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PREACHING AND THE SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA FR. TADROS Y. MALATY I was asked to speak about “Preaching
and the School of Alexandria,” many thoughts came to my mind. 1. What is the School of
Alexandria? And what is its message? 2. How did the early
Church understand preaching? 3. Preaching in the
different stages of the School. 4. Preaching and the
School’s view of the Holy Bible 5. Preaching in its
curriculum. 6. Preaching and the
School’s view regarding the Church and her tradition. 7. Preaching and the School’s view on
philosophy. 8. Preaching and the
School’s spirit of joy. 9. Preaching and the
School’s spirit of ecumenical spirit. 10. What is the
advantage of studying “Preaching and
the School of Alexandria” while today’s society differs greatly than that
of the early centuries? The School of Alexandria as
a whole is a preaching institution. Preaching is the heart, the core and the
life of the School. Its curriculum is a symphony of the divine love. The more
we practice the divine love, the more our hearts will he kindled with the
desire to preach unceasingly. Nevertheless it had no department for the “Preaching
Theology.” 1. SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA AND THE FIERY HEART When we speak about the
School of Alexandria we are not to take this in the literal sense, that is,
to think of school buildings or to think of church buildings. The School, in
its essence, was the teacher with his flaming heart. lie was like a burning coal.
Wherever he was, he kindled the hearts of his disciples with divine love. The
disciples, in return, were eager for all mankind share the experience of this
divine and fiery love. Our study of the School of
Alexandria is in fact, a discovery of the early Church of Egypt as a church
of preaching. The Church witnessed that fiery, divine love, which the whole
world cannot quench. That love, raises every man, if possible, to the throne
of God. 2. THE CONCEPT OF
PREACHING IN THE EARLY CHURCH The Christians of the early
Church understood Christianity as a call to salvation. They acknowledged
their position as members of the body of the Holy One, Jesus Christ. They
also realized the dwelling of the holy Spirit within them. With this
practical knowledge, the believers continued to preach. It is the pleasure of
all believers to continue preaching until all mankind glorifies God through
the work of the Holy Trinity. The early Christians didn’t
have specific plans for missionary work. The church as a whole, clergy and
laymen, were considered holy missionaries. For example, St. John Chrysostom once said to his people, “You are the
bishop!” lie felt that his message was to prepare everyone for serving and
preaching. This proves that every member of the church will continue working
for the edification of God’s kingdom on earth. That’s why St. John Chrysostom saw every member
in the Church as the bishop. For instance St. John looked at the cathedral in
Constantinople and noticed that it was very crowded, so he told them, “It
would make me very sad to know that there is even one person in this city
that doesn’t know how to enjoy salvation.” This demonstrates St. John’s fiery
heart, which is an example of the true believer’s heart. 3. PREACHING IN TUE DIFFERENT
STAGES OF THE SCHOOL This Christian School
started as a Catechetical School, where candidates were admitted to learn the
Christian faith. The deans were in fact catechists. Origen described the
catechist’s functions in more than one of his books. He had both to teach
doctrine’ and to give instructions on the Christian life. “If you want to receive Baptism,” Origen said, “you must first learn about God’s Word, cut away the roots of your
vices, and correct your barbarous wild lives and practice meekness and
humility. Then you will befit to receive the grace of the Holy Spirit.” The words of Origen revealed that the aim of the early school was to preach
among non-believers and to prepare them to enjoy being God’s children. St. Clement of Alexandria
referred to the three stages of that school. These three stages explain
the preaching role of the churches. + In his first book, “Exhortation to the Greek (Protrepticus)” He explained that
there were great leaders who chose to devote their lives to bringing unbelievers,
and even believers, who had gone astray, back to the church. He also
explained the treachery of those who chose to follow the idols and morals set
by society. + The
second book, “The Instructor (Pedagogus)”
invites those who have accepted Christian faith to be molded by the hands
of our Savior Jesus Christ. + The third book, “Stromata” shows the
life of a person who accepted the faith by the Holy Trinity and how the Lord
will reveal His will, wisdom, and holy mysteries through His Spirit. It states
that this person will sit at the instructor’s feet to understand the virtuous
life; and the Lord will carry him to his kingdom as the Heavenly Groom (the
Lord) carried His heavenly bride (the human soul). Thus,
the three books explain the preaching role of the School of Alexandria.
