Church of Antioch
The Church of Antioch is one of the five churches (i.e., the Pentarchy) that comprised the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church before the Great Schism of 1054, and today is one of the autocephalous Orthodox churches. It is the sole legitimate successor to the Christian community founded in Antioch by the Apostle Peter. Its North American branch is self-ruled, although the Holy Synod of Antioch still exercises authority over it.
The seat of the patriarchate was formerly Antioch, in what is now Turkey, but is now Damascus, Syria, the "Street Called Straight."
The claim is disputed by the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch, part of Oriental Orthodoxy; the schism between the two occurred over the christology of the Council of Chalcedon. The Syrian Catholic Church, part of the Roman Catholic Church, also claims to hold the patriarchate.
