Athanasius of Alexandria: Athanasius Against the World - Christian Biographies

Athanasius is one of the most influential early Christian theologians. Much of the doctrine that is considered orthodox today concerning the divinity of Jesus can be seen in his efforts to embrace both the divinity and humanity of Jesus. In this video, we look at the life of Athanasius, an introduction to the controversy of Jesus' divinity in his day, and the battle that it took to stand firm in his belief.

Time Stamps
0:27 Intro to Athanasius
0:43 Introduction to the Problem
1:54 Arius and Arianism
3:03 Athanasius's Response to Arius
4:00 Against Heresy and On the Incarnation
4:57 Creation of Nicene Creed
7:26 Outline of the Reign of Athanasius
9:08 Writings and Life of St. Antony
10:54 Lasting Impact of Athanasius

Athanasius was born and raised in Alexandria under the bishop Alexander. Early in his life, he began developing some strong beliefs. During his years in school, or before he became a bishop, he was known for two writings, Against the Heathen, and On the Incarnation. These two books would be foundational to the belief that Athanasius would spend his life defending. These works are still available today and they are a great way to see how Athanasius' theology was developed.

The biggest controversy he faced was during his battle with the theological view known as Arianism. Simply put, Arianism proclaimed that Jesus was one of the first created things, and not actually equal with the father, and thus had no divinity. This was not just a simple disagreement for many, this came down to defining what it meant to be a Christian. Matter of fact, this is what Constantine attempted to do when he called together the council of Nicea. There were many battling belief systems at this time and the battle between Arius and Athanasius would be put on "trial" during this meeting.

Although the importance of this council is debatable for Constantine, his goal was in fact accomplished as the group came together to adopt the Nicene Creed. This creed was supposed to define what the essential belief systems are for calling oneself a Christian. Shortly after this monumental work had been completed Alexander passed away and Athanasius would spend be selected to become the new bishop of Alexandria.

Although his first few years would start out well as he developed relationships with many inside the church and many hermits, most notably Antony of Egypt, his position would soon be challenged by a new leader of Arianism. A man by the name of Eusebius of Nicodemia worked within the government to convince people that Athanasius was actually in the wrong and that Arius was treated unfairly by him. This along with a false report of Athanasius working against Constantine caused Athanasius to be exiled from his position. Over his 45 years considered a bishop of Alexandria, he would spend 20 of them exiled from his position. Although he would have one ten year stretch of freedom to lead, much of his ministry was done through written works, and through the relationships that he built as his time on the sea of Alexandria.

He wrote a lot while in exile arguing against Arianism, nicknaming them the Aro-maniacs (a nickname they did not like.) But he also spent time writing to his churches helping them through the rough times they were enduring. One of his most notable sets of work was his biography of Antony of Egypt titled "Life of Antony." In this work, he delved into what it looked like to live a monastic life, and how Antony developed a relationship with God. This work would become something of a best seller as it was translated into many different languages and many later theologians would point to this as an influence in their personal and professional lives.

At the end of his reign, Athanasius had fought the world and come out victorious. With the help of the new pope, they passed a rule that for a bishop to take the position he must proclaim the Nicene Creed as truth. The life and works of Athanasius are extremely influential in the development of Christianity throughout the years. Athanasius is a great example that sometimes you have to stand firm in your belief. Although we should be willing to work with others and debate, there are some things that Christians must not give up. For Athanasius, he knew that if Christianity was to take away the divinity of Jesus, not only would they be rejecting the savior, they would also be losing the most important part of salvation, the fact that the Word-Become-Man had come and sacrificed his life for all who would profess their belief in Jesus.


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https://www.christianitytoday.com/his...
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