Coptic Orthodox Christianity

The Coptic Church was established in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ by St. Mark the Evangelist in the city of Alexandria around 43 A.D. The church adheres to the Nicene Creed. St. Athanasius (296-373 A.D.), the twentieth Pope of the Coptic Church effectively defended the Doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ’s Divinity at the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. His affirmation of the doctrine earned him the title; “Father of Orthodoxy” and St. Athanasius “the Apostolic”.

The term “Coptic” is derived from the Greek “Aigyptos” meaning “Egyptian”. When the Arabs arrived in Egypt in the seventh century, they called the Egyptians “qibt”. Thus the Arabic word “qibt” came to mean both “Egyptians” and “Christians”.

The term “Orthodoxy” here refers to the preservation of the “Original Faith” by the Copts who, throughout the ages, defended the Old Creed against the numerous attacks aimed at it.

The Coptic Orthodox Church believes that the Holy Trinity: God The Father, God The Son, and God The Holy Spirit, are equal to each other in one unity; and that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only Savior of the world. Less changes have taken place in the Coptic Church than in any other church whether in the ritual or doctrine aspects and that the succession of the Coptic Patriarchs, Bishops, priests and Deacons has been continuous.

“Blessed is Egypt my people” (Isa 19:25)

God’s promise to His people is always fulfilled; He foretold that He would ride on a light and upon a swift cloud and come to Egypt (Isa 19:1); and in that day there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the Lord at its border (Isa 19:19). This promise was fulfilled by the flight of the Holy Family from the face of the tyrant Herod to find refuge among the Gentiles. Thus our Lord Jesus Christ came during His childhood to Egypt to lay by Himself the foundation stone of His Church in Egypt which has become one of the four primary “Sees” in the world, among the churches of Jerusalem, Antioch and Rome, and joined later by the “See” of Constantinople.

The star of the Egyptian Church shone through the School of Alexandria which taught Christendom the allegoric and spiritual methods in interpreting the Holy Scripture and was the leader in defending the Orthodox faith on an ecumenical level.

The Christian monastic movement in all its forms started in Egypt, attracting the heart of the Church towards the desert, to practice the angelic inner life. This happened at the time when the doors of the royal court had been opened to the clergy, and this consequently endangered the church, as the quiet and spiritual church work was mixed with the temporal authority and politics of the royal court.

The Egyptian Church carried our Lord Jesus Christ’s cross throughout generations, bearing sufferings even from the side of Christians themselves. She continued to offer a countless number of martyrs and confessors throughout ages. Sometimes the people of towns were martyred and many struggled to win the crowns of martyrdom happily and with a heart full of joy.

Our Church is ancient and new at the same time: ancient in being apostolic, founded by St. Mark the Evangelist and traditional in holding fast to the original apostolic faith without deviation. She is also new through her Living Messiah who never becomes old and through the Spirit of God who renews her youth (Ps. 103:5).

The Coptic Church is rich with her evangelistic and ascetic life, her genuine patriotic inheritance, her heavenly worship, her spiritual rituals, her effective and living hymns, her beautiful icons, etc. She attracts the heart towards heaven without ignoring actual daily life. We can say that she is an apostolic, contemporary church that carries life and thought to the contemporary man without deviation. One finds in her life, sweetness and power of Spirit, with appreciation to and sanctification of arts, literature and human culture.

The Church is well known for her numerous saints: ascetics, clergymen and laymen. She offered many saints throughout ages and is still offering the same today. For she believes that practicing the sanctified life and communion with God, the Holy One, is prior to satisfying minds with solid mental studies.

Since the beginning of Christianity, the see of Saint Mark has been one of the four Apostolic sees, i.e, the sees that were established by one of the Apostles, namely Jerusalem, Alexandria, Antioch, and Rome, later the sees of Constantinople and Ephesus were added to them. Today, Coptic Patriarchs continue in succession serving the see of Saint Mark. Currently, Pope Tawadros II is the 118th Pope, considering Saint Mark being the first.

In the council of Chalcedon in 451 AD, Christian churches split into two groups. The first, is a group of churches which did not accept the decrees of this council, they are known as the Oriental Orthodox Churches or the Non-Chalcedonian Churches. This group of churches includes the Coptic, Armenian, and Syrian churches along with other churches that follow them such as the Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Indian Orthodox Churches. The second group, the Chalcedonian Churches, also known as the Eastern Orthodox Churches, include the rest of the churches in the world. Perhaps the political tone of the council sessions was the main reason of this schism although the disagreement about the nature of Christ as an incarnate God was a semantic one rather than fundamental. 