Preaching in the School of Alexandria was not only an invitation to accept
the faith the soul discovers in theory, but also, an invitation to the
practical life, as members of the body of Christ. The deans of the school
were never to rest until they saw that the world had become the heavenly
bride. 4.
PREACHING AND THE SCHOOL’S VIEW OF THE HOLY BIBLE The deans of the School of Alexandria
understood the Holy Scriptures as a journey of the soul to heaven. The
Fathers of the School loved the Holy Bible. St. Pantenius, with his disciples, in the second century, translated
it into Coptic. He wrote commentaries on almost all the books of the Bible. Origen dedicated his life to the study of the Holy Bible. He
used to spend most of his nights reading the Bible as he knelt and prayed.
His heart, mind, soul and senses were completely consumed by the Holy Bible.
This way of life motivated him to preach all his days through his journeys in
many countries. Origen
did not ignore the
scientific method in studying the Holy Scriptures. His belief was that: the
Holy Bible is a personal message addressed to every man. He was more involved in calling the whole world
to share the eternal glory. Yet many where they, who had the gift of
preaching, but had not the grace of God. They were not able to touch the
heart of man and bring them to attain the unity with the Father, the
fellowship with the Son and the dwelling with the Holy Spirit. 5.
PREACHING IN ITS CURRICULUM We can discover the Alexandrians’ view of
preaching through the characteristics of its theology. For instance: I.
Deqication: Many
scholars state that the core of Alexandrian theology is Deflcation, or the grace of renewal. By deification,
the Alexandrians mean the renewal of human nature as a whole. We attain it by
sharing in the characteristics of our Lord Jesus Christ. The apostles state
that the believer may enjoy “the partaking in the divine nature” (2 Peter
1:4), or the new man in the image of His Creator (Col. 3:10). Deification
draws the hearts of the Alexandrians away from arguments over definitions of
theological terms and towards obtaining divine grace as the enjoyment of the
unity with the Father, in His Only-Begotten Son, through the work of His Holy
Spirit. + For this He came down, for
this He assumed human nature, for this He willingly endured the sufferings of
man, that by being reduced to the measure of our weakness He might raise us to the measure of His power. + The Word of God, became man just that you may learn from a
Alan how it may be that man should become
god. St. Clement of Alexandria + We are deified, not by partaking of the
body of some man, but by receiving the body of the Word Himself. + He was made man that we might become gods.
St. Athanasius ofAlexandria The
Alexandrian theology concentrated on “dejfication,” in order for us to
get in touch with the wonderful love of God. It transforms the depth of man
into an icon of God, his Creator, and shares in His divine nature. It does
not stop at the depth of the inner man, but extends to the body itself, as if
to convert it gradually to its glorious nature. The life of the believer
becomes a daily journey to heaven. He attracts his brethren with him to taste
the heavenly life. The
Alexandrians’ objective in deification is to open the eyes of many believers
that they may explore their potential, so that not only might they become an
icon of Christ, but also trust in
the renewal of mankind. They find their pleasure in preaching regardless of
difficulties. They believe that the ability to preach was a manifest through
God’s grace in them, and in their brethren. They hope that God will renew and
sanctify their souls on behalf of his kingdom. II. Soteriological
Theology: Christianity
started in Alexandria, Egypt, when Anianius, a cobbler, cried “0 One God” as
a needle pierced his hand while repairing St. Mark’s shoe. St. Mark, the
Apostle and Evangelist, healed his hand in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He then bore witnessed to the One God whom Anianius believed in, hut did not
know. St. Mark told the cobbler about God who heals not only our bodies, but
also our human nature through His incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. Anianius
believed and was converted to Christianity. St. Mark then ordained Anianius
as the first Bishop of Alexandria. St.
