Anastasius of Alexandria

Pope Anastasius of Alexandria, 36th Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark. During his reign, despite being barred from the city of Alexandria, he met with the Patriarch of Antioch as they worked to arrange the unification of their two churches.

Life He was one of the great noblemen of Alexandria. Before he became a Pope, he was an overseer of the patriarchal court, then he became a priest for the church of Alexandria. Shortly afterward, he was unanimously selected by the bishops and clergy of the Coptic Church to succeed Pope Damian of Alexandria as Patriarch. His biography was written by Severus Ibn al-Muqaffa in his History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria. His name does not appear in the standard biographical dictionaries of the Christian church. One possible reason for this omission is the fact that, as indicated in the History, the influence of the Council of Chalcedon's decisions was very strong at the time, both in Alexandria and in the court of Constantinople.

Not only were Coptic bishops of this time not officially recognized, they were also forbidden to enter Alexandria. The Coptic church in Alexandria was understandably troubled by this arrangement, which was instituted under the reign of Tiberius II Constantine, and his local adjutant named Belisarius. This persecution continued after the death of Tiberius under his son, Maurice. After the murder of Maurice by Phocas, who had overthrown him earlier, the situation deteriorated still further. A citizen of Alexandria who adhered to the Council of Chalcedon's edicts, Eulogius of Alexandria, wrote a defamatory letter to Phocas regarding Anastasius. Phocas responded by issuing an order to his prefect in Alexandria that the important church of Cosmas and Damian, and all its dependent churches, be turned over to Eulogius,