I was going through Bcheiry again, this time for the Metropolitan middle; fixing or deleting some of my translations (M#10, C#7) and fixing some of his dates (M#9). In page 105 he'd summarised #15. I'd actually speed-translated epistle #15 five days back but not posted it so - seems shaphîr to catch up.
Bcheiry summarises about right that some old fool in the Nestorian communion has, in the middle 640s / 950s, taken upon himself to spread tales of horror. The result has been to uproot monks and Christians from some areas toward others... like Anatolia and even Italy (Italy will see several Syrian-born popes). Mar Abraham likely approached his bishop inasmuch as Ishoʿyahb hasn't reproached him for slipping the chain of command. Anyway, word of his plans has reached Arbela.
Bcheiry's date is AD 647. I would assign this unrest around the turn of AH 23/4 = early AG 956, with the deaths of Ishoʿyahb II and of ʿUmar, and with the eclipse, all coming close together. An element in Nisibin is considering a theological switch to Constans II. The upper bishops share the motive to say that all is well with the world (cf. #14, 20 now handled here).
Unlike with #14 and #20 this #15 makes no note of the uppermost bishop, the Catholicos. With #15 (and maybe #11, Bcheiry 102-4) Ishoʿyahb of Arbela is in concert with Maremmeh; but there's no mention of his name, and the buck stops at the metro' layer. For #15: the rainy season early AG 946 / AD 644-5.
As to, who's the alarmist: this isn't Sahdona's error, which was straight-up had-qnoma, such errors as assuredly would have attracted everyone's attention. Seems like a homegrown apocalyptic interpretation of history, such as John bar Penkaye will provide. I don't know where later east-Syrian historians ever asterisked Daniel bar Maryam's history being undertaken about this time.
FIEY 4/17/23: M. XV is discussed ch. V, p. 13-14 as an extension of M. III-IV's regulations.
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