Background
Abdel-Karim Karmah was born in 1572 in Hama, Syria, son of a priest.
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Euthymius II Karmah
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He previously was a leading figure in the Melkite Church and metropolitan bishop of Aleppo. In his twenties he went to Jerusalem where he entered in the monastery of Saint Michel, a cloister associated with March Saba Monastery. A few years later he moved for service to Aleppo where he got appraisal as preacher.
On 12 February 1612 Karmah was consecrated metropolitan bishop of Aleppo by Athanasius II Dabbas, and he took the name of the saint of that day, ‘’Meletios’’.
One of his aims as metropolitan was to increase the literacy and the education of his flock and his presbyter, which needed liturgical and religious books in Arabic. Thus Karmah in 1612 published in Arabic the Typicon of March Saba, a Liturgicon and a Sticherarion, but to go on with further publications he needed money.
Foreign this purpose he asked a grant to Rome, and he relied on the Franciscans missionaries for financial support and for teaching. He succeeded also to persuade the Vatican to stat preparing an Arabic translation of the whole Bible, something quite difficult to obtain in the years after the Council of Trent, but the translation took time and only the Gospels were published.
While Karmah was metropolitan of Aleppo, he was attacked many times.
Some years later he was strongly attached by the claiming-patriarch Cyril IV Dabbas because he supported the other claiming-patriarch, Ignatius III Atiyah. In 1624 Cyril Dabbas moved to Aleppo but Karmah always refused to concelebrate with him. Karmah went on refusing to recognize Cyrill even at the celebration of Easter 1625.
Thus Cyrill Dabbas accused him in front of the Ottoman authorities who arrested and processed him.
In 1628 he took part to the Synod of Ras-Baalbek where, along with all the other Melkite bishops, deposed Cyrill declaring Ignatius III to be the sole patriarch. He also planned to open schools with Jesuits teachers.
Politics
After two years of prayer, he was asked by his bishop Simeon to return to Hama where he was ordained deacon and later priest.
Views
The first time was in 1614 and he had to go to Constantinople to defend himself in front of Timothy II of Constantinople, who decided to confirm him in his position. In 1627 he had again to return to Constantinople to defend himself, also this time successfully.
