Bishop Karas
Encyclopedia
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| Born: | 17 January 1955 |
| Ordination of Monasticism: | 14 November 1981 |
| Ordained Monk-Priest: | 14 July 1984 |
| Elevated to Hegumen: | 25 May 1989 |
| Attended University: | University of Khartoum University of Khartoum The University of Khartoum ia a multi-campus, co-educational university located in Khartoum. It is the largest and oldest university in Sudan. UofK was founded as Gordon Memorial College in 1902 and established in 1956 when Sudan gained independence... |
| Ordained Bishop: | 6 June 1993 |
| Diagnosed With Cancer: | May 1998 |
| Death: | 17 January 2002 |
Bishop Karas (born Sorial Ayad Sorial) was the first bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the first abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of the church's first monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
outside of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
Biography
Sorial Ayad Sorial was born on 17 January 1955, in the SudanSudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. At a young age Sorial showed great love for God and this is because of his Orthodox upbringing. After Sorial finished his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in chemical engineering
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
from the University of Khartoum
University of Khartoum
The University of Khartoum ia a multi-campus, co-educational university located in Khartoum. It is the largest and oldest university in Sudan. UofK was founded as Gordon Memorial College in 1902 and established in 1956 when Sudan gained independence...
, he left to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to pursue a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
at the University of Toulouse
University of Toulouse
The Université de Toulouse is a consortium of French universities, grandes écoles and other institutions of higher education and research, named after one of the earliest universities established in Europe in 1229, and including the successor universities to that earlier university...
.
On 18 January 1981, he attempted to enter St. Bishoy Monastery but was stopped by the Abbot, His Grace Bishop Sarabamoun, who told him to return to France to continue his education. Sorial replied, “No one, having put his hand on the plough can look back.” (Luke
Gospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
9:62) The Abbot then allowed him to enter. On November 14, 1981, Sorial was ordained a Monk and given the name Father Karas. Pope Shenouda III
Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria
Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria is the 117th Pope of Alexandria and the Patriarch of All Africa on the Holy Apostolic See of Saint Mark the Evangelist of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria...
ordained
Ordination
In general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
him as a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
on 14 February 1984, and assigned him to head the Papal Center in St. Bishoy Monastery. On 23 May 1989 Pope Shenouda elevated Father Karas to Hegumen
Hegumen
Hegumen, hegumenos, igumen, or ihumen is the title for the head of a monastery of the Eastern Orthodox Church or Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the one of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called hegumenia or ihumenia . The term means "the one who is in charge", "the leader" in...
.
Hegumen Karas was appointed to head the new Monastery of St. Antony the Great in Newberry Springs, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
(near Barstow, California
Barstow, California
Barstow is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 22,639 at the 2010 census, up from 21,119 at the 2000 census. Barstow is located north of San Bernardino....
) on 26 September 1989.
The Bishops and Metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
s of the Holy Synod
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...
of the Coptic Orthodox Church unanimously agreed to the elevation of Father Karas as Bishop and Abbot in recognition of the monastery's prosperity; he was consecrated as a bishop on 6 July 1993, by His Holiness Pope Shenouda.
In 1998, Bishop Karas was diagnosed with lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
and was given nine months to live. The bishop continued to celebrate the Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the same term...
, followed the regular fast
Fasting
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
schedule and lived a strict ascetic life. He met daily with visitors, even though he was receiving a chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
treatment. On 10 January 2002, Bishop Karas suffered a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
and fell into a coma; he died in the early morning of January 17, the day before what would have been his 47th birthday.
See also
- Coptic Orthodox Church in the United StatesCoptic Orthodox Church in the United StatesThe immigration of the Copts to the United States of America started as early as the late 1940s. After 1952, the rate of Coptic immigration from Egypt to the United States increased. The first Coptic church in the United States is St...
