Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria
Encyclopedia
Father Mina became Pope of Alexandria on 10 May 1959 (2 Pashons
, 1675 A.M.). In accordance with the old Coptic church tradition, Pope Cyril VI was the only monk
in the 20th century to be chosen for papacy without having being a bishop
/Metropolitan
first. Before him, there were three bishop
s / Metropolitan
s who became Popes of Alexandria: Pope John XIX
(1928–1942) , Pope Macarius III
(1942–1944) and Pope Yousab II
, and after him Pope Shenouda III was a bishop before becoming Pope.
Pope Cyril VI elevated the Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church to the title of Patriarch
-Catholicos
. Abuna Baslios, who was the first Ethiopian
to be appointed Archbishop of Ethiopia
by Pope Joseph II
, became Ethiopia
's first Patriarch. Pope Cyril VI was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Star of Solomon by Emperor Haile Selassie in gratitude. In November 1959 he laid the foundation stone of the new Monastery of Saint Mina
in the Desert of Mariout
.
In January 1965, Pope Cyril VI presided over the Committee of Oriental Orthodox Churches in Addis Ababa
, the first ecumenical and non-Chalcedonian
synod
of these churches held in modern times.
In June 1968, Pope Cyril received the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist and Apostle
, which had been taken from Alexandria
to Venice
over eleven centuries earlier. The relics were interred beneath the newly completed Cathedral of Saint Mark
in Cairo
, which was built under Pope Cyril and was inaugurated in a ceremony attended by President Nasser
, Emperor Haile Selassie, and delegates from most other churches.
The papacy of Pope Cyril VI was also marked by the unprecedented Apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun, Egypt
(starting on 2 April 1968).
It is said that Pope Cyril VI was gifted with prescience, and that he knew who was coming to see him, their needs (before they revealed them), and God
's answers. For instance, it is said that he knew the time of his death. He is also said to have had the gift of bilocation. It is believed by many that countless miracles occurred and continue to occur to this day through the intercession of Pope Cyril VI. He is also believed to be one of the anchorite
s.
On his death bed, Pope Cyril VI said this to the clergy who were present: "I am leaving to the Lord... With vigilance defend the Church... may the Lord shepherd you." He departed on 9 March 1971, after a short illness.
Attesting to the sanctity of his predecessor, Pope Shenouda III stated that "There is no man in all the history of the church like Pope Cyril VI, who was able to pray so many liturgies. He prayed more than 12,000 liturgies. This matter never happened before in the history of the Popes of Alexandria or the world, or even among the monks. He was wondrous in his prayers."
The Seat
of Pope Cyril VI was initially located in Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral
in Azbakeya, Cairo
. However, during his papacy he built the Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Abbasseya, also in Cairo, which then became the Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope.
Pashons
Pashons , also known as Bashans, is the ninth month of the Coptic calendar. It lies between May 9 and June 7 of the Gregorian calendar. The month of Pashons is also the first month of the Season of 'Shemu' in Ancient Egypt, where the Egyptians harvest their crops throughout the land of Egypt...
, 1675 A.M.). In accordance with the old Coptic church tradition, Pope Cyril VI was the only monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
in the 20th century to be chosen for papacy without having being a 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...
/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...
first. Before him, there were three 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...
s / 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 who became Popes of Alexandria: Pope John XIX
Pope John XIX of Alexandria
Pope John XIX of Alexandria was the Coptic Patriarch of Alexandria ,Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark .-A Monk:...
(1928–1942) , Pope Macarius III
Pope Macarius III of Alexandria
Pope Macarius III of Alexandria was the Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa .Born on 18 February 1872 in El-Mahalla El-Kubra, Egypt died on 31 August 1945 in Cairo....
(1942–1944) and Pope Yousab II
Pope Joseph II of Alexandria
Pope Joseph II of Alexandria, known in Coptic as Yusab II was the Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St...
, and after him Pope Shenouda III was a bishop before becoming Pope.
Pope Cyril VI elevated the Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church to the title of Patriarch
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
-Catholicos
Catholicos
Catholicos, plural Catholicoi, is a title used for the head of certain churches in some Eastern Christian traditions. The title implies autocephaly and in some cases is borne by the designated head of an autonomous church, in which case the holder might have other titles such as Patriarch...
