About Us

Our History and Beliefs

Abstract

St. Matthews Syriac Orthodox Church is a local parish church which serves 110 Syriac Orthodox families in the greater Boston area.

Founded in 1980, the church community grew in numbers due to the birth of new generations of Syriac parishioners and the increase of migration from Middle Eastern countries to the Boston area.

St. Matthew’s Church falls under the jurisdiction of the Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Eastern United States located in New Jersey, follows the teaching of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the Syriac Orthodox rite and tradition. The languages spoken in our church are Syriac (Aramaic) which our Lord spoke, English and Arabic.

The Parish Priest is Fr. Anton Sabha.

Church History

In the 1920s when many Syriac Orthodox followers were migrating to the United States of America, the only church in Massachusetts was St Mary's Assyrian Orthodox Church in Worcester, MA. Between 1920 and 1980, Syriac people who lived in the greater Boston area had only that church for worship. Despite the distance, the Syriac people in the Boston area remained loyal to their faith and church.

However, several Syriac Orthodox followers from the Boston area had constant conversations about the need for a church in the Boston area.

On September 20, 1980 with the blessings of His Holiness the late Patriarch Mor Ignatius Zakka I and His Eminence late Archbishop Mor Athanasius Y. Samuel, the purchase and agreement were signed in the name of the Syrian Orthodox Church of the United States of America and Canada. On November 13, 1980, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts voted to change the name to St. Matthew’s Syrian Orthodox Church, Inc.

Syriac Orthodox Church Faith & Beliefs

St Matthew’s Syriac Orthodox Church of Boston is a Parish affiliated to the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and its Archdiocese of Eastern United States. It is spiritually governed in accordance with the rules and cannons of the Hudoyo the official law book of the Holy Church, and by the canonical regulations established by the successive meetings of the Holy Synod. Such spiritual jurisdiction and authority cannot be changed, altered, modified or revoked.

The faith of the Syriac Orthodox Church is in accordance with the Nicene Creed. It believes in the Holy Trinity that is one God, subsisting in three separate persons called the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The three being of one Essence, of one Godhead, have one Will, one Work and one Lordship. The Syriac Orthodox Church believes in the mystery of Incarnation. It further believes that by Jesus’ death for us, he conferred upon us salvation from eternal death and reconciliation with his Heavenly Father. The Syriac Orthodox church believes that the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, the Spirit of Truth, and proceeding from the Father. The Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son. The Syriac Orthodox Church calls Mary “yoldath aloho”, Bearer of God, because she gave birth to Christ, God truly incarnate.

The Syriac Orthodox Church believes the Church is the body of true believers in Christ, and that the Head of the Church is Our Lord God Jesus Christ. The Chief Bishop of the Syriac Orthodox Church is the Patriarch of Antioch and all the East who is the successor to Saint Peter on whom primacy was conferred by Jesus Christ. The Patriarch is the supreme head of the universal Syriac Orthodox Church. He also presides over the Holy Synod, the assembly of all bishops.

There are three ranks of priesthood in the Syriac Orthodox Church:

  • Episcopate: Within it there are the ranks of Patriarch, Catholicos, Archbishop, and Bishop.

  • Vicarate: Within it there are the ranks of Chor-Episcopos and Priest or qasheesho. There are also ordained Nuns.

  • Deaconate: Within it there are the ranks of Archdeacon, Evangelical-deacon, Subdeacon, lector or qoruyo and singer or mzamrono.

The Syriac Orthodox Church believes that the Holy Sacraments are tangible signs designated by the Lord Christ to proclaim divine grace, which He gave for our sanctification. The Sacraments of the Church are: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Repentance, the Priesthood, Anointing of the Sick, and Marriage. All but four of the Sacraments are essential for salvation: Baptism, Confirmation, Repentance and Eucharist. Of the sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and the Priesthood may be received only once.

The Syriac Orthodox Church conforms to the teachings of the Three Ecumenical Councils of Nicea (A.D. 325), Constantinople (A.D. 381) and Ephesus (A.D. 431). It rejects the Council of Chalcedon (A.D. 451).

The Syriac Orthodox Church employs in its liturgy the Syriac language, an Aramaic dialect akin to the Aramaic spoken by Christ and the Apostles. In Syriac, the proper name of the Church is “idto suryoyto treeysath shubho”.

The liturgy is one of the most ancient, and has been handed from one generation to another. Apart from sermons, all prayers are sung in the form of chants and melodies. Thousands of tunes and melodies existed. The melodies are preserved in the Treasury of Tunes known in Syriac as Beth Gazo. Since a musical notation system was not developed in full, the tunes were transmitted down the ages as oral tradition. As a result a few schools of music emerged, most notably Mardin, Edessa, Tur `Abdin, and Kharput, to name a few.