Copt
Copts are members of the Coptic Christian church of Egypt.
The Coptic church is an offshoot of the ancient Egyptian Christian church, one of the oldest Christian churches.
In 451 the Copts split from the Catholic church after the Council of Chalcedon, following the Monophysite ("one nature") doctrine of the nature of Christ. The Coptic church is
the by far largest Christian group in both East as well as North Africa/Middle East, with over ten million adherents.
The name "Copt" (gupt in Arabic) is derived from Ayguptos - the Greek word for Egypt.
Coptic services are conducted in the Coptic language rather than Arabic. Coptic
is the last surviving remnant of ancient Egyptian.
Copts believe that Christianity was
introduced to the Egyptians by Saint Mark in Alexandria (protrayed at right), during the reign of the Roman emperor
Nero. A large Christian community arose quickly in Alexandria, which was one of the major cities of the ancient world.
From Alexandria, Christianity spread in Egypt within half a century of Saint Mark's arrival in Alexandria. A fragment of
the Gospel of John in Coptic from the early second century was found in Upper Egypt. Other New Testament writings
found in Oxyrhynchus, in Middle Egypt, date form around 200.
By the beginning of the 3rd century A.D.,
Christianity had spread to the majority of Egypt’s population, and the Church of Alexandria was recognized as one of
Christendom's four Apostolic Sees. It is the oldest church in Africa.
The Copts initiated the
Catechetical School of Alexandria in 190 AD, the oldest catechetical school in the world. Athenagoras, Clement, Didymus,
and the great Origen taught there. The school also taught science, mathematics and humanities. The question-and-answer
method of commentary borrowed from ancient Greek dialogue was adapted there to Christian teaching.
Copts also originated monasticism.
Monasteries, hermit caves and monastic cells spread quickly throughout Egypt. The Coptic church played major roles in
the first three, and most famous, ecumenical councils. The Council of Nicaea (325 AD) was led by Pope Alexander of
Alexandria, along with Saint Hosius of Córdoba. Athanasius, future Pope of Alexandria, led in the formulation of the
Nicene Creed. recited today in all Christian churches of different denominations.
The Council of Constantinople (381 AD)
was presided over by Pope Timothy of Alexandria, while the Council of Ephesus (431 AD) was presided over by Pope Cyril
of Alexandria.
Copts split from the Catholic Church
The Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D,
resulted in expulsion of the majority of Copts from the Catholic church. Those relatively few who accepted the
terms of the Council became known as Chalcedonians or Melkites. Those who did not follow the consensus on the nature of
the trinity were labeled Monophysites by the church, but Miaphysites by themselves. Most Copts belonged to the
Miaphysite branch, and most of Asia except Asia minor adopted the Monophysite faith, leading to their exclusion from and
persecution by the Byzantine church.
Copts under Muslim rule
This split may have contributed to the
easy conquest of Egypt by the Arabs in 641, but there were several revolts against
Muslim rule. These include the Beshmonite revolt in the eight centural and a larger revolt crushed by Al Ma'mun in the ninth century, as well as a
local revolt in Qift in 1176. This last was suppressed by the hanging of 3,000 Copts.
In keeping with Muslim law, the Arabs
imposed a special tax, known as Jizya, on the Christians who acquired the status of dhimmis, and all non-Muslims were
prohibited from joining the army. Egyptian converts to Islam in turn were relegated to the status of
Mawali. Heavy
taxation was one of the reasons behind Egyptian organized resistance against the new occupying power, as well as the
decline of the number of Christians in Egypt. It was the Arabs apparently, who coined the term "Gupti" or "Copts."
Eventually this was applied only to Monophysite Christians, while the Chalcedonian Church remained with the appellation
"Melkite." The Arabs did not initially interfere much with the practice of Christianity beyond the dhimmi laws. There
was a profuse output of Coptic art work in monastic centers in Old Cairo (Fustat) and throughout Egypt. This changed
after the various revolts in the eighth and ninth centuries. The Muslims banned the use of human forms in art and
destroyed many Coptic paintings and frescoes in churches.
During the Fatimid period Egypt was
generally tolerant, except during the violent persecutions of caliph Al-Hakim. Copts were employed in the government,
and churches and monasteries were constructed or renovated. There was a flourishing of Coptic art word for a period.
However, following the Crusades, the Mameluk rulers initiated persecutions. These included forced conversions and
occasional raids and destruction of monasteries.
The position of the Copts only began to
improve under the rule of Mehmet Ali in the early 19th century. Mehmet Ali abolished the Jizya and allowed
Egyptians to join the army. In the first half of the twentieth century, under British occupation and early Egyptian
independence, Copts flourished once again. They participated and led the Egyptian national movement Makram
Ebeid, a Copt, was ecretary General of the Wafd Party, and they occupied many influential positions in government and
politics. Following the 1952 coup d'état by the Free Officers (Nasser's revolution) , conditions for the Copts slowly
deteriorated.
Copts are the majority of the Egyptian
Christian population. The term Coptic remains exclusive however to the Egyptian natives, as opposed to the Christians of
non-Egyptian origins. Some Protestant churches for instance are called "Coptic Evangelical Church", thus helping
differentiate their native Egyptian congregations from churches attended by non-Egyptian immigrant communities such as
Europeans or Americans.
Copts constitute about 10% of the population of modern Egypt.
Officially, they enjoy full equality, but in fact, there is often friction with the government. Copts complain that no
new churches have been permitted to be built, for example. Minor repairs to churches require government permission.
Egyptian law makes it difficult or illegal to convert from Islam to the Coptic faith.
Synonyms and alternate spellings:
Further Information:
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