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Apostolic & Patristic · Saint
St Cyril of Alexandria
Patriarch of Alexandria
Church FatherDoctor of the ChurchConfessor
c. 376 – 444
unknown
Ordained
412
Consecrated Bishop
Alexandria
Diocese
Egypt
Country
The Life
St Cyril of Alexandria succeeded his uncle Theophilus as Patriarch of Alexandria in 412 and became the foremost theologian of the Incarnation in the early Church. A Doctor of the Church, he is called the 'Seal of the Fathers.'
His defense of the title Theotokos ('Mother of God') against Nestorius led to the Council of Ephesus in 431, where Cyril presided and Nestorius was condemned. His Christology shaped the Church's confession of the one divine Person of Christ.
Notable Actions
- Led the condemnation of Nestorianism and defended the title Theotokos
- Presided over the Council of Ephesus (431), which deposed Nestorius
- Wrote the Twelve Anathemas against Nestorius and major Christological treatises
- Authored extensive biblical commentaries, earning the title 'Seal of the Fathers'
- Declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIII in 1883
If anyone does not confess that Emmanuel is truly God, and that the holy Virgin is therefore Mother of God, let him be anathema.
First Anathema against Nestorius, 431Portrait: Rabe! / Wikimedia Commons