Longinus () was a
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
Monophysite missionary and the first ordained Christian bishop in
Nubia
Nubia () (Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue and White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), or ...
. The main sources for his life are his contemporary and fellow Monophysite,
John of Ephesus
John of Ephesus (or of Asia) ( Greek: Ίωάννης ό Έφέσιος, c. 507 – c. 588) was a leader of the early Syriac Orthodox Church in the sixth century and one of the earliest and the most important historians to write in Syriac. John of ...
, who knew him; the 9th-century historian
Eutychius of Alexandria
Eutychius of Alexandria (Arabic: ''Sa'id ibn Batriq'' or ''Bitriq''; 10 September 877 – 12 May 940) was the Melkite Patriarch of Alexandria. He is known for being one of the first Christian Egyptian writers to use the Arabic language. H ...
; and the 15th-century Muslim historian
al-Maqrizi
Al-Maqrīzī or Maḳrīzī (Arabic: ), whose full name was Taqī al-Dīn Abū al-'Abbās Aḥmad ibn 'Alī ibn 'Abd al-Qādir ibn Muḥammad al-Maqrīzī (Arabic: ) (1364–1442) was a medieval Egyptian Arab historian during the Mamluk era, kn ...
. John includes a letter written by Longinus in his chronicle.
Early life
Longinus was a native 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, Alexandria ...
in Egypt, who became a member of the
Church of Antioch
The Church of Antioch ( ar, كنيسة أنطاكية, Romanization: kánīsa ʾanṭākiya, International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: a.niː.sa ʔan.tˤaː.ki.ja was the first of the five major churches of the early pentarchy in Christianity, w ...
. The Patriarch
Paul II sent him on a mission to
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
, the capital of the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, where he was detained on the orders of the Emperor
Justinian I
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...
. He was even imprisoned for a time by Justinian's successor,
Justin II
Justin II ( la, Iustinus; grc-gre, Ἰουστῖνος, Ioustînos; died 5 October 578) or Justin the Younger ( la, Iustinus minor) was Eastern Roman Emperor from 565 until 578. He was the nephew of Justinian I and the husband of Sophia, the ...
, on account of his Monophysitism. He escaped from prison and returned to Egypt in 567.
Missionary activity in Nobadia
![MNW-Faras Gallery model of the cathedral](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/MNW-Faras_Gallery_model_of_the_cathedral.jpg)
On his deathbed, Patriarch
Theodosius I of Alexandria commissioned Longinus to continue the evangelisation of the Nubian kingdom of
Nobadia that had begun under
Julian the Evangelist and
Theodore of Philae in 543, but had been interrupted in 551. Longinus arrived in Nobadia in 569 and remained for six years. He built the first church in Nubia, probably the mudbrick building which was discovered beneath the ruins of
Faras Cathedral
Faras Cathedral was a cathedral in the Lower Nubian city of Faras. It was the original seat of the Diocese of Faras.
Nobadian rulers controlling the Nile Valley from the first to the third cataracts converted to Christianity around 548 AD infl ...
. He also established clergy and a liturgy, effectively institutionalising the Nubian church.
In 575, Longinus was consulted by Syrian envoys concerning the readmission of the deposed Patriarch Paul II into communion. That same year, Longinus returned to Alexandria because Theodosius had died and the patriarchal office was vacant. In a disputed election, Longinus took the side of the
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
candidate over the
Egyptian
Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt.
Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to:
Nations and ethnic groups
* Egyptians, a national group in North Africa
** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...
. When his candidate lost, he was forced to go into exile in
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
. In 580, he returned to Nobadia. While he was there the king of Nobadia received a letter from the king of
Alodia
Alodia, also known as Alwa ( grc-gre, Aρουα, ''Aroua''; ar, علوة, ''ʿAlwa''), was a medieval kingdom in what is now central and southern Sudan. Its capital was the city of Soba, located near modern-day Khartoum at the confluence of t ...
requesting that the bishop who converted Nobadia be sent to the southernmost Nubian kingdom to baptise the Alodians. Longinus had at that time been bishop of Nobadia for eighteen years.
Missionary activity in Alodia
Longinus was unable to travel up the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...
to Alodia because the kingdom of
Makuria
Makuria (Old Nubian: , ''Dotawo''; gr, Μακουρία, Makouria; ar, المقرة, al-Muqurra) was a Nubian kingdom located in what is today Northern Sudan and Southern Egypt. Makuria originally covered the area along the Nile River from the ...
that lay between Nobadia and Alodia had adopted the non-Monophysite
Chalcedonian
Chalcedonian Christianity is the branch of Christianity that accepts and upholds theological and ecclesiological resolutions of the Council of Chalcedon, the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held in 451. Chalcedonian Christianity accepts the Christolo ...
creed and the Makurian king intended to intercept and arrest Longinus. Accompanied by a Nobadian royal escort, he took the
Korosko Road through the
Eastern Desert
The Eastern Desert (Archaically known as Arabia or the Arabian Desert) is the part of the Sahara desert that is located east of the Nile river. It spans of North-Eastern Africa and is bordered by the Nile river to the west and the Red Sea and ...
in a
Blemmyan camel caravan. According to John of Ephesus, the heat was so intense that seventeen camels died on the journey. He was welcomed in Alodia by a royal delegation and given a royal audience. His mission was, according to his account, a complete success. The royal court and all the nobility received baptism.
Longinus sent a report to the king of Nobadia, who sent his own letter to the patriarch of Alexandria. The king of Alodia also sent a letter to the king of Nobadia thanking him for sending the "holy father" Longinus to Alodia. All three letters were copied by John of Ephesus into his chronicle. Longinus' subsequent career is totally unknown.
Legacy
Salim Faraji calls Longinus, the Patriarch Theodosius and the Empress
Theodora
Theodora is a given name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift".
Theodora may also refer to:
Historical figures known as Theodora
Byzantine empresses
* Theodora (wife of Justinian I) ( 500 – 548), saint by the Orthodox Church
* Theodora o ...
(who commissioned Julian for the Nubian mission field) the "Monophysite Triumvirate" of the sixth century for their role in maintaining and expanding the Monophysite church. The Nubian mission to which they were all connected was "one of the earliest manifestations of imperial Christianity in Africa".
Notes
Sources
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Further reading
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6th-century Byzantine bishops
6th-century Egyptian people
Oriental Orthodox missionaries
Christian missionaries in Africa
History of Nubia
Roman-era Alexandrians