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Henrik wrote:

Hi, guys —

Pax et bonum.

I have heard people argue that St. Anthony the Abbot was a Coptic Orthodox Christian and therefore it is very weird that the Catholic Church views him as a Catholic saint.

For me it is very difficult to understand how both Orthodox and Catholics can have the same saints. The early saints seem to be important to all different churches, not just the church they belonged to.

  • What would you say about this?

Henrik

  { How can the Church Church view St. Anthony the Abbot as a Coptic Orthodox Christian and a saint? }

John replied:

Hi, Henrik —

Thanks for the question.

St. Anthony the Abbot was a Coptic Christian, but the Coptic Church had not gone into schism during the time he lived. It was in full communion with and part of the Catholic Church.

He died in 356 A.D. The Coptic Church went in Schism in 451 A.D. after the Council of Chalcedon when they rejected the current Christological definition or dogma of the Hypostatic Union.

Nevertheless, to this day, there is a Coptic Rite in the Catholic Church and those in the Coptic Rite, would call themselves Coptic Christians, as well as Catholics.

There are some that are in union with Rome and some that are not, but as far as Anthony is concerned, he predates the schism, hence he is revered by both faiths.

John

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