Bar Abdoun was born in 944 in the city of
Melitene and studied at the nearby
Mor Bar Sauma Monastery. He was consecrated Patriarch of Antioch on 6 July 1004. During the reign of the
Roman Emperor Basil II, Bar Abdoun allegedly cured the
doux (governor) of
Antioch of leprosy, and enjoyed good relations with the
Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch. John is known to have met with the Greek Orthodox patriarch, corresponded with him, and exchanged gifts on a feast-day. The conduct of Bar Abdoun led John, Bishop of Melitene, to denounce him to
Alexius Studites, Patriarch of Constantinople, and
Constantine VIII, the successor of Basil II, not long before his death in 1028. In 1029, John of Melitene repeated his condemnations to
Romanos III, Constantine's successor, who subsequently sent word to John Chrysoberges, the
krites (civil governor) of Melitene, to arrest Bar Abdoun and other Syriac Orthodox clergymen. Chrysoberges attempted to convince Bar Abdoun to flee to Muslim territory. Failing that, Chrysoberges reluctantly arrested Bar Abdoun, six high-ranking bishops, and 20 monks, and sent them to Constantinople to be judged before a
synodal tribunal. The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch did not attend the tribunal in protest of the actions of his coreligionists. The Romans unsuccessfully attempted to persuade the majority of the clergymen to abandon the Syriac Orthodox Church, and, as a result, in October 1029, Bar Abdoun and the others were excommunicated and banished to the Monastery of Ganos in
Thrace. Bar Abdoun remained in exile at the Monastery of Ganos until his death on 2 February 1033. ==References==