Difference between revisions of "Church of Alexandria"
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− | + | {{church| | |
+ | name=Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa[[Image:Alexandria logo.gif|center|The Church of Alexandria]]| | ||
+ | founder= [[Apostle Mark]]| | ||
+ | independence=Traditional | | ||
+ | recognition= Traditional | | ||
+ | primate=[[Theodoros II (Choreftakis) of Alexandria|Pope Theodoros II]]| | ||
+ | hq=Alexandria, Egypt| | ||
+ | territory=Africa| | ||
+ | possessions=none| | ||
+ | language=Greek, Arab, French, English, local languages| | ||
+ | music=[[Byzantine Chant]]| | ||
+ | calendar=[[Revised Julian Calendar|Revised Julian]]| | ||
+ | population=250,000| | ||
+ | website=[http://www.patriarchateofalexandria.com/index.php?lang=en Church of Alexandria] | ||
+ | }} | ||
+ | The '''Church of Alexandria''' is one of the [[autocephaly|autocephalous]] [[Orthodox Church]]es. Its [[primate]] is the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, the successor to the [[Apostle Mark|Apostle Mark the Evangelist]], who founded the Church of Alexandria in the 1st century. It is one of the five ancient [[patriarchate]]s of the early [[Church]], called the ''[[Pentarchy]]''. | ||
+ | |||
+ | == History == | ||
+ | When Alexander the Great conquered Egypt about 332-331 BC he established the city of Alexandria, named after him, from which his Greek-speaking successors, the Ptolemy dynasty, ruled Egypt. Alexandria also had many Greek-speaking Jewish inhabitants, and it was here that the Old Testament scriptures were translated into Greek, the [[Septuagint]] version. During the first century BC the city, and Egypt generally passed under Roman rule. | ||
+ | |||
+ | St Mark, a disciple of [[Apostle Peter|St Peter]] evangelised Egypt in the middle of the first century. He probably arrived about AD 40, and met a martyr's death around AD 63. Little is known of the early history of the Church in Alexandria and Egypt, beyond a bare list of names of bishops. By the end of the second century, however, the church had begun to spread among the indigenous population, and the Scriptures and Liturgical texts were being translated into local languages. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Since the [[schism]] occurring as a result of the political and [[Christology|Christological]] controversies at the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Council of Chalcedon]] (451 A.D.), the portion of the Church of Alexandria loyal to Chalcedonian [[Christology]] has liturgically been Greek-speaking, the majority of its native (i.e., Coptic) population and their modern descendents becoming a part of the '''[[Church of Alexandria (Coptic)|Coptic Orthodox Church]]''' (i.e., [[Oriental Orthodox|non-Chalcedonian]]). | ||
+ | |||
+ | == The Church today == | ||
+ | In recent years, a considerable missionary effort was enacted by Pope [[Petros VII (Papapetrou) of Alexandria|Petros VII]]. During his seven years as patriarch (1997-2004), he worked tirelessly to spread the Orthodox Faith in Arab nations and throughout Africa, raising up native [[clergy]] and encouraging the use of local languages in the liturgical life of the Church. Missions spread and thrived in Kenya, Uganda, [[Madagascar]], [[Cameroon]], and elsewhere across the African continent. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Particularly sensitive to the nature of Christian expansion into [[Islam|Muslim]] countries, His Beatitude worked to promote mutual understanding and respect between Orthodox Christians and Muslims. His efforts were ended as the result of a helicopter crash on [[September 11]], 2004, in the Aegean Sea near Greece, killing him and several other clergy, including Bishop [[Nektarios (Kellis) of Madagascar|Nektarios of Madagascar]], another bishop with a profound missionary vision. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Today, some 300,000 Orthodox Christians comprise the Patriarchate of Alexandria, the highest number since the [[Roman Empire]]. The current primate of the Church of Alexandria is His Beatitude [[Theodoros II (Choreftakis) of Alexandria|Theodoros II]], Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa. | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==The Episcopacy== | ||
+ | ===The Holy Synod=== | ||
