Feast day · May 2
St. Athanasius
Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Born c. 296, AlexandriaDied 373, Alexandria
“God became man so that man might become god.”
Athanasius contra mundum: exiled five times for defending the divinity of Christ against Arianism.
The story
A deacon at Nicaea in 325, Athanasius became bishop of Alexandria and spent forty-five years defending the Council's teaching that the Son is consubstantial with the Father. Emperors exiled him five times, seventeen years in all; once he hid in the desert with the monks. He wrote On the Incarnation and the Life of Antony, and lived to see the faith he defended prevail.
What Athanasius teaches
One man faithful to the truth can hold the line for the whole Church.
Patronage
theologians, orthodoxy.
Prayer
St. Athanasius, defender of the faith, give us courage to hold fast to the truth about Christ whatever it costs. Amen.
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