The non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Family including the Coptic Church has been in communion with each other since that council and until today, despite the different rites which are naturally shaped by the different cultures of each region. The Chalcedonian Family, however, had several schisms because of some heresies that came from within. In the year 1054, the Second Great Schism created the Orthodox Churches of the East and the Catholic Church of the West. The Catholic Church later had a schism in the 16th century where the Protestant movement was created, and then the Protestants became fragmented into hundreds of denominations. This is the situation of Christians in the world today!

Returning to the Coptic Church, the faith grew in Egypt and reached over to Sudan and Ethiopia in the fourth century. I would like to pause at two important points in the past and two important points in the present. The two points in the past are: The Theologian Fathers and Monasticism, and the two points in the present time are the modern spiritual revival and the spread of Copts in the Diaspora. In fact, we must emphasize that the glory of the past still has its positive influence on the present and the future of the Coptic Church.

Starting in the sixties of the twentieth century, Copts began to immigrate to the United States, Europe, and Australia. The number of Copts outside Egypt is currently about two million, and we now (April 2014) have nearly 550 churches on all continents of the world. In addition, we have several missionary churches in Africa, Latin America, Canada, and four in the United States. As to the Coptic Orthodox Churches in Egypt, they are about 2,500. The number of bishops of the Holy Synod of the Coptic Church is now about 110, seven of them are in North America, two in Latin America, twelve in Europe, and three in Australia. The number of priests is about 3,700 both in Egypt and abroad.

St. Mark, the Founder

The Coptic Church has been founded by one of the seventy-two Apostles, and one of the four Evangelists: Saint Mark. This honest and persistent preacher planted the seed of the living faith in the hearts of the Egyptians and watered it with his pure blood through martyrdom. Hence, it grew and prospered, its branches bearing fruits for people all over the world.

Our Church is both ancient and modern. She is traditional in maintaining the apostolic faith; yet modern in its application to the current generations.

St. Mark’s Biography

St. Mark was of Jewish Origin, born in Africa. He was born in Cyrene (Currently Libya), from Jewish parents, Aristopolos and Mary. He was first named John at birth, and then he was called Mark (Acts 12:12, 25; 15:37). His family was wealthy and he grew up in a cultural environment, studying The Old Testament at a young age. He also learned different languages such as Hebrew, Greek and Latin. St. Mark’s mother, Mary, played a great role in his life. In addition to being a living example and a blessed model for the spiritual life, she planted God’s love in her son’s heart. She sacrificed everything she had, with enthusiasm, to serve Our Lord, and offered the upper room of her family’s house located in Jerusalem to host Jesus Christ and His disciples. According to tradition, this is the birthplace of the first Christian church in the world, where the Passover took place (Mk 14:12-26) and where the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples at Pentecost, following the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, and His appearance to the disciples. It continued being the main headquarters for the early Church meetings for many years afterwards.

St. Mark in Africa

St. Mark went to Alexandria around the year 61 A.D. At his arrival, he was praying while walking in its streets. His sandal was torn, so he was forced to stop by a shoemaker to get it fixed. While Anianus, the cobbler, was repairing St. Mark’s footwear, an awl pierced his finger, and that’s when he cried out saying, “O One God”.  This astonished St. Mark and he healed the man’s wound miraculously. Afterwards, St. Mark started talking to Anianus about Our Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for Mankind.  That is when Anianus accepted the faith and invited St. Mark to his house, along with his family and neighbors. St. Mark baptized all those who believed. The first nucleus of the Christian Church was formed in Egypt, soon after the seed of faith had been planted in the hearts of the people. This was also the time when St. Mark established a theological school in Alexandria and a system for the Divine Liturgy known today as the Divine Liturgy of St. Cyril.

The Christian faith grew and prospered in Egypt, which caused the pagans to be furious against St. Mark. After ordaining Anianus as bishop, alongside the ordination of three priests and seven deacons to look after the congregation, St. Mark left Alexandria. He went to Rome to meet with St. Peter and St. Paul and he stayed with them until Our Lord remembered them, around 64 A.D.

A few years later, St. Mark revisited the church he had established in Egypt. The seed he had planted was growing, flowering and bearing fruits. The number of believers had increased and a huge church was built in the area of Baucalis, a suburban area in Alexandria, Egypt.

His Martyrdom

Easter of the year 68 A.D. came on the same day as the feast for the pagan God, Serapis. Many Egyptians had converted to Christianity by then, which made them abandon the celebration of the Serapis feast, and instead, attended the Divine Liturgy in the Holy church. The pagans were furious and decided to attack St. Mark, the eliminator of idols, on that same day. They jumped on him and arrested him. They tied him with ropes and dragged him through the streets of the city.  St. Mark’s blood was shed on the streets, yet he kept praising God and expressing gratitude for being worthy of such pain for His Mighty name.