+ | *His Beatitude [[Theodoros II (Choreftakis) of Alexandria|Theodoros II]], Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Makarios (Tillyrides) of Nairobi|Makarios (Tillyrides)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Nairobi|Nairobi and Kenya]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Seraphim (Kykkotis) of Zimbabwe|Seraphim (Kykkotis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Zimbabwe|Zimbabwe-Angola and Southern Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Alexandros (Gianniris) of Nigeria|Alexandros (Gianniris)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Nigeria|Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Theophylaktos (Tzoumerkas) of Tripoli|Theophylaktos (Tzoumerkas)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Tripoli|Tripoli and Lybia]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Sergios (Kykkotis) of the Cape of Good Hope|Sergios (Kykkotis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of the Cape of Good Hope|Good Hope and All Natal and Dependencies]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Ieronymos (Muzeeyi) of Mwanza|Ieronymos (Muzeeyi)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Mwanza|Mwanza and Western Tanzania]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[George (Vladimirou) of Guinea|George (Vladimirou)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Guinea|Guinea and the African Coast]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Nicholas II (Antoniou) of Hermopolis|Nicholas II (Antoniou)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Hermopolis|Hermopolis and Egypt Primum]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Dimitrios (Zaharengas) of Irinoupolis|Dimitrios (Zaharengas)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Irinoupolis|Irinoupolis and Eastern Tanzania and Seychelles]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Damaskinos (Papandreou) of Johannesburg|Damaskinos (Papandreou)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Johannesburg|Johannesburg-Pretoria and All South Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Ignatios (Sennis) of Antananarivo|Ignatios (Sennis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Antananarivo|Antananarivo-Northern Madagascar and Indian Islands]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Emmanuel (Kiagias) of Ptolemais|Emmanuel (Kiagias)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Ptolemais|Ptolemais and Upper Egypt]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Gregory (Stergiou) of Cameroon|Gregory (Stergiou)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Cameroon|Cameroon and Central Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Gabriel (Raftopoulos) of Leontopolis|Gabriel (Raftopoulos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Leontopolis|Leontopolis and Augustamnica Secunda and the Red Sea]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Nikodemos II (Priangelos) of Memphis|Nikodemos II (Priangelos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Memphis|Memphis and Egypt]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Meletios (Kamiloudes) of Katanga|Meletios (Kamiloudes)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Katanga|Katanga and Mainland Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Gennadios (Stantzios) of Botswana|Gennadios (Stantzios)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Botswana|Botswana and the Kalahari]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Savvas (Heimonetos) of Nubia|Savvas (Heimonetos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Nubia|Nubia and All Sudan and Eritrea]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Ioannis (Tsaftaridis) of Zambia|Ioannis (Tsaftaridis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Zambia|Zambia and Middle Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Panteleimon (Arathymos) of Brazzaville|Panteleimon (Arathymos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Brazzaville|Brazzaville-Gabon and Atlantic Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Innocent (Byakatonda) of Burundi|Innocent (Byakatonda)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Burundi|Burundi-Rwanda and Inner Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Meletios (Koumanis) of Carthage|Meletios (Koumanis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Carthage|Carthage and North Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Daniel (Biazis) of Aksum|Daniel (Biazis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Aksum|Aksum and All Ethiopia]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Theodosios (Tsitsivos) of Kananga|Theodosios (Tsitsivos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Kananga|Kananga and Equatorial Africa]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Petros II (Parginos) of Accra|Petros II (Parginos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Accra|Accra and West Africa]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | === Auxiliary Metropolitans === | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Athanasios (Kykkotis) of Cyrene|Athanasios (Kykkotis)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Cyrene|Cyrene and the Libyan Sea]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Theodoros (Dimitriou) of Heliopolis|Theodoros (Dimitriou)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Heliopolis|Heliopolis and Middle Egypt]] | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Narkissos (Gammoh) of Naucratis|Narkissos (Gammoh)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Naucratis|Naucratis and the Egyptian Nile]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | === Diocesan Bishops === | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Neophytos (Kongai) of Nyeri|Neophytos (Kongai)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Nyeri|Nyeri-Mount Kenya]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Agathonikos (Nikolaidis) of Arusha|Agathonikos (Nikolaidis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Arusha|Arusha-Central Tanzania]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Sylvestros (Kisitu) of Gulu|Sylvestros (Kisitu)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Gulu|Gulu-Eastern Uganda]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Photios (Hatziantoniou) of Malawi|Photios (Hatziantoniou)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Malawi|Malawi]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Prodromos (Katsoulis) of Toliara|Prodromos (Katsoulis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Toliara|Toliara-Southern Madagascar]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Markos (Theodosis) of Kisumu|Markos (Theodosis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Kisumu|Kisumu-Western Kenya]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | === Titular Metropolitans === | ||
+ | *His Excellency [[Porphyrios (Skikos) of Thebes|Porphyrios (Skikos)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Thebes|Thebes]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Titular Bishops=== | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Nicholas (Boulaxis) of Nitria|Nicholas (Boulaxis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Nitria|Nitria]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Theodoros (Dridakis) of Babylon|Theodoros (Dridakis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Babylon|Babylon]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Germanos (Galanis) of Damietta|Germanos (Galanis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Damietta|Damietta]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Retired Bishops=== | ||
+ | *His Eminence [[Panteleimon (Lampadarios) of Antinoe|Panteleimon (Lampadarios)]], Metropolitan of [[Archdiocese of Antinoe|Antinoe]] | ||
+ | *His Grace [[Vasilios (Varvelis) of Arsinoe|Vasilios (Varvelis)]], Bishop of [[Diocese of Arsinoe in Arcadia|Arsinoe]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==Holy Metropolises and Bishoprics== | ||
+ | |||
+ | {| class="wikitable sortable" | ||
+ | !class=unsortable|Bishopric!!data-sort-type="number"|Established!!See!!Jurisdiction | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Carthage|Metropolis of Carthage]] ||data-sort-value="0"|1st c.||Tunis||'''Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Western Sahara''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Memphis|Metropolis of Memphis]] ||data-sort-value="300"|4th c.||Cairo||'''Egypt''' (Cairo) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Pelusium|Metropolis of Pelusium]] ||data-sort-value="300"|4th c.||Port Said||'''Egypt''' (Port Said, Dakahlia, Damietta) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Leontopolis|Metropolis of Leontopolis]] ||data-sort-value="300"|4th c.||Ismailia||'''Egypt''' (Ismailia, Sharqia, Suez) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Aksum|Metropolis of Aksum]] ||data-sort-value="300"|4th c.