St. Athanasius

For John, BLUF:  The Church Fathers were very important in sorting out the orthodox from the heretical and heterodox.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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From Gospel Reflections (gospelintro@aol.com).

Here is the lede plus three:

St. Athanasius is one of the four great Eastern Doctors of the Church in the Catholic Church.  In the Eastern Orthodox Church, he is labeled as the "Father of Orthodoxy".  Some Protestants label him as "Father of the Canon".  His feast day is 2 May in Western Christianity, 15 May in the Coptic Orthodox Church, and 18 January in the other Eastern Orthodox Churches.  He is venerated by the Oriental and Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Catholic Church, the Lutheran churches, and the Anglican Communion.

St. Athanasius was the 20th bishop of Alexandria.  His episcopate spanned 45 years, 17 of which were spent in five exiles on the order of four different Roman emperors.  Athanasius was a Christian theologian, a Church Father, the chief defender of Trinitarianism against Arianism, and a noted Egyptian leader of the fourth century.

In 325, at the age of 27, Athanasius began his leading role against the Arians as a deacon and assistant to Bishop Alexander of Alexandria during the First Council of Nicaea, convened by Emperor Constantine the Great.

Three years after that council, Athanasius succeeded his mentor as archbishop of Alexandria.  His writings were well regarded by the Church fathers in the West and the East, who noted their rich devotion to the Word-become-man, great pastoral concern and profound interest in monasticism.

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Regards  —  Cliff