Yousab El Abah(يوساب الأبح), also known as Joseph el-Abbah ("Yousab the Husky"), originally called Yousef (1735 – 24 January 1826), was a Coptic Christian

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

theologian 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 ...

and

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...

Early life

El Abah was born in the village of El Nikhela in the

Assiut AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut'' ( ar, أسيوط ' , from ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , ...

Governorate, Egypt.

Career

He was drawn to the monastic life and entered the Monastery of St. Anthony at age 25 in 1760. He took the name Yousef el Antony and lived a life of

asceticism Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

and worship. El Abah was fond of reading, as he was very keen on studying and researching manuscripts. He was later recognized as a pastor, then as a bishop. In 1790, Pope John XVIII, the

Patriarch of Alexandria The Patriarch of Alexandria is the archbishop of Alexandria, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation "pope" (etymologically "Father", like "Abbot"). The Alexandrian episcopate was revered as one of the three major episco ...

, assigned him as the 108th student. In 1791, he was appointed Bishop of

Girga Girga ( arz, جرجا ), alternatively Digirga or Digurga is a city in the Sohag Governorate of Upper Egypt. It is located on the west bank of the Nile River. Metropolitan see of the Coptic Orthodox Church. Name The name of the city comes from ...

and

Akhmim Akhmim ( ar, أخميم, ; Akhmimic , ; Sahidic/Bohairic cop, ) is a city in the Sohag Governorate of Upper Egypt. Referred to by the ancient Greeks as Khemmis or Chemmis ( grc, Χέμμις) and Panopolis ( grc, Πανὸς πόλις and Π ...

; known as Anba Yousab. He was interested in teaching about life, preaching, and writing educational articles such as those from his books, ''The Weapon of The Believer'' and ''Stair Book''. During the papacy of John,

Pope Pius VI Pope Pius VI ( it, Pio VI; born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, 25 December 171729 August 1799) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1775 to his death in August 1799. Pius VI condemned the French Revoluti ...

of Rome attempted to attract the Eastern Churches to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Thus, he published the proceedings of the

Council of Chalcedon The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, B ...

and distributed it in all the countries of the East. He also sent an envoy to Pope John XVIII of

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 ...

, asking him to unite with the Roman Catholic Church. As a famous scholar and theologian, Yousab was asked to respond to the message, refuting its claims and defending the

Non-Chalcedonian Non-Chalcedonian Christianity comprises the branches of Christianity that do not accept theological resolutions of the Council of Chalcedon, the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held in 451. Non-Chalcedonian denominations reject the Christologica ...

Position.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yousab El Abah Coptic Orthodox saints Coptic Orthodox bishops 1735 births 1826 deaths People from Asyut Governorate