Athanasius
Birth :- 293 AD
Death : 373 AD
Native Place : Alexandria
Country : Egypt
Place of Vision: Egypt
Athanasius was the chief defender of Christian orthodoxy in the 4th century battle against Arianism, the heresy that the Son of God was a creature of like, but not of the same, substance as God the Father. Athanasius received his philosophical and theological training at Alexandria. Followed by the death of the Bishop Alexander of Alexandria, he was appointed the Bishop of Alexandria. He was exiled five times by four Roman emperors for his defense of the doctrine of Christ’s divinity, spending 17 of the 45 years he served as bishop of Alexandria in exile.
Athanasius’ theological defense of the full divinity of Christ against the position taken up by Arius helped in the development of Christian faith among the people. Though initially, Athanasius thought that the battle against Arianism would be easily won, such did not prove to be the case. The Council of Tyre was called for various reasons and Emperor Constantine exiled Athanasius to northern Gaul. This was to be the first in a series of travels and exiles reminiscent of the life of Saint Paul.
After the death of Constantine, his son restored Athanasius as the Bishop which only lasted for a year as he was again deposed by a coalition of Arian bishops. His time in exile was spent in writing, mostly defending the orthodoxy. Finally, when he was back in Alexandria he wrote letters to the churches in his diocese to fix the dates of important festivals like Lent and Easter. Through these letters, he shared what he believed to be the books that constitute the New Testament. He also published two-part works of apologetics: Against the Heathen and The Incarnation of the Word of God. His writings were directed against every aspect of Arianism.
His tireless energy in the defense of his convictions of the Christian faith and the freedom of the church earned him a prominent place in the history of the Church.