||Addis-Abeba||'''Ethiopia''', '''Djibouti''', '''Somalia''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Tripoli|Metropolis of Tripoli]] || 1866 || Tripoli ||'''Libya''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Ptolemais|Metropolis of Ptolemais]]|| 1908 || Minya ||'''Egypt''' (Giza, Minya, Sohag, Asyut, Faiyum, Qena, Beni Suef, Aswan, Luxor, Red Sea, New Valley) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Nubia|Metropolis of Nubia]] || 1908 || Khartoum ||'''Sudan''', '''South Sudan''', '''Eritrea''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Hermopolis|Metropolis of Hermopolis]] || 1927 || Tanta||'''Egypt''' (Arab-speaking communities) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Johannesburg|Metropolis of Johannesburg]]|| 1927 || Johannesburg ||'''South Africa''' (Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Metropolis of Nairobi]] || 1958 || Nairobi ||'''Kenya''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Kinshasa|Metropolis of Kinshasa]] || 1958 || Kinshasa ||'''Congo''' (Kinshasa, North Kivu, South Kivu, Congo Central, Kwilu, Ituri, South Ubangi, Tshopo, Maniema, Kwango, Upper Uele, Mongala, Mai-Ndombe, Equator, North Ubangi, Tshuapa, Lower Uele) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Cameroon|Metropolis of Cameroon]] || 1959 || Yaounde ||'''Cameroon''', '''Chad''', '''Central African Republic''', '''Equatorial Guinea''', '''Saint Thomas and Prince''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Metropolis of Zimbabwe]] || 1964 || Harare ||'''Zimbabwe''', '''Angola''', '''Mozambique''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of the Cape of Good Hope|Metropolis of Good Hope]]||1968||Cape Town ||'''South Africa''' (KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape, Free State, Northern Cape), '''Namibia''', '''Eswatini''', '''Lesotho''', '''Saint Helen''', '''Ascension''', '''Tristan da Cunha''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Metropolis of Mwanza]] || 1992 || Mwanza ||'''Tanzania''' (Mwanza, Mbeya, Kagera, Tabora, Morogoro, Kigoma, Dodoma, Mara, Geita, Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Simiyu, Shinyanga, Manyara, Ruvuma, Singida, Rukwa, Iringa, Njombe, Katavi, Songwe) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Metropolis of Kampala]] || 1994 || Kampala ||'''Uganda''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Accra|Metropolis of Accra]] || 1997 || Accra ||'''Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Antananarivo|Metropolis of Antananarivo]]||1997 || Antananarivo ||'''Madagascar''', '''Mayotte''', '''The Comoros''', '''The Mascarenes''', '''Scattered Islands''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Nigeria|Metropolis of Nigeria]] || 1997 || Lagos ||'''Nigeria''', '''Niger''', '''Benin''', '''Togo''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Irinoupolis|Metropolis of Irinoupolis]] || 1999 || Dar es-Salaam ||'''Tanzania''' (Dar es-Salaam, Tanga, Mtwara, Pwani, Lindi, West Zanzibar, North Pemba, South Pemba, North Zanzibar, South Zanzibar), '''Seychelles''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Zambia|Metropolis of Zambia]] || 2001 || Lusaka ||'''Zambia''', '''Malawi''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Katanga|Metropolis of Katanga]] || 2006 || Lubumbashi ||'''Congo''' (Upper Katanga, Tanganyika, Upper Lomami, Lualaba) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Mozambique]] || 2006 || Maputo ||'''Mozambique''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Burundi|Metropolis of Burundi]] || 2009 || Bujumbura ||'''Burundi''', '''Rwanda''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Botswana|Metropolis of Botswana]] || 2010 || Gabarone ||'''Botswana''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Brazzaville|Metropolis of Brazzaville]] || 2010 || Brazzaville ||'''Congo''' (Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, Buenza, Mpumbu, Niadi, Plateau, Kuvete, Likuala, Lekumu, Kwilu, Sangha, West Kuvete), '''Gabon''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Guinea|Metropolis of Guinea]] || 2010 || Conakry ||'''Guinea''', '''Sierra Leone''', '''Liberia''', '''Guinea Bissau''', '''Gambia''', '''Senegal''', '''Cape Verde''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Kisumu]] || 2015 || Kisumu ||'''Kenya''' (Kisumu, Kakamega, Bungoma, Kisii, Homa