The Catechetical School of Alexandria was a school of Christian

theologians Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

and bishops and deacons in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

. The teachers and students of the school (also known as the Didascalium) were influential in many of the early

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

controversies of the Christian church. It was one of the two major centers of the study of biblical

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Biblical works. In modern usage, exegesis can involve critical interpretation ...

and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

during Late Antiquity, the other being the

School of Antioch The Catechetical School of Antioch was one of the two major centers of the study of biblical exegesis and theology during Late Antiquity; the other was the Catechetical School of Alexandria. This group was known by this name because the advocates ...

. According to

Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...

the Alexandrian school was founded by John Mark the Apostle. The earliest recorded dean was supposedly Athenagoras (176). He was succeeded by

Pantaenus Saint Pantaenus the Philosopher ( el, Πάνταινος; died c. 200) was a Greek theologian and a significant figure in the Catechetical School of Alexandria from around AD 180. This school was the earliest catechetical school, and became infl ...

181, who was succeeded as head of the school by his student

Clement of Alexandria Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria ( grc , Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; – ), was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen an ...

in 190. Other notable theologians with a connection to the school include

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and theo ...

Gregory Thaumaturgus Gregory Thaumaturgus or Gregory the Miracle-Worker ( grc, Γρηγόριος ὁ Θαυματουργός, ''Grēgórios ho Thaumatourgós''; la, Gregorius Thaumaturgus; 213 – 270), also known as Gregory of Neocaesarea, was a Christ ...

, Heraclas, Dionysius "the Great", and Didymus the Blind. Others, including

and

Basil Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...

, made trips to the school to interact with the scholars there. Continuity with the ancient school is claimed by the Coptic Theological Seminary, Cairo.

Beginning

The Catechetical School of Alexandria is the oldest catechetical school in the world.

records that the Christian School of Alexandria was founded by St. Mark himself and the first manager appointed by Saint Mark was Saint

Justus Justus (died on 10 November between 627 and 631) was the fourth Archbishop of Canterbury. He was sent from Italy to England by Pope Gregory the Great, on a mission to Christianize the Anglo-Saxons from their native paganism, probably arrivin ...

, who later became the sixth bishop of Alexandria. There is another opinion that the school was founded mid-second century, around 190 A.D. Under the leadership of the scholar

, the school of Alexandria became an important institution of religious learning, where students were taught by scholars such as Athenagoras, Clement, Didymus, and the great

, who was considered the father of theology and who was also active in the field of commentary and comparative Biblical studies. Many scholars, such as

, visited the school of Alexandria to exchange ideas and to communicate directly with its scholars. The scope of this school was not limited to theological subjects. Apart from subjects like theology, Christian philosophy and the Bible; science, mathematics and Greek & Roman literature, logic and the arts were also taught. The question-and-answer method of commentary began there, and, 15 centuries before

Braille Braille (Pronounced: ) is a tactile writing system used by people who are visually impaired, including people who are blind, deafblind or who have low vision. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille disp ...

, blind students at the school were using wood-carving techniques to read and write.

Alexandria before the Catechetical School

"For about two centuries before the birth of Christ, and the same period after it, Alexandria was the great seat of intellectual culture and home of Greek philosophy. It was the joining point between three continents, and became the battle-ground, where the religions of the East were brought face to face with the philosophical creeds of the West, and where both were represented by their ablest champions." "The story of Alexandria begins with

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

. Having conquered Egypt, he tasked Ptolemy Lagus to building Alexandria. The streets were based on Aristotle's ideal urban plan; they were designed on a rectangular grid and oriented south-west to provide shelter from the north wind and take advantage of the westerly breeze. Next to the

Serapeum A serapeum is a temple or other religious institution dedicated to the syncretic Greco-Egyptian deity Serapis, who combined aspects of Osiris and Apis in a humanized form that was accepted by the Ptolemaic Greeks of Alexandria. There were s ...

stood the Daughter Library. It was open to the public and according to the poet

Callimachus Callimachus (; ) was an ancient Greek poet, scholar and librarian who was active in Alexandria during the 3rd century BC. A representative of Ancient Greek literature of the Hellenistic period, he wrote over 800 literary works in a wide varie ...

contained 42,800 books. At the heart of the classical city lay the Museion, the first public research institution, and the Great Library, said to contain 700,000 scrolls. The Museum and the Library were not open to the public but reserved for scholars who undertook research in philology, the mathematical sciences and astrology. Both institutions were famed for their accomplishments. The school of mathematics had been founded by

Euclid Euclid (; grc-gre, Εὐκλείδης; BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician active as a geometer and logician. Considered the "father of geometry", he is chiefly known for the '' Elements'' treatise, which established the foundations of ...

in the fourth century BC. The first director of the Library, Eratosthenes, was the first person to calculate the circumference of the earth, coming within two per cent of modern measurements."

