Who is our Pope?
Author: Yitzhak
Who is our pope?
The Coptic pope is Pope Tawadros II, who is the spiritual leader of the Coptic Orthodox faith where he is an administrator that lives the faith and keeps it pure for this generation and the next generation.
Pope Tawadros II is the 118th pope and patriarch of the Sea of Alexandria, which means that he is the direct successor of St. Mark (one of the authors of the Gospels – you remember Matthew, MARK, Luke and John?) and 117 men were popes before him.
Who is St. Mark?
Four prominent people wrote the New Testament in the Bible: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Mark in particular not only wrote the gospel named after himself but was also mentioned in the New Testament a few times. History states that after Jesus left earth that St. Mark went to Egypt, specifically to the busy and bustling city of Alexandria, to preach the ‘Word’. St. Mark stayed there for approximately 35 years until he was martyred. He built the first church there, he built up the first Christian community springing out of Alexandria. Those first Christians needed another leader to Shepard the people and to protect the truth. A man named Anianus was chosen who became the 2nd Pope of Alexandria after St Mark. Continuing on what the Copts call the ’Apostolic tradition’ which is the unbroken link to St. Mark up until Pope Tawadros II was ordained the 118th pope in 2012.
So what does the pope actually do?
The pope first and foremost usually is a bishop* – so his life is dedicated to God and serving His will. He then spends the rest of the time divided up amongst collectively and individually helping people get closer to God. He is a bishop who other bishops, the Orthodox usually refer to this as “The first amongst equals” just like Peter was just a disciple but he was the leader of the disciples.
As Copts we always say that the pope that is elected is the one that we need at that time. The best examples were the last three popes: In the 60s and 70s people were starting to turn away from the Church due to the growing influence of the western world and Egypt was struggling with national turmoil – the people needed someone to remind them once again of God’s existence in their lives. Pope Kyrillos 6th was elected on 1959and was known for the gift of miracles God granted him.
Many books have been written by people who were healed by him, learning a future prophecy by him – which was commonplace too – and other miracles that he did almost every day. (see the low bar for links below) He brought many people back to the Church. Many eyewitnesses saw these miracles first hand! One of these witnesses is the grandfather of this article’s author. When the pope passed away, another humble but powerful man of God was elected: Pope Shenouda III. He was a man of the people, who guided the church and expanded the church to lands of immigration such as Australia, NZ, America and Europe.This time of mass immigration of the Copts out of Egypt needed to be handled with care to ensure that the spiritual lives were still being saved. With very limited resources, he fostered growth around the world from the Netherlands to Australia, which numerous books that helped strengthen the faith in times of temptationHe was a humble man, but one who was strong and smart. He suffered through 4 years of house arrest and still never complained once.Pope Shenouda III passed away in 2012. The next pope that was elected is our current Pope Tawadros II, who still young in his tenure, but has begun the education and teaching process for the next generation, which is what the church needs. May God bless his life and his papacy.
Can I be a pope?
If you’re female: no, if you’re male, then you can be pope only if you’ve been baptized Orthodox Christian – so that’s the technical part of it. The popes come from all walks of life, but they all should be of good character, no given into to gambling, drugs or alcohol, loves God and lives the Bible every day. For many centuries the popes have been elected from monasteries which is a traditional thing. The monks are selected and then go through a selection process (check this out on Youtube)
The background is checked and the best men are whittled down to the last three orthodox men who are suitable for being Pope following the Apostolic tradition, they then write the three names on three separate pieces of paper and put it in a jar on the altar for God to choose just like they did for Matthew in Acts Acts 1:12–26. A child, who represents innocence, puts his hand in the jar and takes out a name written on paper in front of everyone. This is done three times, and right then and there through the liturgy, he becomes pope. They are then poped for life until they quit, are removed or die. In the history of the Coptic church, only 1 of the 118 has been released.
Why is the pope so important?
The most crucial part is that he is the Sheppard of the people, to lead them towards Christ, he is our general on earth in the spiritual warfare we call life.. He is the leader and the decision-maker on Church matters. Things that could be grey areas that need clarification such as our stance on euthanasia, abortion and gay marriage, for example, are all signed off by the pope. Jesus knew that the people needed strong leadership, one who was gentle and loving but was strong and smart, so as much like Himself as humanly possible. He started with Peter, the first amongst equals of the disciples – everyone remembers this verse: “Whatever you bind on earth, will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth, will be loosed in heaven.” Peter then built the church. He took command on Jesus’ instructions and sent St. Mark to Egypt, and as time went on Jesus’ words came true, no matter the oppression the church faced, the gates of hades will not prevail against it.
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