Pope Cyril II of Alexandria is the 67th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark. There had been a leadership dispute upon the selection of Cyril II as patriarch of Alexandria. A council of forty-seven bishops was assembled to depose him, supported by a Muslim overseer of an orchard called Yaseeb. According to his hagiography, the Pope told the overseer 'If the Governor has authority, Christ has authority over the heaven and earth', then dismounted his horse and made a matonia before him. Because of the Pope's words, it is claimed, the governor became enraged with the overseer, and beheaded him at the same place and at the same time as the matonia had been performed. This supposedly prevented a split in the church, and Cyril II and the dissenting bishops were reconciled. Although the patriarchate of Alexandria always resided in the city of

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

since its foundation by

Mark the Evangelist Mark the Evangelist (Koine Greek, Koinē Greek: Μᾶρκος, romanized: ''Mârkos''), also known as John Mark (Koine Greek, Koinē Greek language, Greek: Ἰωάννης Μᾶρκος, Romanization of Greek, romanized: ''Iōánnēs Mârkos;'' ...

in the first century, it became increasingly inconvenient for the popes of Alexandria to be far from th enewly founded capital in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. Cyril II moved the seat of the patriarchate to the Hanging Church in

in the eleventh century. Patriarch Cyril attempted to ordain a properly consecrated

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy 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 and administration of di ...

to be the new '' Abuna'' of the

Ethiopian Orthodox Church The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church () is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Christian churches in Africa originating before European colonization of the continent, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church dates bac ...

, but Badr al-Jamali, the

Vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

Caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

Al-Mustansir, forced him to ordain instead Abuna Sawiros. Although at first warmly welcomed when he reached

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, the Caliph's candidate began to openly favor

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

in that Christian country by building seven

mosques A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were simple p ...

, ostensibly for the use of Muslim traders. This led to a general uproar in Ethiopia. Abuna Sawiros justified his acts by saying a refusal to build these mosques would result in a persecution in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. Nevertheless, the Abuna was imprisoned, the seven mosques destroyed, and restrictions placed on the Muslim traders. Reciprocal acts followed in Egypt, and a rupture in the relations between the two countries.J. Spencer Trimingham, ''Islam in Ethiopia ''(Oxford: Geoffrey Cumberlege for the University Press, 1952), pp. 65f. Pope Cyril II departed on 12 Paoni 808 A.M. (6 June 1092 A.D.).

Notes

11th-century popes of the Coptic Orthodox Church 1092 deaths {{CopticOrthodox-clergy-stub