Heraclas_of_Alexandria

Pope Heraclas of Alexandria

Pope Heraclas of Alexandria

Head of the Coptic Church from 232 to 248


Pope Heraclas (Ancient Greek: Ἡρακλῆς, Theoclas) was the 13th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, reigning 232–248.

Quick Facts Saint Heraclas of Alexandria, Papacy began ...

Pope Heraclas of Alexandria was born to pagan parents who became Christians and were baptized after his birth. They taught him the Greek philosophy, then Christian doctrine. He also studied the four gospels and the epistles. Demetrius, 12th Patriarch of Alexandria, ordained him deacon, then a priest over the church of Alexandria. He was successful in the ministry and was faithful in all that was entrusted to him. He followed Origen as head of the Catechetical School of Alexandria.

When Demetrius died, Heraclas was chosen as Patriarch. He converted many pagans and baptized them. He devoted his efforts to teaching, preaching and instructing. He assigned to St. Dionysius the work of judging between the believers, and taking care of their affairs. Pope Heraclas sat on the throne of St. Mark for 16 years until his death.

He was the first Patriarch of Alexandria to be referred to as "Pope" (in Greek, Papás), a term, originally a form of address meaning 'Father', that was used by several bishops. The first known record of this designation being assigned to Heraclas is in a letter written by the bishop of Rome, Dionysius, to Philemon:

τοῦτον ἐγὼ τὸν κανόνα καὶ τὸν τύπον παρὰ τοῦ μακαρίου πάπα ἡμῶν Ἡρακλᾶ παρέλαβον.[1]
[I received this rule and ordinance from our blessed Pope, Heraclas.]


References

  1. , Eusebius, Historia Ecclesiastica Book VII, chapter 7.4 (trans.)
General
  • St. Heraclas (Theoclas), 13th Pope of Alexandria.
  • Meinardus, Otto F.A. (2002). Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity. American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-424-757-6.
  • Atiya, Aziz S. The Coptic Encyclopedia. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1991. ISBN 0-02-897025-X
More information Titles of the Great Christian Church ...

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Heraclas_of_Alexandria, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.