Chaldean Catholic Church

The Chaldean Catholic Church (Classical Syriac: ܥܕܬܐ ܟܠܕܝܬܐ ܩܬܘܠܝܩܝܬܐ, ʿĒdtā Kalḏāytā Qāṯōlīqāytā; Arabic: الكنيسة الكلدانية, al-Kanīsa al-Kaldāniyya; Latin: Ecclesia Chaldaeorum Catholica) is an Eastern Catholicparticular church (sui iuris) descended from the historic Church of the East. It is in full communion with the Holy See and the worldwide Catholic Church. It uses the East Syriac Rite in the Syriac language.

The church is headed by the Patriarch of Baghdad of the Chaldeans (until 2022, patriarch of Babylon), currently Paul III Nona, seated in the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Baghdad, Iraq. As of 2018, it counted approximately 616,639 members globally, with most residing in Iraq and significant diasporic communities in North America, Canada, Australia, and Europe.

The Chaldean Catholic Church emerged in the Schism of 1552, when a faction of the Church of the East sought to restore full communion with the Catholic Church. This occurred amidst internal crises in the Church of the East largely concerning the practice of hereditary succession to the patriarchate (from uncle to nephew) that had begun in the 14th century. In 1830, the traditional patriarchal line was united to, and has since led, the Chaldean Catholic Church.