Pope Agatho of Alexandria

For other people named Agatho, see Agatho (disambiguation).
Saint

Agathon of Alexandria
Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark
Papacy began661[1] or 662[2]
Papacy ended677[1] or 680[2]
PredecessorBenjamin I
SuccessorJohn III
Personal details
Born
Egypt
Died26 October 680
Egypt
NationalityEgyptian
DenominationCoptic Orthodox Christian
Sainthood
Feast day26 October (16 Babah in the Coptic calendar)[3]

Saint Agathon of Alexandria, was the 39th Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark.[4] St. Agathon was a disciple[1] of Pope Benjamin I, the 38th Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church so when Pope Benjamin had to flee to avoid persecution by the Chalcedonians, Agathon remained and led the church.[3]

Agathon served like this until Pope Benjamin returned and died, at which time Agathon was officially named the pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church. This happened during the time of the Muslim conquest of Egypt and when Muawiyah I was ruling.[2] Unlike most popes who first serve as monks,[5] Agathon had never been a monk prior to becoming pope- yet he was successful.[4] During his time as pope, the building of St. Macarius Church in the monastery at Wadi El Natrun was completed.[1]

Like many others before and after, according to the Coptic Orthodox Church, he was harassed. Sometime during his papacy, he was persecuted by a Melkite Byzantine Patriarch named Theodocius, who through his authority, levied large taxes on Agathon, made the people hate him and asked that he be killed. For this reason, Agathon stayed hidden in his cell until the threat of Theodocius went away.[1][3] Based on church beliefs, he chose his successor based on a dream where an angel told him who should follow him.[3]

  1. ^ a b c d e Morgan, Robert (September 21, 2016). History of the Coptic Orthodox People and the Church of Egypt. FriesenPress. ISBN 9781460280270. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Meinardus, Otto Friedrich August (2002). Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity. American Univ in Cairo Press. p. 275. ISBN 9789774247576. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d "The Departure of St. Agathon, 39th Pope of Alexandria". Coptic Church Network. Archived from the original on 21 November 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  4. ^ a b Atiya, Aziz Suryal. Pope in the Coptic Church. The Coptic encyclopedia, volume 6. p. 3. Archived from the original on 20 November 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  5. ^ "Pope in the Coptic Church". Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 20 November 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2016.