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30-October-2005
Mourning the loss of a great shepherd
Mor Yulius Yeshu` Çiçek
passed away
(Metropolitan of Central Europe & Benelux countries)
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The first Archbishop of the
Syriac Orthodox Church in Central Europe, H.E. Mor Yulius Yeshu` Çiçek (63)
passed away early in the morning today, while on a visit to Germany. His
Eminence was consecrated Metropolitan of Central Europe in 1979 and was among
the senior-most bishops of the Church. In the 1970s when Christians found it
impossible to continue in their ancient homeland in South East Turkey and
emigrated to Europe enmass, it was Mor Yulius Çiçek who shepherded the community
in Europe. During the twenty-six years of his archbishopric, the Church in
Europe achieved remarkable growth.
Due to his efforts, the Church now has three large monasteries in Europe--near
Enschede in the Netherlands, in Arth, Switzerland, and in Warburg, Germany.
Several parishes were formed throughout Europe--nearly 50 in Germany and several
others in the Netherlands, in Austria, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, England and
France, among others. In the monasteries he founded, Mor Yulius established
monastic schools which trained the clergy and faithful in the new diaspora in
the traditions of the Church.
Mor Yulius made very significant scholarly contributions to the Church through
the Bar Hebraeus Publishing House which published about 100 books related to the
Syriac Orthodox liturgy, Bible, history, etc., in Syriac and in European
languages, as well as periodicals such as the "Kolo Suryoyo". His Eminence was
also an eminent calligrapher who continued the ancient Syriac Orthodox tradition
of liturgical manuscript production as a monastic vocation.
Mor Yulius was an effective ambassador of the church to the European Churches.
He participated in Ecumenical dialogues with the Catholic Church at the Pro
Oriente and accompanied HH Patriarch during his historic visit to Rome in 1984,
where the Joint Declaration with Pope John Paul II was signed. He participated
in the Pro-Oriente dialogues with the Catholic Church. The strong relationships
with churches and governments in Europe came to be of much benefit for the
Syriac Orthodox Church. Syriac is today recognized as a language included in the
approved list of languages that can be taught in schools in countries Sweden and
in Austria.
Mor Çiçek is a Syriac father that Malankara can never forget. During times of
hardship for the faithful in Malankara Mor Çiçek visited them many many times to
offer comfort and strength. His Eminence can be considered the founding father
of the Theological Seminary of the Church that now flourishes in Udayagiri. He
contributed about Rs. 40 lakhs--the largest contribution that made the founding
of the seminary possible in 1988. He continued to take much interest in the
growth of this institution till his end. The Church in Malankara will be
indebted to him forever.
His Eminence maintained warm relationships with many late and current bishops of
the Church in Malankara including late Catholicos Mor Baselius Paulose II and
the present Catholicos H.B. Mor Baselius Thomas I.
Despite his strenuous schedule, Mor Yulius always found time to stay abreast of
the struggles of the faithful in Malankara. He was a regular reader of the SOCM-Forum.
Many from
Malankara, both clergy and laity, were warmly received by His Eminence at his
monastery in Holland. Mor Cicek is a Syriac father that Malankara can never
forget.
In the untimely passing away of this great luminary, the faithful of the Syriac
Orthodox diaspora in Europe, in Malankara and all over the world have indeed
lost a true shepherd.
The
mortal remains of Mor
Yulius Yeshu`Çiçek
will
be brought to the monastery of St. Ephrem the Syrian and will be entombed in the
sanctuary of the church of The Holy virgin, which lies beside the church.
His Grace will rest next to the last resting
place of two other great
fathers and servants of the Holy Syriac Orthodox Church, His Grace Mor
Philixinos Elias Cankaya and His Grace Mor Athanasius Yeshue Samuel.
. His mortal remains are interred in a mausoleum below the sanctuary of the Holy Virgin Mary
The place where Mor Yulius Yeshu`Çiçek's mortal remains will be interred.
(The tomb is situated next to the last resting place of Metropolitans Mor Philixinos Elias Cankaya
and His Grace Mor Athanasius Yeshue Samuel )
Prepared by Thomas Daniel for SOCM-Forum
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Biography of
Mor Julius Yeshu`Çiçek
http://sor.cua.edu/Personage/Suryoyo/MYuliusYCicek.html
Mor Julius Yeshu` Çiçek was born in 1942 in
Upper Kafro, in Tur `Abdin (Turkey), to Qashisho Barsawmo and Bath-Qyomo Sayde.
At the age of nine he went to seminary at Deyr-ul-Za'faran, where he studied
Syriac, Turkish, Arabic and Theology. He was ordained a deacon in 1958, and
became a secretary to the late Metropolitan Mor Philoxenos Hanna Dolabani. Later
he joined the monastery of Mor Cyriacus in the region Bsheriye (Bitlis) to
administer pastoral service and engaged in a mission to seek Syriac and Armenian
Christians, who survived the genocide of 1915 at the hands of the Turks.
In 1960 he was made a novice monk in the monastery of Mor Gabriel and embraced
an ascetic life. He taught in the theological seminary at Mor Gabriel and copied
many books with an exellent hand. When Fr. Shabo Guenes, the abbot of the
monastery retired in 1962, Fr. Yeshue Çiçek was chosen as abbot of the
monastery. In 1969, Mor Iwannis Ephrem Bilgic, the Bishop of Tur `Abdin,
ordained him a priest. Between 1973 and 1974, Yeshu` Çiçek lived in Damascus, in
the Seminary of Mor Ephrem at Atshane in Lebanon and in the Holy land. Then he
came to Germany, where learned the German language and ministered to the Syrians
of the diaspora. At the request of the Metropolitan of America, Mor Athanasius
Yeshue Samuel, Dayroyo Yeshu` Çiçek was in the United States from 1975-77,
learning English and ministering to the Syriac Orthodox faithful there. In 1977,
he returned to Europe and settled in Holland at Hengelo.
In the same year the Holy Synod chose him as the Patriarchal Vicar for the new
diocese of Central Europe. He constructed a hall for a new Syriac Orthodox
church of St. John the Evangelist, which was consecrated by the late Patriarch
Mor Ignatius Ya`qub III. In 1978, Dayroyo Yeshu` began publishing Kolo Suryoyo,
the news magazine of Syriac Orthodox diocese of Central Europe.
In 1979, the Patriarch Ya`qub III consecrated Dayroyo Yeshu` Çiçek in Hengelo as
Archbishop of the Syrian orthodox diocese of Central Europe, with the name Mor
Yulius. In 1984, Mor Yulius acquired Dayro d-Mor Ephrem at Losser, Nederlands,
which became the seat of the archbishop. Under the able guidance of His
Eminence, the Central Europe diocese has flourished.
http://sor.cua.edu/Personage/Suryoyo/MYuliusYCicek.html
http://syriacchristianity.org/bio/SyriacOrthodox/bio_JuliusCecek.htm