The early church

Athanasius of Alexandria

c. 296 to 373 · Alexandria, Egypt

Athanasius of Alexandria (c. 296 to 373) was an Egyptian bishop who, more than any other single figure, secured the church’s confession that Jesus Christ is fully God. Present as a young deacon at the Council of Nicaea in 325, he spent the rest of his life defending its faith against Arianism, which held that the Son was a created being. Exiled five times for his stand, he gave rise to the phrase Athanasius against the world.

Life and context

Athanasius became bishop of Alexandria in 328. The great dispute of his age was started by Arius, a priest who taught that the Son of God was a created being, ‘there was a time when he was not.’ The Council of Nicaea in 325 rejected this, confessing the Son to be of one substance (homoousios) with the Father. Athanasius held that ground for the rest of his life, even as several emperors favored the Arian party. He was driven from his see and into exile five times, spending roughly seventeen years away from Alexandria, before dying there in 373. The Nicene faith he defended was reaffirmed at the Council of Constantinople in 381.

What he taught and wrote

His classic work, On the Incarnation, argues that God the Son truly became human in order to rescue humanity, in the memorable summary that God became man so that we might be brought to God. He also wrote the Life of Antony, which spread monasticism across the empire, and in his Festal Letter of 367 he listed the twenty-seven books of the New Testament exactly as the church came to receive them.

What his witness points us to

Athanasius fought so hard for one reason: if Jesus is not truly God, he cannot truly save. A created savior could not bridge the gap between God and us. His life points to the heart of the Christian faith, that in Jesus the eternal God himself came near to make us his own.

Frequently asked questions

Who was Athanasius of Alexandria?

Athanasius (c. 296 to 373) was the bishop of Alexandria who defended the full divinity of Jesus Christ against Arianism. He was exiled five times for his stand and is remembered by the phrase 'Athanasius against the world.'

What is Arianism?

Arianism, named for the priest Arius, taught that the Son of God was a created being rather than fully divine. The Council of Nicaea (325) rejected it, and Athanasius defended the Nicene confession that the Son is of one substance with the Father.

What did Athanasius write?

His best-known work is On the Incarnation, a defense of God the Son becoming human to save us. He also wrote the Life of Antony and, in 367, gave the first list of the twenty-seven New Testament books as received today.