ST. ATHANASIUS THE GREAT OF ALEXANDRIA (MAY 2ND)

A Famous Byzantine Greek Icon of St. Athanasius of Alexandria 

Edited by Bp. Joseph (Ancient Church of the West) 

In the year of our Lord AD 296, in the city of Alexandria, Egypt, a light arose in the person of St. Athanasius the Great, a champion of orthodoxy and the indefatigable defender of the faith once delivered unto the saints. Raised in the intellectual and spiritual center of the Christian world, Athanasius was schooled in Scripture, classical philosophy, and the theological riches of the Alexandrian tradition. His early years as a deacon under the bishop Alexander proved formative, as he engaged in the great theological controversies that would mark his life.

When the heresy of Arianism arose, denying the full divinity of the Son of God, Athanasius emerged as the leading voice against this pernicious error. At the tender age of thirty-three, he succeeded Alexander as Bishop of Alexandria in AD 328, beginning a tumultuous episcopate marked by persecution, exile, and unwavering commitment to the truth of Christ. Exiled five times by emperors sympathetic to the Arians, Athanasius’ life was a living martyrdom, yet he persevered with the conviction that truth would triumph.

St. Athanasius is best remembered as the staunch defender of the Creed, formulated at the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325. He championed the doctrine of homoousios - that the Son is of the same essence as the Father - against the Arian assertion that the Son was a created being. This teaching was not an abstract theological debate; for St. Athanasius, the divinity of Christ was essential to salvation itself. Only if Christ were fully God could He reconcile humanity to the Father, defeating sin and death by His incarnation, death, and resurrection.

St. Athanasius’ influence extended beyond doctrinal disputes. In his “39th Festal Letter” (AD 367), he provided the earliest authoritative list of the New Testament books as we know them today. This canon was the fruit of careful discernment, recognizing the texts inspired by the Holy Spirit and universally received by the Church. St. Athanasius also affirmed the value of certain writings like the Didache and the Shepherd of Hermas for private edification, though not for inclusion in the canon.

Revered as the “Father of Orthodoxy,” St. Athanasius laid the foundation for Christological reflection in subsequent centuries. His work, “On the Incarnation”, remains one of the most profound theological treatises in the Christian tradition, extolling the mystery of the Word made flesh. His simple yet profound assertion, "God became man so that man might become god," encapsulates the heart of the Gospel—our theosis, or participation in the divine life through Christ.

St. Athanasius’ legacy is incalculable. By preserving the faith of Nicaea against overwhelming odds, he ensured that the true worship of Christ as God Incarnate endured within the Church. His writings profoundly influenced both Eastern and Western Christianity, shaping the theology of figures such as the Cappadocian Fathers, Augustine of Hippo, and even later Reformers. St. Athanasius’ unwavering fidelity to orthodoxy under persecution earned him the title “contra mundum” - “against the world.” Yet in truth, Athanasius was never alone; he stood with Christ, and Christ stood with him.

COLLECT

O Almighty and Everlasting God, who didst raise up thy servant Athanasius as a champion of thy truth and a defender of the faith against heresy: Grant, we beseech thee, that, like him, we may ever hold fast to the confession of thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, as very God of very God, begotten, not made; and may steadfastly proclaim his saving power, to the glory of thy holy Name; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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