correct and harmless. Only, now—what about the others? To call two bodies the Copts and the Uniate Copts is not good classification. It is like distinguishing between animals and reasonable animals. To make our terminology accurate we should have to say "Monophysite Copts" and "Uniate (or Catholic) Copts." That is correct, but "Monophysite Copt" is rather cumbersome for constant use. So we may perhaps waive the point of logical classification. When we speak of the "Copts," without epithet, everyone will understand us as meaning members of the national (Monophysite) Church of Egypt. Only now and then, when we want specially to distinguish them from the Uniates, we will add "Monophysite" or "Schismatical." The Syrian Monophysites are the Jacobites. This is a very old name, from James (Ἰάκωβος, Ya‘ḳub) Baradai, their chief founder. They do not appear to use it themselves; they call themselves simply "Syrians" or "Syrian Christians." With the best will we cannot use these as their technical names. But all the people round call them Jacobites; so in this case we must, I think, use that name, apologizing to the worthy little sect if it hurts their feelings. Their Uniates are Uniate Syrians. This is again the recognized official name. The "Patriarcha Antiochenus Syrorum" is their chief, the "Ritus Syro-Antiochenus," or "Syrus purus" their rite. The name Jacobite is sometimes also used for the Egyptian Monophysites.[1] There is no objection to this, except that we do not want it for them; "Copt" is sufficient. In this book, therefore (as commonly in all books), "Jacobite" means a Syrian Monophysite.
The name Armenian Church presents no difficulty: it is the National Church of that race. Uniate Armenian is clear enough too. But in this case the faulty classification is less innocent than that of the Copts. The Uniate Copts are a very small body. The Uniate Armenians are a large, flourishing and important part of the nation. Can we hand over the title "Armenian Church," without qualification, to their adversaries? Certainly the Uniate would protest that his Church is at least also an Armenian Church; he would point out that one can be a good Armenian without being
- ↑ So Joseph Abudacnus: Historia Iacobitarum seu Coptorum (Leiden, 1740).
