Some Fields of Pastoral Care

The Centennial Jubilee of the Theological Seminary

The Centennial Jubilee of the Theological Seminary

The Theological Seminary was founded during the time of Saint Mark the Apostle in the city of Alexandria around the year AD 62. It was the first theological school in the Christian world…

There came a period during which it was closed for certain reasons. Then it was re-established during the papacy of Pope Cyril V in the year 1893. Thus, in the coming year, one hundred years will have passed since its re-establishment, and the Church will celebrate its centennial jubilee.

His Holiness the Pope met with the Committees of Education, Doctrine, and Theology of the Holy Synod on Tuesday, April 28, 1992. The meeting was attended by 22 metropolitans and bishops, and the topic of discussion was the preparations for this great celebration beginning from now. The following decisions were reached:

1. The Seminary in Cairo and all its branches in Alexandria, Tanta, Shebin El-Kom, Minya, El-Balyana, and El-Muharraq Monastery shall submit comprehensive reports on their establishment, work, students, graduates, curricula, etc.
2. On the day of the jubilee, a great festival shall be held for the graduates of the Seminary and all its branches, whose number is approximately two thousand.
3. The Seminary branches in Sydney, Australia, and in Jersey and Los Angeles, USA, shall be invited to participate in this celebration.
4. Sashes shall be prepared for the graduates from all branches of the Theological Seminary.
5. Special medals shall be designed for this celebration and distributed to all graduates and to the guests of the celebration.
6. Another procession shall be held for all the professors and instructors of the Seminary, and they shall be awarded special medals.
7. Beginning now, the completion of Professor Habib Girgis’ book, The Seminary Between the Past and the Present, shall commence, as it reached the year 1938.
8. A tribute shall be held for the departed professors of the Seminary, from the days of Habib Girgis, Youssef Monqarius, Aqladius Labib, and Simeon Siledes, up to the most recent who reposed, His Grace Anba Yoannis, and before him His Grace Anba Samuel.
9. The Seminary book shall include a chapter on the institutes that branched out from the Seminary, such as the Didymus Institute, the Institute of Coptic Studies, the Bible Institute, and the Evangelism Institute in Kotseka….
10. The studies concerning the Seminary shall also include: the Seminary in the service of villages, Church education, and preaching; the Seminary and the defense of the faith; the Seminary in the fields of monasticism, the priesthood, and the Holy Synod; the Seminary and missionaries from abroad; the Seminary and journalism; the Seminary and a future outlook… and other subjects…
11. A secretariat committee was formed to collect information, consisting of His Grace Anba Abram, Bishop of Faiyum, together with Dr. Shaker Basilius, Deacon Maiz Guirgis, and Deacon Saeed Zakaria.
12. The centennial celebration of the Theological Seminary shall also include the establishment of a Coptic Book Exhibition, featuring books produced by the Seminary’s professors and graduates, in addition to other Coptic books, audio recordings, other publications in religious knowledge, as well as a complete library for children and their magazines.

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