Article
What Is the Coptic Orthodox Church?
The Coptic Orthodox Church says St Mark founded it in Egypt about 48. It confesses the Trinity and Christ perfect in divinity and perfect in humanity, and it accepts three councils. Chalcedon’s definition says two natures. Both wordings are quoted. This page does not decide.
On This Page
The Coptic Orthodox Church says St Mark the Evangelist founded it in Egypt about 48, and that it is the Church of Alexandria, named at Nicaea in 325 as one of four ancient sees. It confesses one God and the Holy Trinity, and it says Christ is perfect in his divinity and perfect in his humanity. It accepts the councils of Nicaea, Constantinople, and Ephesus, and not Chalcedon. Chalcedon’s definition says the one Christ is acknowledged in two natures. Both wordings are below. This page does not decide between them.
Key Points
- The church’s own page says it was founded by St Mark in about 48, when he came to Egypt, and that Nicaea in 325 named Alexandria with Jerusalem, Rome, and Antioch. (1)
- The same page says they believe in one God and the Holy Trinity, and that the Lord Jesus Christ is perfect in his divinity and perfect in his humanity. It accepts Nicaea (325), Constantinople (381), and Ephesus (431).
- It lists seven sacraments, baptism by immersion including infants, and the Eucharist as the holy body and the holy blood. It says divorce may be permitted for adultery and for apostasy, and that they believe in monogamy and reject polygamy.
- Their page on the councils says the Coptic Church believes in three councils only. It says the Greek Orthodox add Chalcedon (451), Constantinople (553), Constantinople (680–681), and Nicaea (787). (3)
- Their page on Dioscorus rejects terminology of two natures and keeps a one-nature formula for the incarnate Logos. The sentence is quoted below. (2)
- The definition of Chalcedon, in Tanner’s English on a third-party site, says the one Christ is acknowledged in two natures, without confusion, change, division, or separation. What Happened at the Council of Nicaea? The Oriental Orthodox shelf lists the church’s own pages.
Where They Say the Church Began
The Coptic Orthodox Church’s page says: (1)
The Coptic Orthodox Church was founded by St. Mark the Evangelist in about 48 AD when he came to Egypt.
It says the church is one of the oldest apostolic churches, also called the Church of Alexandria, and that the canons of Nicaea in 325 mention it as one of four ancient apostolic churches, with Jerusalem, Rome, and Antioch. It says Mark was martyred in Egypt in 68, and that the Copts celebrate his feast on 8 May. The head of the church is called the pope and is considered the successor of Mark. The clergy are bishops, priests, and deacons.
It says Athanasius, the twentieth pope of Alexandria, was the main author of the Nicene Creed. It says Timothy, the twenty-second, was instrumental in the portion of the creed about the Holy Spirit at Constantinople in 381. It says Cyril, the twenty-fourth, chaired Ephesus in 431. What Happened at the Council of Nicaea? quotes the 325 creed. When Was Christianity Created? is Pentecost, before these councils.
The same page says Mark established a school of theology in Alexandria, and it names Clement and Origen among its scholars. It says the Copts have remained in the faith Mark preached.
What They Confess About Christ
Their articles of faith include this sentence: (1)
We believe that Our Lord Jesus Christ is perfect in His Divinity and perfect in His Humanity.
They also say they believe in one God and the Holy Trinity, in the Nicene Creed, and in the three councils named above. They say they believe in the innerancy of the Holy Bible, Old and New Testaments, and they quote 2 Timothy 3:16. “Innerancy” is the spelling on their page. They say tradition is a source of their teaching, that faith without works is dead, and that they believe in the second coming.
That Trinity confession is the Nicene faith. The Trinity What Is the Deity of Christ? The dispute with Chalcedon, below, is about how the divinity and the humanity are confessed after the union. It is not a denial of the sentence that Christ is perfect in both.
Which Councils They Accept
Their councils page says the Coptic Orthodox Church and the family it names with itself believe in three councils only. (3)
Nicaea in 325, it says, was called by Constantine because of Arius, the Alexandrian priest, who called for the Son to be less than the Father. Constantinople in 381 was called by Theodosius because of Macedonius, who proclaimed that the Holy Spirit was created. Ephesus in 431 was called by Theodosius the Younger because of Nestorius, patriarch of Constantinople, who proclaimed that Christ was two persons and two hypostases, separating the divine and human natures.
