The Congregation for the Oriental Churches (Congregatio pro Ecclesiis Orientalibus) is the congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for contact with the Eastern Catholic Churches for the sake of assisting their development, protecting their rights and also maintaining whole and entire in the one Catholic Church, alongside the liturgical, disciplinary and spiritual patrimony of the Latin Rite, the heritage of the various Oriental Christian traditions. It has exclusive authority over the following regions: Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula, Eritrea and northern Ethiopia, southern Albania and Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Israel, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Syria, Jordan, Turkey, and Ukraine.

The Congregation for the Oriental Churches has its origins in the "Congregatio de Propaganda Fide pro negotiis ritus orientalis" founded by Pope Pius IX on January 6, 1862. Included in the Congregation's membership are all Eastern Catholic patriarchs and major archbishops, as well as the President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. ^[1] It was formally set up by Pope Benedict XV on 1 May 1917. The title of Prefect was held by the Popes from 1917 until 1967, with the head of the Congregation titled as Secretary.

[edit] Cardinal Secretaries (to 1967)

Note: From 1917 to 1967, the Pope served also as Prefect of the Congregation.

• Niccolò Marini (1917–1922)
• Giovanni Tacci Porcelli (1922–1927)
• Luigi Cardinal Sincero (1927–1936)
• Eugène-Gabriel-Gervais-Laurent Tisserant (1936–1959)
• Amleto Giovanni Cicognani (1959–1961)
• Gabriel Acacius Coussa (pro-prefect 1961, prefect 1962)
• Gustavo Testa (1962–1967)

[edit] Cardinal Prefects

• Gustavo Testa (1967–1968)
• Maximilien de Furstenberg (1968–1973)
• Paul-Pierre Philippe (1973–1980)
• Władysław Rubin (1980–1985)
• Duraisamy Simon Lourdusamy (1985–1991)
• Achille Silvestrini (1991–2000)
• Patriarch Ignace Moussa I Cardinal Daoud (2000 – 9 June 2007)
• Leonardo Sandri (9 June 2007 – present)

[edit] Secretaries Emeritus

• Miroslav Stefan Marusyn

[edit] External links

• Giga-Catholic Information
• "Syro-Malankara Catholic Church - homepage"

[edit] References

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