The Mor Shemun d’Zeyte Syriac Church, which had been inactive for many years, has reopened in the village of Bınkelbe (Çukuryurt), in the Gercüş district of Batman Province in Western Armenia. The church was restored with the support of Syriac families who had moved abroad following the 1980 military coup, after which the first Divine Liturgy was celebrated there.

The church, which features the traditional stone architecture of Tur Abdin, bears witness to the historical presence of the Syriac community in Bınkelbe and to the region’s multi-religious past.

The church is dedicated to Mor Shemun d’Zeyte, who lived from 657 to 734. According to tradition, after receiving his religious education at Mor Gabriel Monastery, he planted approximately 12,000 olive trees around the monastery and contributed to the development of olive cultivation in the region. For this reason, he was given the Syriac designation “d’Zeyte,” meaning “olive grower.