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lem (for Palestine), at Damascus, at Constantinople (to represent the Patriarch's interests with the Government), at some outlying cities in the East, where are a few Melkites; at Rome, Paris, and other places in the West, including America. ^[1]

The number of Melkite sees has varied considerably. At present there are twelve Ordinaries, besides the Patriarch himself. Antioch is a mere title; the Patriarch is Ordinary of Damascus. Then there are Bishops of Tyre, Aleppo, Boṣra-and-Haurān (united), Ḥomṣ, Beirut,^[2] Acre, Sidon, Paneas, Tripoli, Baʿalbek, Yabrūd, Furzul-and-Zaḥleh (united). There are no suffragan sees in Palestine or Egypt.^[3]

So far I have generally called all these bishops Metropolitans. This is the usual term among all Christians in the East. It is a development of Byzantine law to give to every Ordinary this title; obviously meaning no more than bishop.^[4] From the Greek μητροπολίτης the Arabs formed the word Muṭrān.^[5] This is now used in Arabic as meaning no more than bishop. Every bishop, even a titular one, is called Muṭrān. The Latin translation of the acts of the third synod of ʿAin-Trāz uses "Metropolitanus" for Muṭrān, and gives the title to every bishop.^[6] As a matter of fact, I believe that there are now no real provinces nor Metropolitan jurisdiction among the Melkites at all. All their bishops are immediately subject to the Patriarch. He ordains them all, blesses the chrism for all, and rules all on the same level. But Cyril Charon desires a reform in this matter. He points out that, originally, there were real provinces and Archbishops, as in the West. He insists on this as the legal position still. His scheme, based on antiquity, is this: Tyre is the first see under the Patriarch. Under Tyre as Metropolis he groups Acre, Sidon, Paneas, Tripoli. Aleppo is the second see, a Metropolis without suffragans. Damascus is the third Metropolis having as suffragan sees Baʿalbek, Yabrūd, Furzul-and-Zaḥleh. Then

1. See the list in Charon, op. cit., iii, 280-284; cf. 535-545.
2. To which are now joined the old sees of Byblos (Ǵebail) and Botrys (Batrūn).
3. Charon gives a very complete list of all these bishops (in 1911) with portraits, the career of each and statistics of his diocese (op. cit., iii, 284-324). A "diocese," by the way, in the Byzantine rite is an "Eparchy," Ἐπαρχία, Ar. abrashiyeh.
4. See "Orth. Eastern Church," pp. 350-351.
5. It looks as if its source were rather Latin "metropolitanus."
6. In the "Collectio Lacensis," ii, 579.