Bay, Migori, Siaya, Busia, Nyamira, Vihiga) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Nyeri]] || 2015 || Nyeri ||'''Kenya''' (Nyeri, Kiambu, Muranga, Nyandarua, Kirinyaga) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Arusha]] || 2016 || Arusha ||'''Tanzania''' (Arusha, Morogoro, Dodoma, Kilimanjaro, Manyara, Singida, Iringa) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Archdiocese of Kananga|Metropolis of Kananga]] || 2018 || Kananga ||'''Congo''' (Kasai, Central Kasai, Eastern Kasai, Lomami, Sankuru) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Goma]] || 2018 || Goma ||'''Congo''' (North Kivu, South Kivu, Maniema) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Gulu]] || 2018 || Gulu ||'''Uganda''' (Eastern, Northern) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Kisangani]] || 2018 || Kisangani ||'''Congo''' (Tshopo, Ituri, Upper Uele, Lower Uele) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Malawi]] || 2018 || Malawi ||'''Malawi''' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Toliara]]|| 2018 || Toliara ||'''Madagascar''' (Atsimo-Andrefana, Upper Matsiatra, Vatovavy-Fitovinany, Atsimo-Atsinanana, Androy, Amoroni Mania, Anosy, Menabe, Ihorombe) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Bukoba]] || 2019 || Bukoba ||'''Tanzania''' (Kagera) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | |[[Diocese of Eldoret]]|| 2019 || Eldoret ||'''Kenya''' (Uasin Gishu) | ||
+ | |} | ||
+ | |||
+ | == See also == | ||
+ | *[[Orthodoxy in Africa]] | ||
+ | *[[List of Patriarchs of Alexandria]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==External links== | ||
+ | *[http://www.patriarchateofalexandria.com/index.php?lang=en The Patriarchate of Alexandria] (Official site) | ||
+ | *[http://www.patriarchateofalexandria.com/index.php?module=content&cid=001003 Previous Patriarchs] | ||
+ | *[http://www.orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/articles/church_history/makarios_patriarchate_alexandria.html History of the Patriarchate] | ||
+ | |||
+ | ==Sources== | ||
+ | *[http://www.patriarchateofalexandria.com/index.php?module=content&cid=004001 Patriarchate of Alexandria website - Archdioceses] | ||
+ | *[http://www.patriarchateofalexandria.com/index.php?module=content&cid=004002 Patriarchate of Alexandria website - Dioceses] | ||
+ | *[http://www.cnewa.org/default.aspx?ID=14&pagetypeID=9&sitecode=HQ&pageno=1 Eastern Christian Churches: Patriarchate of Alexandria] by Ronald Roberson, a Roman Catholic priest and scholar | ||
+ | *[http://markmarkou.sites.sch.gr/2021/alex2021.htm The Patriarchate of Alexandria in 2021] by Markos Markos | ||
+ | |||
+ | {{churches}} | ||
+ | |||
+ | [[Category:Orthodoxy in Africa|Alexandria]] | ||
+ | [[Category:Jurisdictions|Alexandria]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | [[ar:بطريركية الإسكندرية للروم الأرثوذكس]] | ||
+ | [[bg:Александрийска патриаршия]] | ||
+ | [[es:Iglesia Ortodoxa de Alejandría]] | ||
+ | [[fr:Église d'Alexandrie]] | ||
+ | [[ro:Biserica Ortodoxă a Alexandriei]] |
Latest revision as of 02:02, December 19, 2021
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa | |
Founder(s) | Apostle Mark |
Autocephaly/Autonomy declared | Traditional |
Autocephaly/Autonomy recognized | Traditional |
Current primate | Pope Theodoros II |
Headquarters | Alexandria, Egypt |
Primary territory | Africa |
Possessions abroad | none |
Liturgical language(s) | Greek, Arab, French, English, local languages |
Musical tradition | Byzantine Chant |
Calendar | Revised Julian |
Population estimate | 250,000 |
Official website | Church of Alexandria |
The Church of Alexandria is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Churches. Its primate is the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, the successor to the Apostle Mark the Evangelist, who founded the Church of Alexandria in the 1st century. It is one of the five ancient patriarchates of the early Church, called the Pentarchy.
Contents
History
When Alexander the Great conquered Egypt about 332-331 BC he established the city of Alexandria, named after him, from which his Greek-speaking successors, the Ptolemy dynasty, ruled Egypt. Alexandria also had many Greek-speaking Jewish inhabitants, and it was here that the Old Testament scriptures were translated into Greek, the Septuagint version. During the first century BC the city, and Egypt generally passed under Roman rule.
