Pope Macarius II of Alexandria, the
69th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark. He is commemorated in the
Calendar of Saints
The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...
of the
Coptic Church
The Coptic Orthodox Church (), also known as the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria, is an Oriental Orthodox Churches, Oriental Orthodox Christian church based in Egypt. The head of the church and the Apostolic see, See of Alexandria i ...
on 4
Thout.
Life
Pope Macarius II was pious and ascetic since his young age, and longed for the monastic life. He went to the desert of
Scetes
Wadi El Natrun (Arabic: "Valley of Natron"; , "measure of the hearts") is a depression in northern Egypt that is located below sea level and below the Nile River level. The valley contains several alkaline lakes, natron-rich salt deposits ...
and became a monk in the
Monastery of Saint Macarius the Great.
[Holweck, Frederick George. ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints: With a General Introduction on Hagiology'']
United Kingdom, B. Herder Book Company, 1924. p.633 He devoted himself to worship and spiritual struggle. He instructed himself by reading the Holy Scriptures, their interpretation and by contemplating on its meaning. He grew in virtues and was ordained a priest.
When
Pope Michael IV, the sixty-eighth pope, departed and the papal throne became vacant, a group of bishops and priests went to the wilderness of Scetes. They assembled in the church with the elders of Scetes. They remained there for many days, searching and scouting for who would be best for this position. Finally they unanimously agreed to choose this father for what was known of his good character and excellent attributes. They took him and bound him against his will, and he cried out and begged them with excuses to release him saying, "I am not fit to be raised to the dignity of the Papacy." They brought him bound to the city of Alexandria and ordained him Patriarch.
[ The deed of his appointment was read in The Church of the Holy Virgin in the Greek], Coptic language, Coptic, and Arabic languages.
During his papacy, he added to his worship and piety. He taught and preached the people daily. He gave alms and did works of mercy to the poor and needy. During his papacy he never asked for any of the Church's money, but rather, he used to give a large portion of the contributions which he received to be spent on different righteous deeds. He completed 27 years in the papacy and departed in peace.
]
References
External links
St. Macarius, 69th Pope of Alexandria
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macarius 02 Of Alexandria, Pope
Coptic Orthodox saints
12th-century popes of the Coptic Orthodox Church
1128 deaths