The Coptic Orthodox Church, also known as the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian church based in Egypt, servicing Africa and the Middle East. The head of the church and the See of Alexandria is the Pope of Alexandria on the Holy Apostolic See of Saint Mark, who also carries the title of Father of fathers, Shepherd of Shepherds, Ecumenical Judge and the thirteenth among the Apostles. The See of Alexandria is titular, and today the Coptic Pope presides from Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in the Abbassia District in Cairo. The church follows the Coptic Rite for its liturgy, prayer and devotional patrimony. With approximately 25 million members worldwide, it is the country's largest Christian denomination.
Pachomius, also known as Saint Pachomius the Great, is generally recognized as the founder of Christian cenobitic monasticism. Coptic churches celebrate his feast day on 9 May, and Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches mark his feast on 15 May or 28 May. In the Lutheran Church, he is remembered as a renewer of the church, along with his contemporary, Anthony of Egypt on January 17.
Copts are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity. Most ethnic Copts are Coptic Orthodox Christians. They are the largest Christian denomination in Egypt and the Middle East, as well as in Sudan and Libya. Copts have historically spoken the Coptic language, a direct descendant of the Demotic Egyptian that was spoken in late antiquity.
Esna, is a city of Egypt. It is located on the west bank of the Nile some 55 km south of Luxor. The town was formerly part of the modern Qena Governorate, but as of 9 December 2009, it was incorporated into the new Luxor Governorate.
Shenoute of Atripe, also known as Shenoute the Great or Saint Shenoute the Archimandrite (Coptic: Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ϣⲉⲛⲟⲩϯ ⲡⲓⲁⲣⲭⲓⲙⲁⲛ'ⲇⲣⲓⲧⲏⲥ; was the abbot of the White Monastery in Egypt. He is considered a saint by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and is one of the most renowned saints of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
St. Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral is a Coptic church located in the Abbassia District in Cairo, Egypt. The cathedral is the Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope. It was built during the time when Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria was Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and was consecrated on June the 3rd 1963.
Samannud is a city (markaz) located in Gharbia Governorate, Egypt. Known in classical antiquity as Sebennytos, Samannud is a historic city that has been inhabited since the Ancient Egyptian period. As of 2019, the population of the markaz of Samannud was estimated to be 410,388, with 83,417 people living in urban areas and 326,971 in rural areas.
Monastic settlements are areas built up in and around the development of monasteries with the spread of Christianity. To understand Christian monastic settlements, we must understand a brief history of Christian monasticism. Monasticism was a movement especially associated with Early Christianity that began in the late 3rd century to the 4th century in Egypt when early Christians realizing that martyrdom wasn’t much of an option when the Roman empire relaxed Christian persecutions. It was begun by key monks who were known then as “The Desert Fathers” and later, there were female monasteries run by women who later came to be known as “The Desert Mothers”. The most famous Desert Father was Abba Anthony and the most famous Desert Mother was Amma Syncletica.ost of the Christians took to the deserts and arid areas to deny themselves of the social environments and people in order to focus on God and prayer. They denied themselves of a comfortable life often resorting to eating what grew in the deserts as well as living frugally and in poverty. With time, monasticism came to impact the church and even the papacy and there came about two variants of monasticism: The Eastern Monastic movement and the Western Monastic movement. Inspired by the Eastern monastic movements, new monastic movements sprung up in western Europe after the Roman empire fell apart and newer kingdoms like the Franks, Britannia and Germanic tribes sprung up. The papacy was at its infancy and places like the Isles of Britannia had monks that established monasteries along its coastlines. One of the forerunners was St. Augustine whose Rule became encoded in the future doctrine of the Roman clergy of the church.
John VIII ibn Qiddis was the 80th pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church from 14 February 1300 until his death.
The Monastery of Saint Anthony is a Coptic Orthodox monastery standing in an oasis in the Eastern Desert of Egypt, in the southern part of the Suez Governorate. Hidden deep in the Red Sea Mountains, it is located 334 km (208 mi) southeast of Cairo. The Monastery of Saint Anthony was established by the followers of Saint Anthony, who is the first Christian monk. The Monastery of St. Anthony is one of the most prominent monasteries in Egypt and has strongly influenced the formation of several Coptic institutions, and has promoted monasticism in general. Several patriarchs have come from the monastery, and several hundred pilgrims visit it each day.
Coptic architecture is the architecture of the Coptic Christians, who form the majority of Christians in Egypt.
Coptic monasticism is said to be the original form of monasticism as St. Anthony of Egypt became the first one to be called "monk" and he was the first to establish a Christian monastery which is now known as the Monastery of Saint Anthony at the base of Mount Colzim. St. Anthony's Monastery is the oldest Christian monastery in the world.
Saint Fana, also known as Abu Fana, Abu Fanah, or Apa Bane was a Coptic hermit. The Monastery of Saint Fana in the diocese of Mallawi, Upper Egypt, is named after him.
Galala Mountain or Galalah Mountain is a mountain located in Suez Governorate, Egypt, with an elevation of 3,300 ft above sea level. It contains many species of plants and once had sources of water that have since dried up. Galala Mountain was called the Gallayat Plateaus until it was renamed in the 1920s. Galala Mountain is famous for Galala marble, which is quarried for export and has a colour that varies from creamy to creamy white.
The Monastery of Saint Matthew the Potter, also known as the Monastery of Saint Matthew the Poor, is a Coptic Orthodox monastery in Upper Egypt. It was founded by a Coptic monk of the same name. It is located in Luxor Governorate near the town of Naq 'al-Zinaiqa, about seven kilometers northwest of the village of Asfun al-Matana near Esna. The monastery is built at the edge of the desert. It was uninhabited for a period of time, but in 1975, Coptic Orthodox monks reestablished a presence there. Excavations done by French archeologists between the Monastery of Saint Matthew the Poor and the Monastery of the Martyrs have revealed much about the history of Coptic monasticism in this region.
Saint Matthew the Potter, also known as Saint Matthew the Poor, is an Egyptian Christian saint of the 8th century. He was contemporary of Pope Alexander II of Alexandria. According to Abu al-Makarim, Saint Matthew the Potter may have also been Coptic Orthodox bishop of the city of Esna. He is the founder of the Monastery of Saint Matthew the Potter.
The Coptic diaspora consists of Copts who live outside of their primary area of residence within parts of present-day Egypt, Libya and Sudan.
Bawit is an archaeological site located 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Asyut, near the village of Dashlout, in Egypt. It covers an area of 40 hectares, and houses a cemetery and the ruins of the Hermopolite monastery of Apa Apollo founded by Apollo in the late fourth century. The structures on this site are relatively well preserved, and demonstrate different aspects of a monastic complex of Middle Egypt.
The Icon of Christ and Abbot Mena a Coptic painting which is now in the Louvre museum, in Paris. The icon is an encaustic painting on wood and was brought from the Apollo monastery in Bawit, Egypt. The icon measures about 57x57cm and is 2 cm thick. The icon has been damaged over the years with some of the pigment missing and it has two vertical cracks running through the image, but it can still be readily made out.
Pbow was a cenobitic monastery established by St. Pachomius in 336-337 AD. Pbow is about 100 km (62 mi) north of Luxor in modern Upper Egypt.
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