The Church of
Alexandria in
Egypt is the
Christian Church
In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a synonym fo ...
headed by 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 ...
. It is one of the
original Apostolic Sees of
Christianity, alongside
Rome,
Antioch,
Constantinople and
Jerusalem.
Tradition holds that the Church of Alexandria was founded by
Saint Mark the EvangelistCatholic Encyclopedia, "Church of Alexandria"
accessed 11-17-2015 circa 49 AD and claims jurisdiction over all Christians on the African continent.
Today, three churches claim to be direct heirs of the original Church of Alexandria:
* The Coptic Orthodox Church
The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي ...
, an Oriental Orthodox
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent o ...
church
* The Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria, part of the wider Eastern Orthodox Church
* The Coptic Catholic Church
The Coptic Catholic Church ( ar, الكنيسة القبطية الكاثوليكية; la, Ecclesia Catholica Coptorum) is an Eastern Catholic particular church in full communion with the Catholic Church. Along with the Ethiopian Catholic Chur ...
, one of 23 Eastern Catholic churches who are in full communion with the Catholic Church led by the Bishop of Rome
Formerly, also the Latin Patriarchate of Alexandria did so.
References
External links
The Catholic Encyclopedia Online: ''The Church of Alexandria''
{{Patriarchates in Christianity
Christianity in Egypt
Apostolic sees