Mark used the healing of Anianius’ wound in the name of Jesus Christ as a
starting point to preach the Gospel; he did not reveal God as a notion he
believed in, but rather, as the Savior who redeems mankind. We know God, not
through theoretical discussions, but through His redeeming deeds. This is the
basic principle of the Alexandrian theology until today. God grants us new knowledge,
new glorious life and immortality. Thus,
St. Mark truly sowed in our theological soil the seed that has produced fruit
through the ages. One of these fruits is the close relationship between
theological knowledge and salvation. God bestows knowledge, which is not
isolated from our salvation. This is clearly demonstrated in the theology of St. Clement of Alexandria who usually
introduces Jesus Christ as the “Educator.” In
his book called Paidagogos, “The
Educator” or “Instructor,” He speaks of this Divine Paidagogue as the “All-healing physician of mankind.” In other
words, to St. Clement, divine
knowledge cannot be separated from our salvation, lie firmly believes that “It is the will of God that we should
attain the knowledge of God, which is the
communication of immortality.” “The Word, became Man so that you might
learn from Man how man may become god” One
of the main features of the School of Alexandria is its soteriological theology. That
is, a system of theology based principally on the salvation of man. This
approach is apostolic. In preaching the Gospel, the apostles witnessed our
Lord Jesus as the “Messiah,” the Savior of mankind. They were not engaged in
theological disputes, but were concerned with men’s salvation. Their
Christological theology depended on soteriological thought. Jaraslov Pelikan
states that early Christians shared the conviction that salvation is the work
of no being less than the Lord of heaven and earth. The oldest surviving
sermon in the early church opens with the words: “Brethren, we ought so, to
think of Jesus Christ as of God, as of the Judge of living and dead. And we
ought not to belittle our salvation, for when we belittle Him, we expect also
to receive little.” Some examples follow: • Athenagoras
in his “Plea on Behalf of Christians” writes
to the emperor Marcus Aurelius Antonius (161-180) and his son Commodus,
refuting the three charges against Christians. He not only succeeded in
defending Christianity but he also managed to preach to the emperors. It was
a great opportunity for Athenagoras to declare the truth to the emperors; and
to those who read this Plea, to
witness evangelical life. His aim is not only to defend the Christian
faith but also to invite everyone to the salvation of Christ. • The Early Church offers no better example of
an intellectual Christian than St.
Clement. He insists that the goal of Christian education is “practical, not theoretical and its aim is
to improve the soul, not to teach, and to train it up to a virtuous, not
intellectual life • Origen’s
writings reveal that his
primary interests lay in the salvation of our souls. Rown A. Greer states the drama of the soul’s struggle is to return to God. Origen’s views of
martyrdom, prayer and Scriptures merge into one vision of Christian life. It
is a movement towards a perfect
knowledge of God and perfect
fellowship with Him through Christ. Through this soteriological attitude, the
believer is not involved in theoretical discussion, but he has a sincere
desire that all mankind might share with him what he practices. The
soteriological theology cannot be separated from the action of preaching. The
more the believer attains the blessings of salvation, the more his heart is
kindled with brotherly love. At the same time every witness to the Savior,
grants the believer a new experience of his salvation. While he serves
others, he himself is served. Thus, we can say that our salvation and
evangelization are just one action with two integral sides,
when one is lost the other cannot exist. III.
The Theological Terminology: Because
of the existing worldwide Greek culture, the Alexandrian School used Greek
philosophical terms to explain Christian doctrines to gain philosophers and
heretics. While the Alexandrians used the philosophical terms, they were not
slaves to them. This is what St.
Athanasius means when he states that disputes merely over words need not be
suffered to divide those who think alike. The
Alexandrian Fathers did not give definitions to any theological terminology
because they were interested only in the practice of theology. Benjamin
Drewery noticed that he could not find a direct definition for the grace of
God through the numerous works of Origen.