- CoptCoptThe Copts are the native Egyptian Christians , a major ethnoreligious group in Egypt....
s - Coptic alphabetCoptic alphabetThe Coptic alphabet is the script used for writing the Coptic language. The repertoire of glyphs is based on the Greek alphabet augmented by letters borrowed from the Demotic and is the first alphabetic script used for the Egyptian language...
- Coptic calendarCoptic calendarThe Coptic calendar, also called the Alexandrian calendar, is used by the Coptic Orthodox Church and still used in Egypt. This calendar is based on the ancient Egyptian calendar...
- Coptic iconography
- Coptic languageCoptic languageCoptic or Coptic Egyptian is the current stage of the Egyptian language, a northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century. Egyptian began to be written using the Greek alphabet in the 1st century...
- Coptic musicCoptic musicCoptic music is the music sung and played in the Coptic Orthodox Church . It consists mainly of chanted hymns in rhythm with instruments such as cymbals and the triangle...
- Coptic abstinenceCoptic abstinenceThe Copts, the Christians of Egypt, who belong mostly to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, observe fasting periods according to the Coptic calendar. These fasting periods are matched by no other Christian community. Out of the 365 days of the year, the Copts fast over 210 days.- Fasting...
- Coptic OrphansCoptic orphansCoptic Orphans is a non-profit organization founded in 1988 with the goal of the long-term development of the physical and intellectual well being of children in Egypt.-History:...
- List of Patriarchs of Alexandria – prior to Chalcedon
- List of Coptic Orthodox Popes of Alexandria - after Chalcedon
- Patriarch of AlexandriaPatriarch of AlexandriaThe Patriarch of Alexandria is the Archbishop of Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation of Pope , and did so earlier than that of the Bishop of Rome...
- Pope Shenouda III of AlexandriaPope Shenouda III of AlexandriaPope Shenouda III of Alexandria is the 117th Pope of Alexandria and the Patriarch of All Africa on the Holy Apostolic See of Saint Mark the Evangelist of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria...
- The Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria
- Oriental OrthodoxyOriental OrthodoxyOriental Orthodoxy is the faith of those Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the First Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
- Eastern Orthodoxy
- Eastern Orthodox Church of Alexandria
- British Orthodox ChurchBritish Orthodox ChurchThe British Orthodox Church is a small Oriental Orthodox jurisdiction, canonically part of the Coptic Patriarchate of Alexandria. Its mission is to the people of the British Isles, and though it is Orthodox in its faith and practice, it remains British in its ethos...
- Coptic Orthodox Church in AustraliaCoptic Orthodox Church in AustraliaThis article is about Coptic Orthodoxy in Australia. For a list of Coptic parishes in Australia, see the List of Coptic Orthodox Churches in Australia....
- Coptic Orthodox Church in CanadaCoptic Orthodox Church in CanadaThe immigration of the Copts to Canada might have started as early as the late 1950s. Starting in the 1970s, Canada has been receiving a greater number of these immigrants, and the number of Coptic immigrants into Canada has been growing ever since. According to the census, there were over 10,000...
- Coptic Orthodox Church in EuropeCoptic Orthodox Church in EuropeThe Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria has many churches and congregations in Europe and on 2 June 1974 Pope Shenouda III has received in the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria a native Orthodox Church in France known as the French Orthodox Eparchy, along with their Primate, who in turn...
- Coptic Orthodox Church in South AmericaCoptic Orthodox Church in South AmericaCoptic Orthodox Church in South America has its bishops present in Bolivia and Brazil.- History of the Church in Bolivia :In 1997, Fr. Aghathon Amba Boula heard of and began to visit a few Copts who were living in Bolivia. He continued to serve them for four years until they requested a permanent...
- EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
- The French Coptic Orthodox Church
External links
- Life Biography of H.G. Bishop Karas Website with Biography of his Life
- Different stories and miracles from the Honored Bishop Anba Karas Monastery Where Bishop Karas was the Abbot