A Brief Life of Saint Cyril of Alexandria
Our knowledge of St. Cyril’s childhood education and early upbringing is quite meager. According to St. Isidore of Pelusium and church historian Socrates, St. Cyril was born in Alexandria around the year 380. However, others rely on to the chronicles of John, Bishop of Nikiu in seventh century, who states that St. Cyril’s mother and her brother hailed from Memphis, and that St. Cyril was born in the town of Theodosion, Lower Egypt, very close – …
The Holy Theotokos: A Model For All Mankind
The Holy Virgin St. Mary had certain characteristics, which makes her the model for all of us. She was the first one to receive Christ, and has become the model of what we can become in Christ. In the midst of our troubled world, St. Mary offers us the personification of humanity saying “Yes” to God; she stands as the greatest example of humanity’s free response to God’s offer of salvation. St. Mary reveals to – …
Saint Maurice
On September 12th, our Church celebrates the Coptic New Year (Feast of the Nairouz), which is the calendar of the Church. The Coptic New Year is the calendar of the martyrs. Our Church offered thousands of martyrs. Since the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian was one of the harshest periods of persecution, especially in Egypt, the Church chose the year 284 AD, which is the beginning of the reign of Diocletian, to mark the – …
The Concept of Intercession
What is Intercession? The formal definition of intercession is a “supplication to God in behalf of another person. Christ intercedes before God the Fr. on behalf of the repentant sinner, and God’s people intercede for one another.” We ask the intercessions of Saint Mary, the Angels, and Archangels. We ask the disciples, apostles, martyrs, fathers, and saints to pray on our behalf. Not only do we intercede to the saints are in heaven, but also – …
The Story of Abba Moses the Strong
Chapter Ten: The Triumph of the Disciple of an Old Man in the Desert Now there was a certain man whose name was Moses, who was by race an Indian (i.e., an Ethiopian), and his flesh was black, and he was the slave of a man in high authority, and because of his evil deeds and thefts his master drove him out of his house; now it is said that he even went so far – …