He then deduced that: “if Origen had
been required to offer a formal definition of grace, he would have responded
somewhat as follows: ‘Grace is the power of God freely, but not
unconditionally, placed at man’s disposal…’ With this theological perspective, believers
do not emphasize theoretical terminologies, but rather, desire salvation and
glorification of all mankind. 6. PREACHING AND THE SCHOOL’S VIEW REGARDING THE CHURCH AND HER
TRADITION I. The Church loves all mankind Origen who was aflame with the love of all mankind
desired the salvation of all men. When
Celsus charged the Christians with believing that God had abandoned the rest
of mankind and is concerned for the Church alone, Origen replies that this is
not a Christian belief. II. The Church grieves for sinners The
Church together with her I-lead, Jesus Christ, grieve ‘till all sinners return to their God. Origen comments on
these words, “Truly I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of this vine
until I drink it anew with you in the kingdom of My Father” (Matt. 26:29). He
explains that, wine, in the Holy Scriptures, is a symbol of spiritual joy.
God promised I-us people to bless their vines, that is, to grant them
abundance of spiritual joy. For that reason, He prevents the priests from
drinking wine upon entrance to the temple: for He wants them to be in grief
while the sacrifices are offered on behalf of sinners. Then, when all sinners
are reconciled with God, their joy will be perfect. Origen believes that our Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, and His
saints, are waiting for the repentance of sinners; therefore, their joy is
not yet perfect. [For the saints, when they
leave this place, do not immediately obtain the whole reward of their merits.
They also wait for us though we delay, even though we remain, for they do not
have perfect delight as long as they grieve for our errors and mourn for our
sins. Perhaps you do not believe me when 1 say this. For who am I that I am
so hold to confirm the meaning of such a doctrine? But I produce their
witness about whom you cannot doubt. For the Apostle Paul is ‘the teacher of
the Gentiles in faith and truth” (1 Tim. 2:7). Therefore, in writing to the
Hebrews, after he had enumerated all the holy fathers who were justified by
faith, he adds after all that, “But those who had every witness through the
faith did not yet obtain the new promise since God was looking forward toward
something better for us that they might not obtain perfection without us”
(Heb. 11:39-40). You see, therefore, that Abraham is still waiting to obtain
the perfect things. Isaac waits, and Jacob and all the Prophets wait for us,
that they may lay hold of the perfect blessedness with us. Therefore,
you will have delight when you depart this life if you are holy. But when the
delight will be full when you lack none of the members of the body, you will
wait for others just as you also are waited for. Because if the delight does not seem to
he complete for you who are a member, if another member is missing how witch
more does our Lord and Savior, who is “the head” (‘Eph. 4:15-16) and the
originator of the whole body, consider his delight to be incomplete as long
as he sees one of the members to he missing from his body. and for this
reason, perhaps, he poured out this prayer to the lather: “Holy Father,
glorify me with that glory that I had with you before the world was “(John 1
7:5). Thus, he does not want to receive his complete glory without us, that
is, He Himself wants to live in this body of his church and in these members
of his people as in their soul that he can have all impulses and all works
according to his own will, so that that saying of the prophet may be truly
fulfilled in us, “I will live in them and walk [among them]” (Lev. 26:12).] III.
Ceaseless preaching all over the world The Church, which Origen sees and loves, is the ensemble of Christ’s disciples scattered over the face of the earth. That
great society can never be compared with the rest of the human race. It never
ceases to attract those who have need of belief. From the beginning of the Church, the
gospel’s message was proclaimed by the faithful wherever they lived or
traveled. In his treatise against Celsus, Origen writes, “Christians
do all in their power to spread the faith all over the world. Some of them
make it the busine.s’s of their
life to wander not only from city to city hut from township to township and
village to village, in order to gain fresh converts for the Lord.” IV.
Tradition and Preaching What is the Tradition that the Church feels
obliged to convey to the whole world? If we return to the apostolic age, we find “many local church traditions” that
accept various cultures. But all these traditions have one mind,
that is the mind of Christ; one spirit, i.e., the Spirit of the Lord, and one
aim, i.e., our salvation. For this reason Alexandrian bishops did not
hesitate in participating with Bishops from Rome, Antioch and Jerusalem, in
one service, and on one altar. Although, there are some differences
in the details of the rites or traditions, all share the same spirit, i.e.
