Monastery of the Martyrs Mar Behnam and Marth Sarah (, , ''Mar Behnam Monastery''), is a Syriac Catholic monastery in northern

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in the village Khidr Ilyas close to the town of Beth Khdeda. The tomb of Mar Benham was heavily damaged on March 19, 2015, by the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

, and the exterior murals were desecrated in all of the monastery's buildings. Repair work restoring the monastery and the tomb of Mar Behnam to its pre-ISIS condition was completed by early December 2018.

History

The monastery was according to legend built in the 4th century by a king named Senchareb as penance for martyring his son Mar Behnam and daughter Sarah after they converted to Christianity.بهنام وسارة, الصرح والتاريخ
Bakhdida.com After its establishment, the monastery was part of the

Church of the East The Church of the East ( ) or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church, the Chaldean Church or the Nestorian Church, is one of three major branches o ...

up until the 14th century as evidenced by Mongolic inscriptions left by Mongolian Christian pilgrims in the 1200s, and contributed greatly to the Christian world under the care of the

Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...

. Inscriptions on sculptures in the church show that renovations were made to the monastery in 1164 and between 1250 and 1261. Records show that the monastery suffered greatly during the period from 1743 to 1790 due to attacks carried out by Nader Shah and later

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

n Muslim rulers against the Christians in the region. The monks of the monastery established contact with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in Rome in the late 18th century seeking protection against Nader Khan, which led to the gradual conversion of the inhabitants of Bakhdida to the

Syriac Catholic Church The Syriac Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' (self-governing) particular church that is in full communion with the Holy See and with the entirety of the Catholic Church. Originating in the Levant, it uses the West Syriac ...

. In 1790 the monastery was taken over by the Catholic Church and was managed for eight years until the Syriac Orthodox church retook it. For unknown reasons, the monks abandoned the monastery in 1819—likely due to the loss of their flock in that region. The Syriac Catholic Church resumed possession of the monastery, and repopulated it in 1839; it has continued in this state to the present time with the exception of a three-year abandonment as a result of the 2014 ISIS invasions. The monastery is the former residence and present resting place of a number of Syriac Orthodox Patriarchs.دير مار بهنام الشهيد في مدينة الموصل بالعراق
, CopticCatholic.com

Current status

The monastery was renovated in 1986, and was visited by thousands of Christians and Muslims yearly until

ISIS Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

took control of the area. During the 2014 Northern Iraq offensive,

jihadist Jihadism is a neologism for modern, armed militant Political aspects of Islam, Islamic movements that seek to Islamic state, establish states based on Islamic principles. In a narrower sense, it refers to the belief that armed confrontation ...

troops of

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

took control of the monastery. The troops removed crosses from the monastery, threatened monks with execution and then expelled the monks with nothing but the clothes on their backs. On March 19, 2015, Islamic State released photos showing the blowing up of the historic tomb of Saint Behnam. After more than 2 years of occupation, the monastery and its surrounding area was liberated by Iraqi Security Forces on November 20, 2016. Repair work restoring the monastery and the tomb of Mar Behnam to its pre-ISIS condition was completed by early December 2018.

References

External links

{{Authority control Christianity in Nineveh Governorate Eastern Catholic monasteries in Iraq Christian monasteries established in the 4th century Syriac Catholic church buildings Attacks on churches in Iraq