Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church

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It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Patriarch of Alexandria. (Discuss)

The Pope of The Coptic Orthodox Church is the head of The Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt, which has almost 57 million members worldwide, about 11 million Orthodox Christians in Egypt, another 4 million expatriates and emigrants egyptians, in addition to 38 million Orthodox Christians in Ethiopia and about 1 million expatriate ethiopians, and more than 2.5 million Orthodox Christians in Eritrea. .

Though the official title for the Coptic Orthodox Pope is Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa on the Apostolic See of St. Mark, the current seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope is in both Alexandria and Cairo, in the compound holding the Patriarchal palace, Coptic Orthodox Cathedral known as (St. Mark's Cathedral) and other Patriarchal Institutions.

1 Selection
2 Duties
3 History
4 External links

[edit] Selection

The Coptic Orthodox Pope must be a monk or a general bishop (not shepherding a diocese). The election is done when a draw is made by a blind folded child selected from the congregation to pick a folded paper written on it the name of the candidate, this draw is made out of the three runner finalists candidates, who are elected from several candidates through several elections made by the members of the Holy Synod and the General Lay Council of the Church , rather than being elected by other clergymen.

This ceremony is done at the end of a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, presided by the Locem Tenens of the Throne, along with the entire body of the Holy Synod and with the presence of all members of the General Lay Council of the Church and in front of all the congregation. The last time this was seen was in 1971 after the departure of His Holiness Pope Cyrill VI, where His Grace Bishop Shenouda, general bishop and administrator of the Bishopric of Christian Education became H.H Pope Shenouda III.

[edit] Duties

The duties of the Coptic Orthodox Pope are to guide the Coptic Orthodox Church in straight faith. In recent years, the Coptic Orthodox Pope has developed missions to preach Christianity to various parts of the world, including Saint Kitts in the Caribbean. Other duties include the canonization of saints, through the Holy Synod. A requirement of the Coptic Orthodox faith is that at least 50 years must pass from a saint's death to his canonization, and the Coptic Orthodox Pope must follow that rule.

Among other duties of the Coptic Orthodox Pope is the opening of new churches. Under the papacy of His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, Coptic Orthodox churches in North America have multiplied by the hundreds. There are Coptic Orthodox Churches worldwide in Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, England, France, Germany, Italy, Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, Brazil, Bolivia and other nations.

[edit] History

The Coptic Orthodox Pope was first known as the Patriarch of Alexandria, founded by St. Mark the Evangelist, the first to spread Christianity in Egypt and is considered, de facto, as the first Patriarch. For many years, the Pope was simply the head of the Christian community in Alexandria, all the Egyptian Province, Pentapolis, Lybia and Nubia.

However, after the Council of Chalcedon in 451, during which Pope Dioscorus I was the Primate, the Coptic Orthodox Church split from what was later identified as the Eastern Orthodox Church and making the Coptic Orthodox Church a separate church, along with other Churches who had refused the resolution of that Council. It would eventually become a member of the Oriental Orthodox church, comprising all these churches.

The position or title of Coptic Orthodox Pope has existed for many centuries. The remains of St. Mark the Evangelist, were stolen from Alexandria in 828 and taken to Venice, Italy. It would be centuries later before the remains would return to Alexandria in 1968, under the papacy of His Holiness Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria. The remains are still in Egypt today, buried under the altar of St. Mark's Cathedral in Cairo, the largest Cathedral in Africa and the Middle East.