One Tradition. All the apostles lived with one opened
spirit of preaching. “For, whereas I was free as to all, I made myself the
servant of all, that I might gain the more” (1 Cor. 9:19). When St Mark preached in Egypt, he spoke
about the one Christ; and the Egyptians worshipped through their culture but
in true apostolic spirit. For instance, Coptic
hymns are different from the Syrian and Latin ones etc. All have a quiet
and modest spirit; which contain the true dogmatic and spiritual teachings. The
Lights of the House of God, are
another example. All the apostolic churches in the world use lights during
worship by day and by night, especially during the reading of the Gospel.
This is the spirit of Tradition, which declares that Christ is the Light of
the world Candles in the Coptic, Syrian, Latin, and Greek churches reflect
their respective cultures. Although Orthodox Christians across the
whole world have unity of faith and preserve tradition as a living truth,
every local church expresses this one faith in her own language, her
liturgical rites, hymns, sacred vestments etc. The church location does not
dismiss its own catholicity. In other words, the differences in traditions
and detail do not present an obstacle for preaching. a. The Orthodox Church, more specifically,
the Church of Alexandria, preserved - more than others - the holy Tradition
in detail, and in spirit. Our church did not interfere in politics, nor was it
influenced by worldly authority, she maintained her spirituality, and more
so, her tradition despite thesurmounting obstacles. The monastic movement has
kept the tradition of the church in a humble, evangelic and ascetic spirit. b. We ought to think seriously of what we should offer the
world in our preaching. When a French man, for instance, accepts the Orthodox
faith, we have to offer him the ease to worship in an orthodox, apostolic and
patristic mind, in his own culture. In 1976, H.G. Gregorius, the metropolite of
Newdelhi, India, in his speech to the Orthodox Church leaders in Melbourne,
said that we have to sow Orthodox seeds in the Australian soil, so that tree
will be an Orthodox Australian one. c. As the Church of Alexandria has been
opened to the outside world and thousands immigrated, the Church must guide
and help them to preach the Orthodox way of life to others without evading
from the spirit of Tradition or Rite. She must not close herself to a local
community or language but must be an ecumenical responsibility. Truly, it is the urgent need of the
orthodox theologians nowadays. to offer the living Tradition to the universe
with an opened heart. V. Preaching and the School relationship
with the Church The school of Alexandria was a unique educational
institution. The dean was the second man after the Pope. Many deans were
chosen bishops or popes of Alexandria. None yearned to be elected as Pope,
and they never interfered into the church administration. They devoted all
their lives to studying, teaching and preaching in humbleness. They, along
with their disciples were real ascetics and worshippers of God. They didn’t encounter conflicts in their
dealings with the clergy. Even when Pope Demetrius called a synod in
Alexandria, and asked Origen to
leave Alexandria, the latter left without creating any problems .He was a
well-known dean, and was popular in Egypt and overseas, but he didn’t want to
waste his time with problems. In stead he established a new school in
Palestine, and refused to return to Egypt after the departure of the Pope,
saying that Palestine was more so in need of his effort than Alexandria. VI.
