Our Core Beliefs
This is a Paragraph. Click on "Edit Text" or double click on the text box to start editing the content and make sure to add any relevant details or information that you want to share with your visitors.
An Ancient Modern Christian Church
The Coptic Orthodox Church is the Christian church that was founded in Egypt. The Copts as the successors of the ancient Egyptians are defined as the modern sons of the Pharaohs. They played an essential role in the whole Christian world, especially during the first five centuries.
Their religious background helped them to accept Christianity with eagerness and to enjoy its depth through their ascetic life, meditation and studying of the Holy Scripture.
The Copts are proud of the apostolicity of their church, whose founder is St. Mark, one of the seventy Apostles (Mark 10:10), and one of the four Evangelists. He is regarded by the Coptic hierarchy as the first of their unbroken 118 patriarchs, and also the first of a stream of Egyptian martyrs.
The Church Is
Apostolic
The church was founded by Saint Mark the Apostle and Evangelist. He wrote the second gospel, and it was at his home that the Last Supper and Pentecost took place. He preached to the Egyptians around 60-70 A.D.
Biblical
The church’s main point of reference is the Holy Scripture, as depicted in literal translations such as King James (KJV), New King James (NJKV), and the Revised Standard Version (RSV). Although the Coptic Orthodox Church accepts any New Testament translation that is faithful to the Greek Textus Receptus translation, she prefers only the Septuagint (LXX) translation of the Old Testament and not the Masoretic text found in most Bibles today.
Traditional
One of the pillars of her faith is the teachings of the early Church Fathers as well as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed as a statement of Her Faith.
Sacramental
The church believes and conducts seven primary Mysteries: Baptism, Chrismation, Confession, the Eucharist (Communion), Marriage, Priesthood, and the Anointing of the Sick.
Conservative
The Coptic church does not change basic matters of Faith, Dogma or Tradition to suit current trends (this does not mean however that matters such as language and day-to day practices are not changed to suit conditions of ministry and the needs of the congregation). Holding on to such matters of Faith and practice has not been an easy task, as the Coptic Church has always lived persecution of one form or another since its establishment in the first century.