St Mark, a disciple of St Peter evangelised Egypt in the middle of the first century. He probably arrived about AD 40, and met a martyr's death around AD 63. Little is known of the early history of the Church in Alexandria and Egypt, beyond a bare list of names of bishops. By the end of the second century, however, the church had begun to spread among the indigenous population, and the Scriptures and Liturgical texts were being translated into local languages.
Since the schism occurring as a result of the political and Christological controversies at the Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.), the portion of the Church of Alexandria loyal to Chalcedonian Christology has liturgically been Greek-speaking, the majority of its native (i.e., Coptic) population and their modern descendents becoming a part of the Coptic Orthodox Church (i.e., non-Chalcedonian).
The Church today
In recent years, a considerable missionary effort was enacted by Pope Petros VII. During his seven years as patriarch (1997-2004), he worked tirelessly to spread the Orthodox Faith in Arab nations and throughout Africa, raising up native clergy and encouraging the use of local languages in the liturgical life of the Church. Missions spread and thrived in Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar, Cameroon, and elsewhere across the African continent.
Particularly sensitive to the nature of Christian expansion into Muslim countries, His Beatitude worked to promote mutual understanding and respect between Orthodox Christians and Muslims. His efforts were ended as the result of a helicopter crash on September 11, 2004, in the Aegean Sea near Greece, killing him and several other clergy, including Bishop Nektarios of Madagascar, another bishop with a profound missionary vision.
Today, some 300,000 Orthodox Christians comprise the Patriarchate of Alexandria, the highest number since the Roman Empire. The current primate of the Church of Alexandria is His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa.
The Episcopacy
The Holy Synod
- His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa
- His Eminence Makarios (Tillyrides), Metropolitan of Nairobi and Kenya
- His Eminence Seraphim (Kykkotis), Metropolitan of Zimbabwe-Angola and Southern Africa
- His Eminence Alexandros (Gianniris), Metropolitan of Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea
- His Eminence Theophylaktos (Tzoumerkas), Metropolitan of Tripoli and Lybia
- His Eminence Sergios (Kykkotis), Metropolitan of Good Hope and All Natal and Dependencies
- His Eminence Ieronymos (Muzeeyi), Metropolitan of Mwanza and Western Tanzania
- His Eminence George (Vladimirou), Metropolitan of Guinea and the African Coast
- His Eminence Nicholas II (Antoniou), Metropolitan of Hermopolis and Egypt Primum
- His Eminence Dimitrios (Zaharengas), Metropolitan of Irinoupolis and Eastern Tanzania and Seychelles
- His Eminence Damaskinos (Papandreou), Metropolitan of Johannesburg-Pretoria and All South Africa
- His Eminence Ignatios (Sennis), Metropolitan of Antananarivo-Northern Madagascar and Indian Islands
- His Eminence Emmanuel (Kiagias), Metropolitan of Ptolemais and Upper Egypt
- His Eminence Gregory (Stergiou), Metropolitan of Cameroon and Central Africa
- His Eminence Gabriel (Raftopoulos), Metropolitan of Leontopolis and Augustamnica Secunda and the Red Sea
- His Eminence Nikodemos II (Priangelos), Metropolitan of Memphis and Egypt
