14th October- Commemorating St Athanasius of Alexandria

Coptic icon of St Athanasius of Alexandria

The liturgical calendar of the Indian Orthodox Church commemorates the ‘Defender of Orthodoxy’- St Athanasius of Alexandra on October 14th.

There is a beautiful song penned by Guru Rabindranath Tagore in Bengali - “Jodi tor dak shune keu na ashe tobe ekla cholo re” (translated as ‘If no one responds to your call, then go on your way alone’). 

This song exhorts the listener to continue their journey even if they face abandonment or don’t receive any support from near and dear ones.

Today we commemorate a man whose very life echoes this song- St Athanasius of Alexandria. For his steadfastness to the Christian faith, the world described him by the saying: "Athanasius against the world." (‘Athanasius contra mundum’). 
When it seemed that the entire world was siding upto Arian heresy, God prepared one man- to act courageously, to act alone, and hold aloft the banner of Orthodoxy!

The following tradition on the childhood of St Athanasius has a vague resemblance to the life of Prophet Samuel and how in his infancy he lived under the care of priest Eli and later on guided the people of Israel.

The then Pope of Alexandrian Church- Pope Alexandros after being elevated to the Patriarchal throne invited all the clergy to his patriarchal palace. (In fact Arius wanted the patriarchal throne for himself, however through Divine Guidance it was St Alexandros who was chosen for the apostolic throne. Arius, full of vengeance was determined to go to any extent to inflict harm on the Church).

While Pope Alexandros was waiting for the arrival of his guests, he looked out from the windows of his palace which faced the sea, and saw a joyful gathering of children on the beach. Upon closer observation, the Pope noted that the children were seriously imitating the sacrament of Holy Baptism. One child was ‘made the bishop’ who was administering the Sacrament with much devotion. This child was none other than Athanasius!

The Pope was astonished to see how perfect and beautifully were the children ‘performing’ the sacrament. He summoned some clergy and asked them to bring the children to the Patriarchal Palace. With much love and care, Pope Alexandros interacted with the children and inquired them of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism that they were imitating. The ‘bishop’ Athanasius came forward and answered all the questions. The Pope was amazed at the knowledge of Christian Faith that this child possessed. He gave sweets to the little children and asked them to bring their parents to him the next day.

The next day when the parents of the little children came to the Patriarchal palace, the Pope gave an account of what happened the previous day and made them promise that they would give to the Church such sons who had prematurely exercised such holy functions. It is in this way, that Athanasius, who was so eager to serve God, took his place among the clergy, in the same way that the prophet Samuel was brought up in the temple. He lived there during the years of his youth, and he was destined to wear the pontifical crown in his old years.

As the trusted secretary of the Pope of Alexandria (who was advanced in years during the Council of Nicaea), the young deacon Athanasius (now in his twenties) was zealous in upholding the True Christian faith. The magnificence courtroom of Emperor Constantine witnessed the significant Ecumenical Council- The Council of Nicaea attended by 318 venerable fathers. In the midst of these noteworthy individuals, there spoke this young brilliant deacon, defending the Divinity of Lord Christ against the heretic Arius.

St Athanasius endured all the harassment and trials that Arius and his team came up with- false accusations, lies, character assassinations and so on.After the departure of Pope Alexandros, St Athanasius was chosen as the worthy successor to the apostolic throne. Suffering five exiles and various tribulations by Arians, St Athanasius was indeed the caring shepherd who was ready to undergo and face any misery to protect his sheep from the incorrect doctrines and false teachers. 

In one of his exiles, he spent time with the blessed Anthony and other desert monastics. St Antony willed that after he died, St Athanasius be given one of his sheepskins. St Athanasius reminisces that ‘even to look on them (the sheepskin) is as it were to behold Antony’.

The contribution of St Athanasius to the theological world is immense. His work ‘On the Incarnation’ is a classic. He also wrote ‘The Life of St Antony’ and many other treatises.

The faithful shepherd departed in peace after a tenure of 45 years on the apostolic throne.

Below are his final words from the work ‘On the Incarnation’; may we be blessed with the grace to follow this holy father’s advice:

“But for the searching and right understanding of the Scriptures there is need of a good life and a pure soul, and for Christian virtue to guide the mind to grasp, so far as human nature can, the truth concerning God the Word. One cannot possibly understand the teaching of the saints unless one has a pure mind and is trying to imitate their life.”

O holy father St Athanasius, pray for us- particularly the children and youth that their hearts be directed towards the loving call of the Lord and may they grow in zeal and love for the Lord. May the prayers and intercessions of St Athanasius be our refuge.

In Christ,
Rincy John

(Ref: ‘St Alexandros’- Works of late Deacon Youssef Habib Youssef & his brother Meleka Habib Youssef, Pg 11-12; St Athanasius- ‘On the Incarnation’)