Preaching and the Church as a heavenly ljfe The deans of the School of Alexandria hoped
to lead everyone to the heavenly Father. Therefore, they themselves were
cautious in practicing the heavenly life - that they may bear witness to
heaven. St. Clement
of Alexandria states that for the Gnostic, i.e., the spiritual believer,
the earth is converted to heaven. The Gnostic practices heavenly life while
he is on earth. For he “will rest on
God’s holy mountain, the Church on high, in which are assembled the
philosophers of God, the authentic Israelites who are pure in heart giving
themselves over to the pure intuition of unending contemplation.” He also
says: “If you enroll yourself as one of
God’s people, heaven is your country, God your legislation.” For St. Clement the earthly
Church, is the image of the heavenly one, that is why we pray that God’s will
may be accomplished on earth, as it is in heaven. It is the ideal Church, or
“the Church on high,” is more often the subject of Clements’s thought in the Stromata. Origen
states that believers
attain this heavenly life through the work of the cross. [For Christ, ‘through His blood has made
peace with things on earth and things in heaven” (Col. 1:20,) so that the
earthly might have fellowship with the heavenly.] [Just as the
sun and the moon are said to be the great lights in the firmament of heaven, so
also are Christ and the Church in us. But since God also placed stars in the
firmament, let us see what are also stars in us, that is, in the heaven of
our heart.] Origen comments on the words “...divides the water which is above heaven from the water which is below heaven” Gen. 1:7, saying, [Therefore, by
participation in that celestial water which is said to be above the heavens
each of the faithful becomes heavenly, that is, when he applies his mind to
lofty and exalted things, thinking nothing about the earth but totally about
heavenly things, “seeking the things which are above, where Christ is at the
right hand of the Father” (Col. 3.1).] 7. PREACHING AND THE SCHOOL’S VIEW TO PHILOSOPHY Alexandria, the cosmopolitan city, was
chosen as a home for learning. Egyptian, Greek and Jewish cultures together
with eastern mystic thoughts flourished. The deans of the Christian School
didn’t aim to admit another culture or philosophy to this area. They didn’t
want to enter into competition with these philosophies, nor did they want to
challenge them. They dealt philosophers with their broad-mindedness, the
openness of their hearts and sincere love. In the second century Tertullian, the first theologian of
the Western Fathers was attacking the ideology of philosophy as an enemy of
faith and philosophers as enemies of believers. At the same century in
Alexandria, St. Pantenius insisted
to practice his work as the dean of the school putting on the garment of the
philosophers. Origen states that Pantenius attracted many pagan
philosophers to the Christian faith. St. Clement
of Alexandria was the first Christian writer who declared that philosophy
is God’s method to lead the well-educated people to Christianity. His
disciple, Origen, was not in
accord with philosophy but he insisted on using philosophy to attract the
philosophers. The
early Alexandrian Fathers knew how to preach among the philosophers by using
their own method. Thus, we have to walk in their steps, by preaching others
through their own culture. We are in need to acknowledge their mentality to
reveal faith to them. 8. SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA AND THE SPIRIT OF
JOY For
this School, the Holy Scripture is a journey of the soul from earth to
heaven. The church is an icon of heaven and a community of joy. Believers are
eager to see that men convert to joyful angels. Therefore, the spirit of joy ruled
over the deans and the disciples of the School even in the eras of
persecution. St.
Clement considers the Christian
life as an unceasing feast. To him the true Gnostic attains the new
life in Christ as a Festival. Origen has the same idea. For him the Christian
celebrates the Passover not only in Easter time but at all times. He feasts with the unleavened bread of sincerity
and truth and the bitter herbs of sorrow and repentance. His life is a
Paschal or unceasing feast, full of spiritual joy through repentance. Origen says, [Tell me, you who come to church only on festive days, are the other
days not festive days? Are they not the Lord’s days?] For Origen,
“Every day is the Lord’s Day...
Therefore, Christians eat the flesh of the Lamb daily; they consume each day
the flesh of the Word, for Christ our Passover has been sacrificed (1 Cor.
5:7).” Origen comments on the words of the Psalmist: “Blessed
are the people who know the joyful sound” (Ps. 89: 15), [He does not say: “Blessed are the people who practice
righteousness, “or “who have the knowledge of heaven, earth and stars, “but
“who know the joyful sound!” Sometimes’ the fear of God grants man a joy... Here
blessedness is presented in abundance, why? For all the people participate in
it, and a/l know the companionship, in joyful sound!] [Isaac, Scripture says, “grew” and became strong
that is, Abraham ‘s joy grew as he looked not at those things “which are
seen, but at the things which are not seen.” (Cf 2 Cor. 4:18) For Abraham did