In the evening, he was thrown into prison, where an angel came to him, touched him and gave him strength, saying, “Now your hour has come O Mark, the good servant, to receive your reward immediately. Have courage, as your name has been written in the Book of life.” St. Mark’s heart was filled with comfort and he rejoiced, thanking God for the angel He had sent him. Christ himself then appeared to him in a great light, saying, “O Mark, my disciple, the Gospel writer, Peace be to you!” As St. Mark started to shout, “My Lord Jesus”, the vision disappeared. He was strengthened and comforted.

The next morning, the pagans came back, tied St. Mark’s neck with a rope and dragged him in the streets. The patient and tolerant servant kept praying and asking God to forgive them. Finally, his flesh was torn and his head got separated from his body. His spirit was in the hands of His Beloved Lord Jesus. The pagans wanted to burn the saint’s body, but the weather suddenly changed and a windy storm took place, which caused the multitudes to disperse.

The believers wrapped his body in precious fragrance, carrying it to the Church of Baucalis. St. Anianus prayed on him, then he was put into a grave under the altar of the church. It became the first and oldest church in Egypt and Africa, and it was named after St. Mark, the great apostle.

His Apostolic Acts

• He established the famous theological school in Alexandria, Egypt, where Christian doctrine and many other sciences were taught. This source of knowledge and light brought many different people to Christ.

• He was universal in his preaching, and not limited to one place. He preached in Egypt and Africa, as well as in Lebanon, Antioch, Turkey, Cyprus, Venice and Rome.

• He wrote the Divine Liturgy, which was later adopted by St. Cyril the great, who added to it and rearranged it. It is known today as the Divine Liturgy of St. Cyril.

His Gospel

The Holy Gospel of St. Mark was written approximately in the year 60 A.D., which makes it the oldest of the four Gospels. Consequently, the order of the New Testament books is not necessarily chronological.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II was born Wagih Sobhy Baky Soliman on November 4th, 1952 in Mansoura. His father was an irrigation engineer and his family moved around during his childhood from Mansoura to Sohag and then to Damanhour.

He received his bachelor's degree in pharmacy in 1975 from Alexandria University and earned a fellowship for the World Health Organization from the British International Health Institute in England in 1985. He attended the Coptic Seminary and graduated in 1983. He then worked as a manager in a pharmaceutical company in Damanhour that was owned by the Ministry of Health.

His Holiness's life has always revolved around church since his youth; he wished to live the life of monasticism. He entered the Monastery of St. Pishoy in Wadi Elnatroun on August 20th, 1986 and remained a brother for two years. He was ordained a monk on July 31, 1988 and after a year he was ordained a priest on December 23, 1989. Two months after, H.H. Pope Tawadros started serving with H.E. Metropolitan Pakhomius of Beheira on February 15th, 1990. He was ordained a bishop on June 15th, 1997 by H.H. the Late Pope Shenouda III as a General Bishop assisting H.E. Metropolitan Pakhomius. His Holiness focused on childhood whether it was in the country-wide children's festival as well when he was in charge of the children's committee in the Holy Synod. Before assuming the papacy, H.H. wrote twelve books.

His Holiness was enthroned as the 118th Pope of Alexandria and Pope of the See of St. Mark on November 19th, 2012 at the Cathedral of St. Reweiss in Abbassiya, Cairo. The enthronement was presided by H.E. Metropolitan Pakhomius of Beheira, other metropolitans and bishops of the Coptic church and was attended by many delegates of Christian Churches.

His Grace Bishop Karas was born on November 18, 1965.

HG joined the Coptic Orthodox Seminary School in 1983 and graduated in 1987 with a Bachelor degree in Theological Sciences.

Later on, in the year of 1992, HG joined the Monastery of Saint Bishoy in Wady El Natroun in Egypt. He was ordained a monk in 1993 under the name of Abouna Karas El Orshalimy (Father Karas of Jerusalem).

HG served two years in Jerusalem, then he returned to the Monastery of Anba Bishoy. On June 7, 1999, HG was ordained a priest and served in England at the Diocese of Ireland, Scotland, and North East England with HG Bishop Anthony until 2014.

He was consecrated as general bishop to serve Cairo on June 1, 2014 by the hand of H.H. Pope Tawadros II and then enthroned to the newly formed Diocese of Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and West Virginia on November 11, 2017.

May the Lord keep his life and service for many years to come.