Jacob of Serugh | |
|---|---|
 Syriac depiction of Jacob of Serugh, from ancient manuscript | |
| Deacon, Priest, Bishop | |
| Born | c. 451 AD Kurtam on the Euphrates (near Harran) |
| Died | 29 November 521 AD Batnan daSrugh, Byzantine Empire (modern-day Suruç, Urfa, Turkey) |
| Venerated in | Catholic Church Oriental Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | Pre-congregation |
| Major shrine | St. Mary Church, Diyarbakır |
| Feast | 29 November (Roman Catholic, Oriental Orthodox) 3 Koiak (Coptic calendar) |
| Attributes | Staff, pointed hood, flute |
Jacob of Serugh (Syriac: ܝܥܩܘܒ ܣܪܘܓܝܐ, romanized: Yaʿquḇ Sruḡāyâ, Classical Syriac pronunciation: [ˌjaˤˈquβ sᵊˌruɣˈɒˌjɒ]; Latin: Iacobus Sarugiensis; c. 452–521), also called Jacob of Sarug or Mar Jacob (Syriac: ܡܪ ܝܝܥܩܘܒ, romanized: Mār Yaʿquḇ),[1] was one of the foremost Syriac poet-theologians, perhaps only second in stature to Ephrem the Syrian and equal to Narsai. He lived most of his life as an ecclesiastical official in Suruç, located in modern-day Turkey. He would finally become a bishop (of Batnan) near the end of his life in 519.[2] He belonged to a Miaphysite or Non-Chalcedonian Christianity, although he was fairly moderate compared to a number of his contemporaries.[3]
The positive reception of his work earned him various nicknames, including "Flute of the Holy Spirit" (alongside his predecessor Ephrem the Syrian) and "Lyre of the Believing Church" (in Antiochene Syriac Christianity). Writing in the late seventh and early eighth centuries, Jacob of Edessa attributed 763 mimre to him, of which 400 remain extant, at least 225 have been edited and published, and the longest of which is 1,400 verses.[2] His prolific work had already achieved him a great reputation before the end of his lifetime, and his extant corpus makes him the third-largest single author collection of homilies from late antiquity, behind only Augustine of Hippo and John Chrysostom.[4]
- ^ Brock, Sebastian (2011). "Yaʿqub of Serugh". Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage: Electronic Edition.
- ^ a b Chatonnet & Debié 2023, p. 150–151.
- ^ Forness 2022, p. 156.
- ^ Forness 2022, p. 156–157.