not rejoice about present things or about the riches of the world and the
activities of age. But do you wish to hear why Abraham rejoiced? Hear the
Lord saying to the Jews: “Abraham your father desired to see my day, and he
saw it and was glad” (John 8:5 6) in this way, therefore, “Isaac grew “; (Cf
Gen. 2 1:8) that vision of Abraham, in which he saw the day of Christ, and
the hope which is in Christ were increasing his joys. And would that you too
might be made Isaac and be a joy to your mother the church] St. Athanasius
wrote about his teacher St. Anthony the Great: [For as his soul was free
from disturbances, his outward external appearance was calm. From his joyful
soul, he possessed a cheerful countenance, and from his bodily movements the
condition of his soul could be perceived, as it is written, “When the heart
is merry the countenance is cheerful, but when it is sorrowful it is cast
down” (Prov. 15:13). Thus, Anthony was recognized, for he was never
disturbed, for his soul was at peace, he was never downcast, for his mind was
joyous.] This
reflected on the personality of his disciple, Pope Athanasius the Apostolic. We see him in the middle of his
crisis not writing about his isolation, or the grave he hid in. In his
writings, he never wrote about his inability of meeting his people in
Alexandria. He recorded among his agony his view towards his life as a permanent feast. He says that our feast is Christ Himself! Wherever
he lived, even hidden in a tomb, he still lived an endless heavenly feast
where the Risen Jesus Christ was transfigured inside him. With continuous
joy, he never sustained from Jesus’ work, attracting plenty through his
prayers. He even sent letters to his people asking them to share with him his
celebration of the never-ending feast. In
a Paschal Letter, St. Athanasius writes: [The
gladness of our feast, my brethren, is always near at hand, and never fails
those who wish to celebrate it. For the Word is near, Who is all things on
our behalf, even our Lord Jesus Christ, Who having promised that His
habitation with us should be perpetual, in virtue thereof cried, saying,
“Lord, I am with you all the days of the world” (Matt. 28:20). For as He is
the Shepherd and the High Priest, the Way and the Door, and everything to us,
again, He is shown to us as the Feast, and
the Holy day, according to the blessed Apostle; “Our Passover, Christ, is
sacrificed” (l Cor. 5:7).] The
world is not in need of many theoretical discussions, but to be in touch with
the joyful heaven. Therefore, the spirit of joy is a living witness to
Christianity. Through it, men acknowledge that heaven is at hand through the
work of the Holy Trinity. 9.
PREACHING AND THE ECUMENICAL SPIRIT No
doubt, men can taste the sweetness of our faith in the Holy Trinity through
the real Ecumenical spirit. Ecumenism is a spirit that the School of
Alexandria spread not by speaking about the unity of churches all over the
world, but by practicing it in many ways: a. The
School attracted many foreign students to study theology, especially the
interpretation of the Holy Scriptures. Those students later became leaders in
their churches. b. The
deans of the School were very active outside Egypt, because of their love
towards the Catholic Church; they were not looking for any personal prestige
nor gaining any political power for their churches. For example Origen
traveled to Rome, Caesarea, Arabia, Tyre, etc. c. The Alexandrian theologians were leaders
and pioneers in the Ecumenical Councils. d. The Coptic manuscripts are proof that the Copts translated almost all the Christian literature existing in the world at that time. 10. THE ADVANTAGE
OF STUDYING “PREACHING AND THE SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA” These
brief outlines of the School’s role in preaching help us to acknowledge our
message concerning the evangelism of the whole world. Preaching, in its essence, is a gift that we receive from the Fiery Holy Spirit who works in our inner man. He sanctifies all our energies and talents for the edification of the kingdom of God on earth. We have to imitate those fiery deans by attaining the spirit of preaching and handling it the new generation as our spiritual disciples Remarks: 1. We have to clarify the real concept of
monasticism. Some writers believe that it is an escape from responsibilities;
to live in an atmosphere is grief and sorrow. On the contrary, St John Cassian
speaks about our monks as joyful men who ascended to heaven, or as angels
living on earth. For example, many pagans were converted to Christianity
through the joyful life of Abbot Apollo and his disciples in Upper Egypt. 2.We should revise: our homilies and the
curriculum of the Sunday school and youth meetings especially in the
following points: + Concentrating on the role
of every member of the church concerning the evangelism of the whole world. + Discovering our status as
children of God, being proud of the redeeming work of God and His grace. + Preaching our Orthodox
faith, and not our local culture, while respecting the cultures of others. + Clarifying the real
concepts of the church and her tradition + Concentrating on the Bible, and
discovering the God’s plan for every man. 3.We should be seriously study the various
cultures of the world to prepare ourselves to preach the Orthodox faith to
all. |