Matran family

Matran is an Assyrian word for Metropolitan or Archbishop. The 'Metropolitans of Shamizdin' based at the Mar Ishu Monastery in the area of Nochiya in south east Turkey, have always been known by their hereditary title of Mar Khnanishu. History records that there were at least 12 Metropolitans of Shamizdin since 1580 but the first two were not related to the Gida line and were actually loyal to the Pope.

The Matran family jointly controlled the ‘Assyrian Church of the East’ for 314 years.

Few realize that between 1553–1661 for a period of 108 years, this branch of today's ‘Assyrian Church of the East’ became known as ‘The Chaldean Catholic Church’ and was loyal to the Pope. Some historians label this era as the ‘Jilu period’, as three of the last five Catholic Patriarchs were from the Jilu Tribe.

In 1661, the bishops of this ‘Chaldean Church’ revolted against union with Rome and deposed Mar Yualla Shimun XII of Jilu. The following year in 1662, a new Patriarch was chosen Mar Dinkha Shimun XIII, who was a bishop and Patriarch in waiting (Nadtir Kursi) of the old Nestorian Church of Alqosh (the rival church) and a member of the Patriarchal and Dynastical ‘Aboona family’. Mar Dinkha was the first in the line of Quchanis Patriarchs, known as the Mar Shimuns.

Of course, the Dynastical Aboona family were dictatorial to the extreme, they insisted that both Patriarchs of the two Churches and the Metropolitans, Bishops, Monks, Archdeacons and Priests all be chosen from the ‘Aboona family’. So, a year after his own consecration, Mar Shimun XIII went about consecrating his first cousin Mar Sargis Khnanishu I as 'Metropolitan of Rustaqa for Shamizdin' in 1663, this made him the second most powerful man in the church and the Patriarch's right hand man. They re-introduced hereditary succession within the Church hierarchy and jointly controlled Assyrian Church affairs for a period of 312 years.

This period often referred to as the ‘Qudshanis era' and is most famous for two things namely; restoring independence from Rome and re-labeling the ‘Chaldean’ identity to the ‘Assyrian’ as it is known today. Their joint destiny came to an end when both distant cousins died in the mid-1970s.

Mar Sargis Khnanishu I was from the Gida House of 'Daireh & Komaneh' (Iraq) and may have originated from the town of Hazza in Arbil.

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Wikipedia