Abuna (or Abune , which is the status constructus form used when a name follows: Ge'ez አቡነ abuna / abune , 'our father'; Amharic and Tigrinya ) is the honorific title used for any bishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church as well as of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church . It was historically used solely for the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Ethiopia during the more than 1000 years when the Coptic Patriarchate of Alexandria appointed only one bishop at a time to serve its Ethiopian flock. When referred to without a name following, it is Abun , and if a name follows, it becomes Abuna (e.g., Abuna Paulos ).
31-783: Historically the Abun of the Ethiopian Church was appointed by the Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa , who had diocesan authority over Ethiopia and the rest of Africa, at the request of the Emperor and, in historic times, after paying a substantial fee to the Muslim government for the privilege. The Abun would be selected from the membership of the Monastery of Saint Anthony . Although several Abuns might be appointed at one time,
62-582: A priest . The title is used either by itself or with the priest's given name (for example, 'Abuna Tauma' for 'Father Thomas'). This title is not used in self-reference, rather the priest would refer to himself as al-Ab ( الأب al-ʾAb , literally 'the father'). Coptic Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria The following is a list of all of the Coptic Orthodox popes who have led the Coptic Orthodox Church and have succeeded
93-487: A direct line of laying on of hands from the apostles, a claim that they accept can be made by the other churches in this group. The Anglican Communion , as well as many Lutheran Churches such as the Church of Sweden , likewise teach the doctrine of apostolic succession. Other Christian denominations, on the other hand, usually hold that what preserves apostolic continuity is the written word: as Bruce Milne put it, "A church
124-636: A request in 1140 to appoint enough to consecrate a metropolitan was refused. The candidate frequently lacked knowledge of the native language and even the local customs of the Ethiopian church. As a result, most Abuns had a minimal influence on both Ethiopian religion and politics. His authority eventually was filled in ecclesiastical matters by the Ichege or Abbot of the Monastery of Debre Libanos in Shewa,
155-620: A special purpose by and for God . The Church is holy because it has been set apart to do God's work, and because God is present in it. Christians understand the holiness of the Church to derive from Christ's holiness. The word catholic is derived from the Ancient Greek adjective καθολικός ( romanized : katholikos ), meaning "general", "universal". It is associated with the Greek adverb καθόλου ( katholou ), meaning "according to
186-590: Is John, with 19 popes taking this name. There have also been 25 papal names that have only been used once. The number of all popes to the present is 118. Four Marks of the Church The Four Marks of the Church , also known as the Attributes of the Church , describes four distinctive adjectives of traditional Christian ecclesiology as expressed in the Nicene Creed completed at
217-548: Is held since 2012 by Pope Tawadros II , the 118th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of all Africa on the Holy See of St. Mark . The Oriental Orthodox believe that they are the "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic" Church of the ancient Christian creeds. To this date 92 of the Coptic Popes have been glorified , i.e., canonized as saints , in the Coptic Orthodox Church . The title "pope" (in Greek, Papás ) originally
248-418: Is with Christ" ( 1 Cor. 12:12 ). In Eph. 4:5–6 , Paul writes: "There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." This list of factors making Christians one body, one church, is doubtless not meant to be exhaustive, says Francis A. Sullivan , but it affirms
279-822: The Church Fathers and the sacred tradition . The Augsburg Confession found within the Book of Concord , a compendium of belief of the Lutheran Churches , teaches that "the faith as confessed by Luther and his followers is nothing new, but the true catholic faith, and that their churches represent the true catholic or universal church." When the Lutherans presented the Augsburg Confession to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in 1530, they believe to have "showed that each article of faith and practice
310-522: The First Council of Constantinople in 381 as an antidote to certain heresies that had crept into the Church in its early history. There the Council elaborated on the Nicene Creed , established by the First Council of Nicaea 56 years before by adding to the end a section that included the affirmation: "[We believe] in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church." The phrase remains in versions of
341-938: The First Council of Constantinople in AD 381: "[We believe] in one , holy, catholic , and apostolic Church." This ecumenical creed is today recited in the liturgies of the Eastern Orthodox Church , the Roman Catholic Church (both Latin and Eastern Rites ), the Oriental Orthodox Churches , the Assyrian Church of the East , the Moravian Church , the Lutheran Churches , the Methodist Churches ,
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#1732773159302372-702: The Presbyterian Churches , the Anglican Communion , and by members of the Reformed Churches , although they interpret it in very different ways, and some Protestants alter the word "Catholic" in the creed, replacing it with the word "Christian". While many doctrines, based on both tradition and different interpretations of the Bible , distinguish one denomination from another (largely explaining why there are many different ones),
403-509: The 16th-century Protestant Reformation "do not enjoy apostolic succession in the sacrament of Orders , and are, therefore, deprived of a constituent element of the Church." The Eastern Orthodox Church , in disagreement with the Catholic Church, regards itself as the historical and organic continuation of the original Church founded by Christ and his apostles . The Oriental Orthodox Church disagrees with both and claims to be
434-735: The Apostle Mark the Evangelist in the office of Bishop of Alexandria , who founded the Church in the 1st century, and marked the beginning of Christianity in Africa . The Coptic Orthodox Church is one of the Oriental Orthodox churches (not to be confused with the Byzantine Orthodox group of churches) and is presided over by the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria who is the body's spiritual leader. This position
465-566: The Church as spread throughout the world but also to each local manifestation of the Church, in each of which nothing essential is lacking for it to be the genuine body of Christ. For his subjects, Roman Emperor Theodosius I restricted the term "catholic Christians" to believers in "the one deity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, in equal majesty and in a holy Trinity ", and applied