- His Eminence Meletios (Kamiloudes), Metropolitan of Katanga and Mainland Africa
- His Eminence Gennadios (Stantzios), Metropolitan of Botswana and the Kalahari
- His Eminence Savvas (Heimonetos), Metropolitan of Nubia and All Sudan and Eritrea
- His Eminence Ioannis (Tsaftaridis), Metropolitan of Zambia and Middle Africa
- His Eminence Panteleimon (Arathymos), Metropolitan of Brazzaville-Gabon and Atlantic Africa
- His Eminence Innocent (Byakatonda), Metropolitan of Burundi-Rwanda and Inner Africa
- His Eminence Meletios (Koumanis), Metropolitan of Carthage and North Africa
- His Eminence Daniel (Biazis), Metropolitan of Aksum and All Ethiopia
- His Eminence Theodosios (Tsitsivos), Metropolitan of Kananga and Equatorial Africa
- His Eminence Petros II (Parginos), Metropolitan of Accra and West Africa
Auxiliary Metropolitans
- His Eminence Athanasios (Kykkotis), Metropolitan of Cyrene and the Libyan Sea
- His Eminence Theodoros (Dimitriou), Metropolitan of Heliopolis and Middle Egypt
- His Eminence Narkissos (Gammoh), Metropolitan of Naucratis and the Egyptian Nile
Diocesan Bishops
- His Grace Neophytos (Kongai), Bishop of Nyeri-Mount Kenya
- His Grace Agathonikos (Nikolaidis), Bishop of Arusha-Central Tanzania
- His Grace Sylvestros (Kisitu), Bishop of Gulu-Eastern Uganda
- His Grace Photios (Hatziantoniou), Bishop of Malawi
- His Grace Prodromos (Katsoulis), Bishop of Toliara-Southern Madagascar
- His Grace Markos (Theodosis), Bishop of Kisumu-Western Kenya
Titular Metropolitans
- His Excellency Porphyrios (Skikos), Metropolitan of Thebes
Titular Bishops
- His Grace Nicholas (Boulaxis), Bishop of Nitria
- His Grace Theodoros (Dridakis), Bishop of Babylon
- His Grace Germanos (Galanis), Bishop of Damietta
Retired Bishops
- His Eminence Panteleimon (Lampadarios), Metropolitan of Antinoe
- His Grace Vasilios (Varvelis), Bishop of Arsinoe
Holy Metropolises and Bishoprics
Bishopric | Established | See | Jurisdiction |
---|---|---|---|
Metropolis of Carthage | 1st c. | Tunis | Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Western Sahara |
Metropolis of Memphis | 4th c. | Cairo | Egypt (Cairo) |
Metropolis of Pelusium | 4th c. | Port Said | Egypt (Port Said, Dakahlia, Damietta) |
Metropolis of Leontopolis | 4th c. | Ismailia | Egypt (Ismailia, Sharqia, Suez) |
Metropolis of Aksum | 4th c. | Addis-Abeba | Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia |
Metropolis of Tripoli | 1866 | Tripoli | Libya |
Metropolis of Ptolemais | 1908 | Minya | Egypt (Giza, Minya, Sohag, Asyut, Faiyum, Qena, Beni Suef, Aswan, Luxor, Red Sea, New Valley) |
Metropolis of Nubia | 1908 | Khartoum | Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea |
Metropolis of Hermopolis | 1927 | Tanta | Egypt (Arab-speaking communities) |
Metropolis of Johannesburg | 1927 | Johannesburg | South Africa (Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West) |
Metropolis of Nairobi | 1958 | Nairobi | Kenya |
Metropolis of Kinshasa | 1958 | Kinshasa | Congo (Kinshasa, North Kivu, South Kivu, Congo Central, Kwilu, Ituri, South Ubangi, Tshopo, Maniema, Kwango, Upper Uele, Mongala, Mai-Ndombe, Equator, North Ubangi, Tshuapa, Lower Uele) |
Metropolis of Cameroon | 1959 | Yaounde | Cameroon, Chad, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Saint Thomas and Prince |
Metropolis of Zimbabwe | 1964 | Harare | Zimbabwe, Angola, Mozambique |
