The Church of Antioch (Arabic: كنيسة أنطاكية, romanized: kánīsa ʾanṭākiya, pronounced [ka.niː.sa ʔan.tˤaː.ki.ja]; Turkish: Antakya Kilisesi) was the first of the five major churches of what later became the pentarchy in Christianity, with its primary seat in the ancient Greek city of Antioch (present-day Antakya, Turkey).
[2][full citation needed] Followers of Jesus as the messiah trace the origin of the term Christian to the church established at Antioch.
[2][full citation needed] According to Acts, Judaizers from Jerusalem caused a disturbance in the church.
[8][full citation needed] Antioch served as a central point for sending missionaries to the gentiles, probably after the Great Commission.
[citation needed] Some ancient synagogue priestly rites and hymns of Greek origin have partially survived to the modern day, particularly in the unique worship of the Melkite and Greek Orthodox communities in the Turkish Hatay province, Syria, Lebanon and northern Israel.
Members of these communities still refer to themselves as Rūm, which literally means "Eastern Romans" or "Byzantines" in Turkish, Persian and Arabic.