The same page says the Greek Orthodox, in addition, believe in four other councils as ecumenical: Chalcedon in 451, the second of Constantinople in 553, the third of Constantinople in 680–681, and the second of Nicaea in 787. It says the Catholic Church recognizes twenty-one ecumenical councils. What Does the Eastern Orthodox Church Believe? quotes the Eastern Orthodox reception of the seven councils. What Do Catholics Believe? is the Catholic list’s setting. This page does not rank the counts.
Chalcedon, in Their Words and in the Definition
Their page on Pope Dioscorus I says that in 451 the Council of Chalcedon was convened, and that Pope Leo I of Rome declared the doctrine of the two natures of Jesus Christ. It says: (2)
Pope Dioscorus denied any terminology that refer to two wills or two natures of Jesus Christ and held onto “The one nature of God the incarnate Logos”
“That refer” is the verb on their page. The same page says he was exiled to the island of Gangra and died after five years.
The definition promulgated at Chalcedon, in Norman Tanner’s English as published on papalencyclicals.net, says the council teaches one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, perfect in divinity and perfect in humanity, truly God and truly man, consubstantial with the Father as regards his divinity and consubstantial with us as regards his humanity. It says he is “acknowledged in two natures which undergo no confusion, no change, no division, no separation,” and that the property of both natures is preserved and comes together into a single person and a single subsistent being. He is not parted or divided into two persons. (4) The same text anathematizes those who concoct two natures of the Lord before the union but imagine a single one after the union.
Papalencyclicals.net is a third-party host of that English. It is not the Coptic Orthodox Church’s site, and it is not a Holy See edition. The Coptic pages above are the church’s own wording. The two accounts agree that Christ is perfect in divinity and perfect in humanity. They do not agree on the phrase “two natures” after the union. The Coptic sentence is one nature of God the incarnate Logos. The Chalcedonian sentence is two natures in one person, without confusion or separation. What Is the Incarnation? is the Christian claim that the Son took a human nature and remained God. This page does not issue a verdict on the fifth-century wording.
Baptism, the Eucharist, and Marriage
Their faith page lists seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Confession, Eucharist, Priesthood, Marriage, and Anointing of the Sick. It says that in baptism they are buried with Christ and raised with him, so they baptize by immersion, and that they believe in infant baptism. It says that in the Eucharist they receive the holy body and the holy blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
On marriage it says divorce may be permitted for adultery, citing Matthew 5:32, and for apostasy, citing 1 Corinthians 7:15. It says they believe in monogamy and reject polygamy. It says they believe in the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the angels, and the saints.
The pages quoted here do not state a date for Christmas, a rule about tattoos, a rule about cousin marriage, or a sentence that uses a modern orientation category. What they do publish about marriage is monogamy, and divorce in the two cases they name.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do Copts Differ From the Eastern Orthodox?
Their councils page says they accept three councils, and that the Greek Orthodox add four, including Chalcedon in 451. Their Dioscorus page holds to one nature of God the incarnate Logos. The Chalcedonian definition says two natures in one person. What Does the Eastern Orthodox Church Believe? Eastern Orthodox Oriental Orthodox
Are Copts Orthodox Christians?
They call themselves the Coptic Orthodox Church. They confess the Trinity and the Nicene Creed, and they reject Chalcedon. The family name on this site is Oriental Orthodox. The Eastern Orthodox shelf is the churches that receive the seven councils.
Do They Believe Jesus Is God?
Their page says Christ is perfect in his divinity and perfect in his humanity, and that they believe in one God and the Holy Trinity. Athanasius, they say, defended the divinity of Christ and was the main author of the Nicene Creed. The Chalcedon dispute is about the wording of the natures, quoted above, not about whether they confess that divinity.
Do They Baptize Infants?
Their page says they believe in infant baptism, and that they baptize by immersion.
What Do They Say About Marriage?
They say they believe in monogamy and reject polygamy, and that divorce may be permitted for adultery and for apostasy. The pages quoted here do not go beyond those sentences.
References
- What is the Coptic Orthodox Church? (Coptic Orthodox Church. Mark about 48, the Nicene faith, three councils, seven sacraments, and Christ perfect in divinity and perfect in humanity.)
- Pope Dioscorus I (Coptic Orthodox Church. Chalcedon in 451, and Dioscorus holding to one nature of God the incarnate Logos.)
- The Ecumenical Councils (Coptic Orthodox Church. Three councils only. The Greek Orthodox add four, including Chalcedon. The Catholic Church recognizes twenty-one.)
- Council of Chalcedon (English of the definition, from Norman P. Tanner, as published on papalencyclicals.net. That site is a third-party host, not the Coptic Orthodox Church and not a Vatican edition.)