Casius or Casium (, ''Kasion'') was a residential

episcopal see An episcopal see is the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with ''diocese'' ...

in the Roman province of

Augustamnica Prima ''Augustamnica'' (Latin) or ''Augoustamnike'' (Greek) was a Roman province of Egypt created during the 4th century and was part of the Diocese of Oriens first and then of the Diocese of Egypt, until the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the 640s. Som ...

Lower Egypt Lower Egypt ( ') is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, the Nile River split into sev ...

, and is now a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), "Sedi titolari", p. 860 The article about it in the ''

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

'' of 1908 calls the see "Casium",Sophrone Pétridès, "Casium" in ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' (New York 1908)
/ref> but the official yearbook of the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

gives "Casius" as the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

form (and "Casio" in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

Location

The city that gave its name to the see was not far from

Pelusium Pelusium (Ancient Egyptian: ; /, romanized: , or , romanized: ; ; ; ; ) was an important city in the eastern extremes of Egypt's Nile Delta, to the southeast of the modern Port Said. It became a Roman provincial capital and Metropolitan arc ...

and close to the sandhills known to Greek geographers as the Casium Mountain (, ''Kasion Oros''), today

Ras Kouroun Ras Kasaroun () or El-Kas (), also known as Casius Mons in Latin, or Kasion Oros () to Greek geographers such as Herodotus (who considered it to mark the boundary between Egypt and Syria), is a small mountain and a former town near the marshy La ...

, El-Katieh, or El-Kas. Its ruins are at Mahemdiah. A temple of Zeus Kasios, the

Aramean The Arameans, or Aramaeans (; ; , ), were a tribal Semitic people in the ancient Near East, first documented in historical sources from the late 12th century BCE. Their homeland, often referred to as the land of Aram, originally covered ce ...

god Qasiou, was at the city.

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey ( ) or Pompey the Great, was a Roman general and statesman who was prominent in the last decades of the Roman Republic. ...

was murdered nearby and was buried there.

Bishops

The town is mentioned in

Georgius Cyprius George of Cyprus (; Latinized as ''Georgius Cyprius'') was a Greek Byzantine geographer of the early seventh century. Nothing is known of his life save that he was a Byzantine Greek born at Lapithos in the island of Cyprus. He is known for his ...

, Hierocles's '' Synecdemos'' (727, 2), and Parthey's ''Notitia Prima'', about 840, as a bishopric depending on Pelusium. Only one bishop is known, Lampetius, present at the

Council of Ephesus The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church th ...

in 431. Saint

Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Alexandria (; or ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376–444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444. He was enthroned when the city was at the height of its influence and power within the Roman Empire ...

sent him, together with Hermogenes, Bishop of Rhinocorua, to Rome, where both were present at the consecration of

Pope Sixtus III Pope Sixtus III, also called Pope Xystus III, was the bishop of Rome from 31 July 432 to his death on 18 August 440. His ascension to the papacy is associated with a period of increased construction in the city of Rome. His feast day is celebrate ...

. Many letters of

Isidore of Pelusium Isidore of Pelusium (, d. c.450) was born in Egypt to a prominent Alexandrian family. He became an ascetic, and moved to a mountain near the city of Pelusium, in the tradition of the Desert Fathers. Isidore is known to us for his letters, writte ...

are addressed to him.

References

{{Coord, 31, 13, 05, N, 33, 04, 40, E, region:EG_type:mountain_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Catholic titular sees in Africa