Sophia Scriptura

Athanasius of Alexandria

Ἀθανάσιος Ἀλεξανδρείας · Athanasius Alexandrinus

Athanasius was bishop of Alexandria for over 45 years, most of them under threat of exile, and the leading defender of the Nicene formula that the Son is of one substance (homoousios) with the Father against successive waves of Arian and Arianizing theology. He also wrote an influential Life of Antony and is an important early witness to the New Testament canon.

Dates
ca. 296 – 373 (approximate)
See or city
Alexandria
Region
Egypt
Also known as
Athanasius; Athanasius the Great; Athanasius the Apostolic
Notes
Bishop of Alexandria from 328, and the chief opponent of Arianism after the Council of Nicaea (325), which he may have attended as a deacon. Exiled five times by successive emperors over his refusal to compromise with Arian or pro-Arian churchmen. His account of Nicene orthodoxy, and his role in defining the New Testament canon (Festal Letter 39, 367), gave him lasting influence.

Works