. Abuna Baslios, who was the first Ethiopian
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
to be appointed Archbishop of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
by Pope Joseph II
Pope Joseph II of Alexandria
Pope Joseph II of Alexandria, known in Coptic as Yusab II was the Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St...
, became Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
's first Patriarch. Pope Cyril VI was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Star of Solomon by Emperor Haile Selassie in gratitude. In November 1959 he laid the foundation stone of the new Monastery of Saint Mina
Monastery of Saint Mina
The Monastery of Saint Mina is a Coptic Orthodox monastery located in the Western Desert near Alexandria. The modern monastery is built close to the ruins of Abu Mena, the original pilgrimage site, which was destroyed by the Arabs during the Muslim conquest of Egypt of the mid-7th...
in the Desert of Mariout
Lake Mariout
Lake Mariout Buhayrat Mariyyut is a brackish lake in northern Egypt. The lake area covered 200 km² at the beginning of the 20th century, but at the beginning of the 21th century it coveres only about 50 km². It is separated from the Mediterranean Sea by the narrow isthmus on which the...
.
In January 1965, Pope Cyril VI presided over the Committee of Oriental Orthodox Churches in Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
, the first ecumenical and non-Chalcedonian
Non-Chalcedonian
Non-Chalcedonianism is the view of those churches that accepted the First Council of Ephesus of 431, but, for varying reasons, did not accept allegiance to the Council of Chalcedon following it in 451. The most substantial Non-Chalcedonian tradition is known as Oriental Orthodoxy...
synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
of these churches held in modern times.
In June 1968, Pope Cyril received the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist and Apostle
Mark the Evangelist
Mark the Evangelist is the traditional author of the Gospel of Mark. He is one of the Seventy Disciples of Christ, and the founder of the Church of Alexandria, one of the original four main sees of Christianity....
, which had been taken from Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
to Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
over eleven centuries earlier. The relics were interred beneath the newly completed Cathedral of Saint Mark
Coptic Cathedral
St. Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral is located in the Abbassia District in Cairo, Egypt. It is the current seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope. It was built during the time when Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria was Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church and inaugurated by Pope Cyril in 1968.-History of the...
in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, which was built under Pope Cyril and was inaugurated in a ceremony attended by President Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
, Emperor Haile Selassie, and delegates from most other churches.
The papacy of Pope Cyril VI was also marked by the unprecedented Apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun, 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...
(starting on 2 April 1968).
It is said that Pope Cyril VI was gifted with prescience, and that he knew who was coming to see him, their needs (before they revealed them), and God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
's answers. For instance, it is said that he knew the time of his death. He is also said to have had the gift of bilocation. It is believed by many that countless miracles occurred and continue to occur to this day through the intercession of Pope Cyril VI. He is also believed to be one of the anchorite
Anchorite
Anchorite denotes someone who, for religious reasons, withdraws from secular society so as to be able to lead an intensely prayer-oriented, ascetic, and—circumstances permitting—Eucharist-focused life...
s.
On his death bed, Pope Cyril VI said this to the clergy who were present: "I am leaving to the Lord... With vigilance defend the Church... may the Lord shepherd you." He departed on 9 March 1971, after a short illness.
Attesting to the sanctity of his predecessor, Pope Shenouda III stated that "There is no man in all the history of the church like Pope Cyril VI, who was able to pray so many liturgies. He prayed more than 12,000 liturgies. This matter never happened before in the history of the Popes of Alexandria or the world, or even among the monks. He was wondrous in his prayers."
The Seat
Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria
The Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria is historically based in Alexandria, Egypt. It is commonly known as the Holy See of St. Mark, as the Coptic Pope is the successor of St. Mark....
of Pope Cyril VI was initially located in Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral
Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral (Azbakeya)
Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Azbakeya, Cairo was the seat of the Coptic Pope from 1800 to 1971.Due to Ibrahim El-Gohary's influential position in the government and his great favor to the Muslim rulers, he was able to issue fatwas that permitted the Copts to rebuild the destroyed...
in Azbakeya, Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. However, during his papacy he built the Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Abbasseya, also in Cairo, which then became the Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope.
See also
- List of Patriarchs of Alexandria
- List of Coptic Popes
- List of Copts
- Lists of Egyptians
- Battle of AnchemBattle of AnchemThe Battle of Anchem was a battle fought between two factions of the Royal family in the Ethiopian Empire...