496-413: The Church of Christ with the Catholic Church". While "there are numerous elements of sanctification and of truth which are found outside her structure", these, "as gifts properly belonging to the Church of Christ, impel towards Catholic Unity". The eastern Churches not in full communion with the Catholic Church thereby "lack something in their condition as particular Churches ". The communities born out of
527-543: The Four Marks represent a summary of what many clergy and theologians have historically considered to be the most important affirmations of Christianity. The ideas behind the Four Marks have been in the Christian Church since early Christianity . Allusions to them can be found in the writings of 2nd-century early Church Father and bishop Ignatius of Antioch . They were not established in doctrine until
558-755: The Nicene Creed. In some languages, for example, German, the Latin " catholica " was substituted by "Christian" before the Reformation by some, although this was an anomaly and continues in use by some Protestant churches. Hence, "holy catholic " becomes "holy Christian ." Catholics believe the description "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church" to be applicable only to the Catholic Church . They hold that " Christ established here on earth only one Church" and they believe in "the full identity of
589-535: The death of Abuna Qerellos IV , the last Copt to lead the Church of Ethiopia. The first Patriarch of Ethiopia was Abuna Basilios , who was consecrated 14 January 1951. The current Patriarch of Ethiopia is Abune Mathias , who succeeded Abune Paulos upon his death August 16, 2012. Abuna ( Syriac : ܐܒܘܢܐ Abuna , Arabic : أبونا ʾabūnā , literally 'our father') is also a title used among Syriac Christians , Coptic Christians , Antiochian Arab Christians , Melkite Catholics , and Maronite Christians to refer to
620-687: The difference and have been corrected. In other cases, calendar differences between the Julian and the Gregorian calendars have caused some confusion. Dioscorus I served as Patriarch of Alexandria since 444 until he was deposed and exiled by the Council of Chalcedon in 451, but he was still recognized as the Coptic Pope until his death in 454. 15 January 1271 – 21 April 1293 (29 years, 1 month, 8 days) The most frequently used papal name
651-464: The historical and organic continuation of the original Church founded by Christ and his apostles , the "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic" Church of the ancient Christian creeds and the only Church that has always kept the true Christology and faith declared by the first three councils, the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople, and the Council of Ephesus affirmed by
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#1732773159302682-521: The local church in Jerusalem but the same church that he addresses at the beginning of that letter as "the church of God that is in Corinth" ( 1 Cor. 1:2 ). In the same letter, he tells Christians: "You are the body of Christ and individually members of it" ( 1 Cor. 12:27 ), and declares that, "just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it
713-558: The name " heretics " to others ( Edict of Thessalonica of 27 February 380). This describes the Church's foundation and beliefs as rooted and continuing in the living tradition of the apostles of Jesus. The Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches, and the Assyrian Church of the East each claim to have preserved the original teaching of the apostles. They also have apostolic succession in that their bishops derive their authority through
744-559: The oneness of the body, the Church, through what Christians have in common—what they have communion in. Elsewhere, Paul says: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female , for you are all one in Christ Jesus" ( Gal. 3:28 ). This statement was about Christians as individuals, but it applied to them also as groups, as local church, whether composed mainly of Jewish or Gentile Christians. The word holy in this sense means set apart for
775-510: The patriarchs of the Byzantine Orthodox church after the split with the Oriental Orthodox church, see List of Greek Orthodox Patriarchs of Alexandria . Not all of the dates given are certain. The dates below are according to the Gregorian calendar . Some of the dates disagree with those given in Coptic publications such as The English Katameros . In some cases, publication errors caused
806-553: The sole possessor of this particular title in Ethiopia. (This title is now customarily held by the patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.) Visitors to Ethiopia at this time, such as Francisco Álvares in the 16th century, and Remedius Prutky in the 18th century, were amazed at the mass ordination of deacons and priests with little more than a wave of the cross and a prayer, which
837-458: The west to Constantinople in the east, to his guidance. Within the denomination, it is the most powerful designation, for all monks in the East to voluntarily follow his spiritual authority, and it is said that it should be assumed that he is a bearer of Christ. For the Patriarchs of Alexandria prior to the schism after the Council of Chalcedon , see List of Patriarchs of Alexandria . For
868-524: The whole", "entirely", or "in general", a combination of the preposition κατά meaning "according to" and the adjective ὅλος meaning "whole". Applied to the Church, the adjective "catholic" means that in the Church the wholeness of the Christian faith, full and complete, all-embracing, and with nothing lacking, is proclaimed to all people without excluding any part of the faith or any class or group of people. The adjective can be applied not only to
899-416: Was a form of address meaning 'Father' used by several bishops. The first known record of this designation was Heraclas , the 13th Archbishop of Alexandria (232–249). The Alexandrian usage of the honorific does not conflict with the usage in reference to the bishop of Rome . The full ecclesiastical title is Papa Abba, and the person who bears it stands for the devotion of all monastics, from Pentapolis in
930-757: Was the Abun' s principal duty. After many centuries, Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, the last reigning Oriental Christian monarch in the world, reached an agreement with the Coptic Orthodox Church in Alexandria, Egypt, on 13 July 1948. This led to the promotion of the Church of Ethiopia to the rank of an autocephalous Patriarchate . Five bishops were immediately consecrated by the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria. They later elected an Ethiopian patriarch for their church following
961-583: Was true first of all to Holy Scripture, and then also to the teaching of the church fathers and the councils." As such, the Lutheran Churches traditionally hold that theirs represents the true visible Church . This mark derives from the Pauline epistles , which state that the Church is "one". In 1 Cor. 15:9 , Paul the Apostle spoke of himself as having persecuted "the church of God", not just