (AD 431). The faith of the Syriac Orthodox Church is reflected in the Nicene Creed. It believes in the Triune God subsisting in three separate persons—the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The ecumenical Council of Nicea (AD 325) recognized Antioch, Alexandria and Rome as the co-equal Patriarchates of Christendom. The Patriarchate of Antioch’s line of succession began with Saint Peter the Apostle and continues to this day with His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, the 123rd Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch. The Syriac Orthodox Church has produced several illustrious saints whose lives and works continue to have significant influence that extends far beyond the Syriac Orthodox Church, such as Saint Ephraim the Syriac, Doctor of the Church, and Harp of the Holy Spirit. In AD 518, the patriarchate was forced to move from Antioch to various locations in the middle east until it settled in the 12th Century at the Monastery of Saint Ananias (“Saffron Monastery”) in Mardin, Turkey. In 1933, following World War I and the tragic events of Sayfo (Ottoman-perpetrated genocide which took the lives of more than 250,000 Syriac Orthodox faithful), the patriarchate relocated to Homs, Syria. Finally, in 1959, the patriarchate settled in Damascus, where it is located today. The Syriac Orthodox Church has been a member of the World Council of Churches since 1960, and is a founding member of the Middle East Council of Churches. The liturgy of the Syriac Orthodox Church is regarded among the richest and most ancient. Syriac, the official language of the Syriac Orthodox Church, is a dialect of the Aramaic language spoken by Christ and the Apostles. Saint Aphraim’s Church—Washington, DC:
While the Syriac Orthodox Church has been present in the United States since the latter part of the 19th Century, the Washington, DC area did not experience an influx of Syriac Orthodox faithful until the late 20th Century. In the 1970s, a small group of Syriac Orthodox families began meeting periodically and planted the roots of what would later become the parish of Saint Aphraim. In the mid-1990s, the former Archbishop of the Eastern United States, His Eminence Cyril Aphrem Karim (now Patriarch of Antioch Ignatius Aphrem II), made the establishment of Saint Aphraim’s Church in the Washington, DC metropolitan area a priority. In 1997, His Eminence assigned the late Father Eli Shabo as Saint Aphraim’s first pastor, who traveled from New Jersey to celebrate Holy Mass, holidays and officiate sacraments. With the assignment of Father Eli Shabo also came the official established and consecration of Saint Aphraim Syriac Orthodox Church, Washington, DC. In 2004, the Parish of Saint Aphraim purchased the five-acre parcel of land in Alexandria, VA, upon which the parish worships to this day. In 2006, His Eminence assigned the Very Reverend Father John Kawak (now Archbishop of the Eastern United States) to serve as first in-residence pastor. In 2018, the Reverend Father Aphram Al Faham was assigned to serve as pastor of Saint Aphraim’s Church. Father Aphram currently serves the spiritual needs of the Saint Aphraim parish, while leading Bible studies, youth fellowship programs, Sunday School, altar service training. Mission

Saint Aphraim Syriac Orthodox Church aims to be faithful in fulfilling the commandment to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ, while loving the Lord our God, and loving our neighbor. This is accomplished through the celebration of Holy Liturgy, preaching of the Gospel, and church fellowship. As such, the parish of Saint Aphraim regularly engages in active service to support the local Washington, DC community, and those in need, through food drives, soup kitchen service, and other forms of community outreach. As the home parish to hundreds of recent Syrian and Iraqi immigrants and refugees, the Saint Aphraim community tirelessly strives to integrate and assist these newest Americans in their effort to transition into American life. Please visit us at:
6200 Indian Run Parkway
Alexandria, VA 22312
www.staphraim.org
(Holy Liturgy streamed live on Sunday at 11:00AM)