Abune Antonios (; 11 July 1929 – 9 February 2022) was the third

Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...

of the

Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church The Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church () is one of the Oriental Orthodox Churches with its headquarters in Asmara, Eritrea. It was given autocephaly by Shenouda III of Alexandria, pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church, after Eritrea gained its in ...

. He was deposed by the Synod of Asmara in 2006, and was placed under house arrest thereafter.

Ecclesiastical career

Antonios was born on 11 July 1929 in the town of Hembrti, north of Asmara in the province of

Hamasien Hamasien ( Tigrinya: ሓማሴን) ('' Ge'ez'' ሓማሴን) was a historical province including and surrounding Asmara, part of modern Eritrea. In 1996 the province was divided and distributed largely to the modern Maekel region, with smaller pa ...

. He was ordained

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

in 1943 and later elected Abbot in 1955. When the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church sought

autocephaly Autocephaly (; ) is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches. The status has been compared with t ...

, he was one of five abbots of monasteries that went to Egypt to be ordained as bishops so that the church would have its own

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox ...

. He was ordained as Bishop Antonios of Hamasien-Asmara on 19 June 1994 in

Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral, Cairo Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral () is a Coptic church located in the Abbassia District in Cairo, Egypt. The cathedral is the seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope. It was built during the time when Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria was Pope, and was ...

, by

Shenouda III Shenouda ( ) is an Egyptian male name, which is commonly used among Egyptian Christians (the Copts). The name comes from (') and is a composite of the Egyptian words: ' ( "son"), ' ( "of") and ' ( "God"), thus meaning ''the son of God''. The ...

Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria The pope (; ), officially the pope of Alexandria and the patriarch of the see of St. Mark, also known as the bishop of Alexandria, or the patriarch of Alexandria, is the leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, with ancient Christian roots in Eg ...

. Following the death of Yacob in 2003, he was elected Patriarch in popular elections which were unanimously endorsed by the Holy Synod of the church. His ordination and enthronement as Patriarch took place on 23 April 2004 in Asmara, at the hands of Pope Shenouda III, assisted by Eritrean and Coptic Orthodox Metropolitans and Bishops. He was the first Patriarch of Eritrea to have been enthroned who had not previously been a

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 ...

in the

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo 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 ...

Removal from church

In January 2005, the Patriarch's annual Nativity message was not broadcast or televised. On 27 May 2007, he was replaced as Patriarch by Dioskoros, with the support of the

Eritrean government The politics of Eritrea and the government of Eritrea take place in the framework of a single-party presidential republic currently under a totalitarian dictatorship. The President officially serves as both head of state and head of governme ...

. Antonios remained under house arrest and strict surveillance and held without charge. He reportedly seldom received visitors, including relatives, and had no telephone service. Since 2007, Antonios had been considered by the United States to be a religious prisoner of conscience. His removal at the behest of the Eritrean government was denounced by the other

Oriental Orthodox Churches The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian tradition. Oriental Orthodoxy is ...

, who refused to recognize Dioskoros as Patriarch of Eritrea. In July 2019, in an unprecedented move, bishops of the Holy Synod of the

excommunicated Antonios for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy. Heresy in Heresy in Christian ...

. The letter from five of the six most senior Eritrean bishops declared that "His name should never be mentioned and remembered and those who do so will be punished severely." Although the patriarch was expelled from being a member of the church, the bishops promised he could still live in a church building. The president of the Standing Conference of Oriental Orthodox Churches condemned the excommunication. He died while in detention in Asmara, Eritrea, on 9 February 2022 at the age of 93.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Antonios, Abune 1929 births 2022 deaths Patriarchs of Eritrea 21st-century Oriental Orthodox archbishops Eritrean Oriental Orthodox Christians People excommunicated by Christian churches

Ecclesiastical career

Removal from church

See also

References