Ignatius Aphrem II
Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II (Syriac: ܡܪܢ ܡܪܝ ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܬܪܝܢܐ Moran Mor Ignaṭius Afrem Trayono, Arabic: إغناطيوس أفرام الثاني Iġnāṭīūs Afrām al-Ṯānī; 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.
His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II ܡܪܝ ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܬܪܝܢܐ إغناطيوس أفرام الثاني Patriarch of Antioch and all of the East | |
|---|---|
| 123rd Patriarch of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church | |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| Previous post(s) | Metropolitan and Patriarchal Vicar of the Archdiocese of the Eastern United States Teacher at St Ephrem’s Theological Seminary, Damascus |
| 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 |
Before his election to the patriarchate, he was the Syriac Orthodox Archbishop of the Eastern United States, and was known as Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim in that post. In that role he established 11 new parishes, introducing a number of new programs for the youth, and worked for inter-church unity.