Ignatius Aphrem II
Ignatius Aphrem II ܡܪܝ ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܬܪܝܢܐ إغناطيوس أفرام الثاني | |
|---|---|
| 123rd Patriarch of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church | |
Ignatius Aphrem II in 2014 | |
| Native name | Syriac: ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܬܪܝܢܐ Arabic: إغناطيوس أفرام الثاني |
| Church | Syriac Orthodox Church |
| Diocese | Antioch |
| See | Holy See of Antioch |
| Elected | 31 March 2014 |
| Installed | 29 May 2014 |
| Predecessor | Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas |
| Previous post(s) | Metropolitan and Patriarchal Vicar of the Archdiocese of the Eastern United States Teacher at St Ephrem’s Theological Seminary, Damascus |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1985 |
| Consecration | 28 January 1996 |
| Rank | Patriarch |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 3, 1965 |
| Nationality | Syrian; American |
| Denomination | Syriac Orthodox |
| Parents | Issa and Khanema Karim |
| Education | B.A Divinity from Coptic Theological Seminary STL from St Patrick's College, Maynooth |
| Alma mater | St Patrick's College, Maynooth, Coptic Theological Seminary, Fordham University |
Mor Ignatius Aphrem II (born 3 May 1965 as Sa'id Karim; Arabic: سعيد كريم, romanized: Saʽīd Kārīm) is a Syrian-American Christian prelate who is serving as the Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church since 29 May 2014.
Born and raised in Qamishili, Syria, Karim took the vows of a monk in 1985 and was later ordained as a deacon and then as a priest. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Divinity from the Coptic Theological Seminary in Cairo in 1988. In 1992, he received a Licentiate of Sacred Theology and in 1994, a Doctor of Divinity from St Patrick's College, Ireland.
In 1996, Aphrem Karim was consecrated as the Patriarchal Vicar and Metropolitan Archbishop of the Archdiocese for the Eastern United States by Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I Iwas. As an archbishop, he established 11 new parishes bringing the number of parishes in the archdiocese to 20. He also created Syriac Orthodox Archdiocesan Youth Organization, an initiative to coordinate youth activities across parishes in the archdiocese.
Upon his accession to the throne of Patriarch, Aphrem II took the patriarchal name Ignatius, and also became the second patriarch to bear the monastic name Aphrem after Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem Barsoum. Unlike his immediate predecessors, Aphrem II chose not to use Karim, his family name in his official title.