Athanasius of Alexandria

296 CE–373 CE · Alexandria

Athanasius (c. 296–373 AD), bishop of Alexandria from 328 until his death, was the preeminent defender of Nicene Trinitarian orthodoxy against Arianism. He attended the Council of Nicaea as a deacon and secretary to Bishop Alexander of Alexandria in 325, then spent decades as bishop enduring five separate imperial exiles totalling roughly seventeen years, each time returning to his see. His resolute stand — captured in the phrase Athanasius contra mundum — shaped the eventual triumph of Nicene Christianity, and his Life of Antony helped spread monasticism throughout the Mediterranean world.

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Stop 1 of 5296–373Birthplace, Bishopric, Death

AlexandriaEgypt

What they did here

Born here c. 296–298, ordained bishop in 328, and died here on 2 May 373; Alexandria was the base of his entire ministry, interrupted only by five imperial exiles.

Alexandria in this era

Ruled by the Roman Empire's eastern court, Alexandria became the epicenter of the Arian crisis through its bishop Athanasius — exiled five times by emperors for defending Nicene orthodoxy — and then of Christological controversy when Patriarch Cyril championed the Council of Ephesus (431), condemning Nestorius.

In Alexandria at the same time

Antony of Egypt, Arius, Pappus Alexandrinus, Gregory of Nazianzus, Basil of Caesarea, Theon of Alexandria

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Works(26)

Oratio quarta contra Arianos [Sp.]

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Encyclical Letter. (Epistola Encyclica.)

Alexandria · 373