While still a young deacon at Nica, St.
of Christ’s work to reconcile the world to
Athanasius, the 20th patriarch of Alexandria,
defended the Divinity of Christ and was one of
the writers of the Christian Creed, which is
followed by most Christians today. Another
Egyptian sage was St. Cyril of Alexandria, who
stressed the unity of the Divinity and Humanity
of Christ in the third Council of Ephesus.
Although the Coptic Church has been unjustly
labeled as being “monophysite” (believing in
only one nature of Christ), St. Cyril explained
centuries ago that the Coptic Church believes in
“one incarnated nature of God the Word,” that
is, one union of two natures, one fully human
nature and one fully divine nature.
The monastic Movement:
The Coptic Church is also famous for its
asceticism and monasticism; a long-standing
tradition founded by St. Anthony the Great
(251-356A.D.), the Father of monasticism. This
monastic order based on principles of poverty,
obedience and chastity, became the foundation
from which many orders developed.
Martyrdom:
As Christianity grew, the attempts to
squash it became fierce. The Coptic Church is
recognizes as having suffered one of the most
violent waves of persecution in Christian
history, and thus our Coptic calendar
commences at the begining of the reign of
Roman Emperor Diocletain, at whose hands
thousands of Christians died.
What are Coptic Services like?
The Main worship Service in the Coptic
Orthodox Church is the Divine Liturgy,
celebrating the Eucharist. The liturgy is
basically the story of humanity’s redemption. It
is told regularly in order to remind the believers
God, so that all may be led to repentance
as they partake of His Body and Blood.
The most commonly used liturgy in the
Coptic Church was written by St. Basil
the Great, in the Fourth century. The
Liturgy is always celebrated on Sunday
(the Lord’s Day), but may also be
celebrated on any day of the week. In
addition to the Divine Liturgy, the Church
holds Bible Study meetings, youth
meetings, and Sunday school classes, for
all to learn and grow
The Copts Today:
The Coptic Orthodox church is the
largest Church in the Middle East, with
about 14 million faithful in Egypt. Under
the leadership of Hi Holiness Pope
Shenouda III, the 117th Patriarch of the
see of Saint Mark. There is an increasing
number of monasteries and churches St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church Seattle, WA
throughout Egypt, as well as new
monasteries and churches being
established abroad all over the world.
Our Coptic Church in Seattle started in
the 1970s with a small number of Copts
and a humble church. Today with
growing congregation and new church,
Father Takla Azmy who was ordained
priest in 1978 is serving our Coptic
Church since 1991. The Coptic Church
has a rich past that flourished by the faith
and the blood of its martyrs. The same
church continues to serve the Word of
God around the world.
For Donations and questions
please contact us by writing to:
P.O Box 5477
Lynnwood, WA 98046
Or visit our website
www.stmaryseattle.com
email info@stmaryseattle.com
The Coptic Church is:
An Ancient Christian Church. It is
one of the most ancient Churches in the world,
having been founded by Saint Mark the Apostle,
the writer of the second gospel, in the first
century. The word “Coptic” comes from the
Greek Work “Aigyptus” meaning “Egypt,” and
.
thus “Coptic” merely means “Egyptian.” As a
conservative Church, the Coptic Church has
carefully preserved the Orthodox Christian faith
in its earliest and purest form, handing it down
from generation to generation, unaltered and
true to the apostolic doctrines and patterns of
worship.
Trinitarian: believing in the Holy Trinity:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit (being one God):
and believing that our Lord, God and Savior
Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, was incarnate,
born of the Virgin Saint Mary, died for us on the
Cross that He may grant us salvation Rose on
the third day that he may grant us everlasting
life with him, and ascended to heaving after
forty days, sending the Holy Sprit to His
disciples as He promised them on the day of
Pentecost.
Apostolic: As Saint Mark the Apostle
founded it.
Scriptural: having as its main point of
reference the Holy Bible, as depicted in current
traditional translations such as, King James.
Traditional: using the teachings of the
early Church Fathers as well as the Nicene-
Constantinopolitan Creed (325 A.D.) as its
statement of faith. One God – Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit; Christ who took human flesh, died
and rose to save us from sin and death and in
His second coming He will judge all and His
Heavenly Kingdom will be forever; one
universal and apostolic church and one baptism
Sacramental: the church believes in
seven Sacraments, which are mysteries
through which the Holy Spirit imparts grace
to the believers. These sacraments are:
Baptism: (Mark 16:16, John 3:5)
Chrismation: anointing of the oil (John 2:20,
27)
Repentance and Confession: (1 John 1:9;
James 5:16; John 20:23)
Eucharist: communion (John 6:51-58; 1
Corinthians 11:23-29)
Matrimony: marriage (Mathew 19:4-6;
Ephesians 5:31-33)
Priesthood: (Romans 15:16; 2 Timothy 1:6)
Unction of the sick: (James 5:14-15)
Conservative: In that it does not change
basic matters of Faith, Dogma or Traditions
to suit current trends. This does not mean,
however, that matters such as language and
day-to-day practices are not changed to suite
conditions of ministry and the needs of the
congregations. Holding on to such matters of
faith and practices not had been an easy task,
as the Coptic Church has always lived
persecution of one form or another since its
establishment in the first century
Establishment
Saint Mark the Apostle and
Evangelist, one of the seventy-two
apostles, established the Church of
Alexandria in about 55AD. In Alexandria,
St. Mark structured the church worship;
ordained one bishop and seven deacons;
established the famous School of
Alexandria; and was martyred by the
RomanS in 68AD in Alexandria. It was at
the house of St. Mark where the Lord met
With His Apostles and celebrated the
Passover, where the Lord appeared to
them after His Resurrection, and where
the Holy Spirit descended upon the
Apostles the day of Pentecost. Thus, it is
well known by all the Apostolic Churches
as the first church in the world. Hence, the
Coptic Church is one of the oldest
churches in the world, spanning 20
centuries of history.
Historical Contributions
The School of Alexandria:
Undoubtedly, the school of
Alexandria was the earliest and most
important institution of theological
learning in Christian antiquity. It grew
tremendously in the first four centuries of
the world. After the Roman Empire
officially accepted Christianity in 313AD,
Alexandria became a renowned center of
learning especially in Theology. Many of
the great deans of the school include St.
Clement of Alexandria (c. 150-254 A.D.),
a gifted author; Origen (185-264 A.D.)
the brilliant scholar; and St. Didymus the
Blind, who formed a system of engraved
writing for the blind fifteen centuries
before Braille.
The Ecumenical Councils:
As a result of these great traditions
of theology, there arose a number of
theologians who were well respected and
recognized in the Christian world. Many
of these scholars played a critical role in
the development of Christian theology in
the three recognized ecumenical councils
of Nicea (325A.D.), Constantinople
(381A.D.), and Ephesus (431 A.D.)