Metropolis of Good Hope | 1968 | Cape Town | South Africa (KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape, Free State, Northern Cape), Namibia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Saint Helen, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha |
Metropolis of Mwanza | 1992 | Mwanza | Tanzania (Mwanza, Mbeya, Kagera, Tabora, Morogoro, Kigoma, Dodoma, Mara, Geita, Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Simiyu, Shinyanga, Manyara, Ruvuma, Singida, Rukwa, Iringa, Njombe, Katavi, Songwe) |
Metropolis of Kampala | 1994 | Kampala | Uganda |
Metropolis of Accra | 1997 | Accra | Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso |
Metropolis of Antananarivo | 1997 | Antananarivo | Madagascar, Mayotte, The Comoros, The Mascarenes, Scattered Islands |
Metropolis of Nigeria | 1997 | Lagos | Nigeria, Niger, Benin, Togo |
Metropolis of Irinoupolis | 1999 | Dar es-Salaam | Tanzania (Dar es-Salaam, Tanga, Mtwara, Pwani, Lindi, West Zanzibar, North Pemba, South Pemba, North Zanzibar, South Zanzibar), Seychelles |
Metropolis of Zambia | 2001 | Lusaka | Zambia, Malawi |
Metropolis of Katanga | 2006 | Lubumbashi | Congo (Upper Katanga, Tanganyika, Upper Lomami, Lualaba) |
Diocese of Mozambique | 2006 | Maputo | Mozambique |
Metropolis of Burundi | 2009 | Bujumbura | Burundi, Rwanda |
Metropolis of Botswana | 2010 | Gabarone | Botswana |
Metropolis of Brazzaville | 2010 | Brazzaville | Congo (Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, Buenza, Mpumbu, Niadi, Plateau, Kuvete, Likuala, Lekumu, Kwilu, Sangha, West Kuvete), Gabon |
Metropolis of Guinea | 2010 | Conakry | Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea Bissau, Gambia, Senegal, Cape Verde |
Diocese of Kisumu | 2015 | Kisumu | Kenya (Kisumu, Kakamega, Bungoma, Kisii, Homa Bay, Migori, Siaya, Busia, Nyamira, Vihiga) |
Diocese of Nyeri | 2015 | Nyeri | Kenya (Nyeri, Kiambu, Muranga, Nyandarua, Kirinyaga) |
Diocese of Arusha | 2016 | Arusha | Tanzania (Arusha, Morogoro, Dodoma, Kilimanjaro, Manyara, Singida, Iringa) |
Metropolis of Kananga | 2018 | Kananga | Congo (Kasai, Central Kasai, Eastern Kasai, Lomami, Sankuru) |
Diocese of Goma | 2018 | Goma | Congo (North Kivu, South Kivu, Maniema) |
Diocese of Gulu | 2018 | Gulu | Uganda (Eastern, Northern) |
Diocese of Kisangani | 2018 | Kisangani | Congo (Tshopo, Ituri, Upper Uele, Lower Uele) |
Diocese of Malawi | 2018 | Malawi | Malawi |
Diocese of Toliara | 2018 | Toliara | Madagascar (Atsimo-Andrefana, Upper Matsiatra, Vatovavy-Fitovinany, Atsimo-Atsinanana, Androy, Amoroni Mania, Anosy, Menabe, Ihorombe) |
Diocese of Bukoba | 2019 | Bukoba | Tanzania (Kagera) |
Diocese of Eldoret | 2019 | Eldoret | Kenya (Uasin Gishu) |
See also
External links
Sources
- Patriarchate of Alexandria website - Archdioceses
- Patriarchate of Alexandria website - Dioceses
- Eastern Christian Churches: Patriarchate of Alexandria by Ronald Roberson, a Roman Catholic priest and scholar
- The Patriarchate of Alexandria in 2021 by Markos Markos
Autocephalous and Autonomous Churches of Orthodoxy |
Autocephalous Churches |
Four Ancient Patriarchates: Constantinople · Alexandria · Antioch · Jerusalem Russia · Serbia · Romania · Bulgaria · Georgia · Cyprus · Greece · Poland · Albania · Czech Lands and Slovakia · OCA* · Ukraine* |
Autonomous Churches |
Sinai · Finland · Estonia* · Japan* · China* · Ukraine* |
The * designates a church whose autocephaly or autonomy is not universally recognized. |