The Catechetical School

"The School's purpose was to supply defenders of the Christian Faith. It did not attain a world-wide fame till

became its teacher. He was a native of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, and, before his conversion to Christianity, a

Stoic Stoic may refer to: * An adherent of Stoicism; one whose moral quality is associated with that school of philosophy * STOIC, a programming language * ''Stoic'' (film), a 2009 film by Uwe Boll * ''Stoic'' (mixtape), a 2012 mixtape by rapper T-Pain * ...

philosopher. It is said that he was converted by one of the disciples of St Mark. He became head of the Catechetical School about 180. He immediately set about introducing those changes that contributed largely to its future celebrity. The union which he effected between theology and philosophy. Clement, the successor of Pantaenus viewed the union with suspicion." The supporters of Pantaenus "looked on this philosophy as a 'Gift of God', a 'Work of Divine Providence,' which was intended to be for the Gentiles what the Law has been for the Jew, viz,. the means of their justification and a preparation for the Gospel. They held, that between revealed religion and philosophy, thus understood and explained, there can be no antagonism; but that, on the contrary, the latter can be made subservient to the interests of the former in various ways: (a) by training the mind to think and reason accurately, and thus prepare the mind for the higher study of theology. (b) by supplying proofs and illustrations of many truths common to the two sciences. (c) by unfolding and throwing into scientific shape the truths of Revelation. This union was opposed by the 'Positive Teachers' of the Western Church, especially by

Tertullian Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...

and St Cyprian. Pantaenus' successor was Titus Flavius Clement,

. Clement was appointed in 192. His lectures were attended by large numbers of pagans. He commenced with those truths that could be demonstrated from philosophy, for the purpose of leading his hearers by degrees to embrace the Christian faith. He did not confine himself to oral instruction. He wrote numerous works for the benefit of those who could not attend his lectures. In 202 he fled to Palestine because of the persecution of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...

. After four years he returned". "The first great figures of the Church in Egypt were scholars rather than bishops, directors of the Catechetical School of Alexandria: Clement (160-215) and Origen (185-251). Both were versed in Greek philosophy and their lives' work was one of great integration: they transformed Christianity from a localised cult for the poorest class into a fully-fledged religion with a philosophy and a cosmology."

End of this School

"The Council of Constantinople, convened in 381", a little while after the death of St. Athanasius of Alexandria, "had far-reaching effects for Egypt". After declaring the primacy of the

Bishop of Rome A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

at the expense of Alexandrian authority, riots destroyed the school. "However, it was reopened in a different location in 1893."

Origen's work

"Origen undertook this great work to vindicate the

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond ...

version of the Bible. The original manuscript was preserved in Caesarea, where it was said to have been destroyed by the Arabs when the city was taken by them in 653. It was Origen, who is generally looked on as the father of biblical criticism, that gave the Catechetical School of Alexandria the high character it enjoyed for biblical studies. He was the first to draw a clear distinction between the different senses which Sacred Scripture can have, viz., the ''literal'', the ''moral'', and the ''mystical'' or ''allegorical''."Gilmartin, T., Manual of Church History, Vol.I, 1890

Chronological list of deans

, (62-118) # Eumenius, (118-129) # Markianos, (129-152) #

, (181-190) #

, (190-202) #

, (203-?) # Heraclas, (?-231) # Dionysius, (231-247) # Theognostus, (3rd century) #

Pierius Pierius was a Christian priest and probably head of the Catechetical School of Alexandria, conjointly with Achillas. He flourished while Theonas was bishop of Alexandria, and died at Rome after 309. The ''Roman Martyrology'' commemorates him on ...

, (4th century) #

Achillas Achillas ( el, Ἀχιλλᾶς) was one of the guardians of the Egyptian king Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, and commander of the king's troops, when Pompey fled to Egypt in 48 BC. He was called by Julius Caesar a man of extraordinary daring, a ...

, (4th century) #

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, (4th century) # Serapion, (4th century) # Macaruis, (4th century) # Didymus the Blind, (340-391) # Rodon, (5th century) # Abbot of the

Monastery of Saint Macarius the Great The Monastery of Saint Macarius The Great also known as Dayr Aba Maqār ( ar, دير الأنبا مقار) is a Coptic Orthodox monastery located in Wadi El Natrun, Beheira Governorate, about north-west of Cairo, and off the highway betwee ...

(5th century - 19th century) # Youssef Marcarius, (1893-1918) #

Habib Girgis Archdeacon Habib Qozman Mankarious Girgis (Habib Girgis : ar, القديس حبيب جرجس for ''"Beloved" George'' ; 1876 – 21 August 1951) was a modern-day dean of the Catechetical School of Alexandria. He was the very first studen ...

, (1918-1951) # Fr. Ibrahim Attia, (1951-1962) # Shenouda III, (1962-1987) # Bishop Gregory, (1987–present)

Notable alumni

References

External links

Coptic Orthodox Theological Seminary the United States
* Books ** Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty **

**

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catechetical School Of Alexandria Coptic Orthodox Church History of Christianity in Egypt Oriental Orthodox schools Seminaries and theological colleges in Egypt Christian organizations established in the 2nd century Christian terminology 2nd-century establishments in Egypt Christian schools in Egypt Biblical exegesis