Christianity in Egypt

A History of the Coptic Orthodox And Evangelical Presbyterian Churches

Series: 

Author:
Michael Parker
Drawing on primary sources as well as imminent scholars in the field, Parker has written a history of Christianity in Egypt that is scholarly and accessible. It challenges the common assumption that Egyptian Christianity is backward and irrelevant. Rather, as Parker writes in the preface, “the history of Egyptian Christianity presented in the pages to follow is of a people who enjoyed a brilliant golden age, suffered a long era of heartbreaking debilitation, and have now entered a period potentially breathtaking revival.” It is a story worthy in its own right but also inspiring and instructive for the global church.
Copyright Year:
2026
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ISBN:
978-90-04-75476-8
Publication:
12 Jan 2026
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ISBN:
978-90-04-75475-1
Publication:
12 Feb 2026
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Michael Parker, PhD, formerly Director of Graduate Studies and Professor of Church History at the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo. He has written six books, the most recent being Through Middle Eastern Eyes: A Life of Kenneth E. Bailey.
Preface

Introduction
Part 1
Pre-Christian Egypt and Christianity in the Nation’s Greco-Roman Period

Introduction to Part 1

1 Pre-Christian Egypt
 1 An Overview of Ancient Egyptian History from the Predynastic to the Roman Period
 2 Religion in Egypt
 3 Egypt in the Bible

2 Christianity Emerges and Takes Shape in Egypt, 50–300
 1 Was There a Christian Church in First- and Second-Century Egypt?
 2 Emerging Evidence of Christianity in Second-Century Egypt
 3 The Catechetical School of Alexandria
 4 Episcopal Leadership
 5 The Rise of Monasticism (the Second through Fourth Centuries)
 6 The Egyptian Founders of Monasticism

3 The Struggle of Athanasius, 301–381
 1 The Great Persecution
 2 The Melitian Schism
 3 The Trinitarian Controversy of the Fourth Century

4 The Conflict between Cyril and Nestorius, 382–451
 1 Prelude to the Controversy
 2 The Nestorian Controversy

5 Byzantine Oppression and the Arab Conquest, 451–641
 1 The Immediate Aftermath of Chalcedon
 2 Ethiopia and Sudan
Part 2

Egyptian Christianity under Islam

Introduction to Part 2

6 The Coptic Church under Early Islamic Rule, 641–1260
 1 The First Centuries after the Arab Conquest, 641–750
 2 Abbasid “Islamic Empire” Period, 750–970
 3 The Church in the Fatimid Caliphate, 969–1171
 4 Ayyubid Dynasty, 1171–1260
 5 The Coptic Church in the Thirteenth Century

7 The Coptic Church under the Mamluks and Ottomans, 1260–1854
 1 Under the Mamluk Empire, 1260–1517
 2 Under the Ottoman Empire, 1517–1798
 3 French Invasion and Occupation, 1798–1801
 4 The Era of Muhammad ʿAli, 1805–1848

8 The Revival of the Coptic Church, 1854–1958
 1 Church Revival

9 The American Mission in Egypt, 1854–1950
 1 General Background to Mission in the 19th Century
 2 The Mission Launched
 3 Decline of the American Mission

10 The Coptic Church in the Modern World, 1959–2020
 1 The Church and Modernity

11 The Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Egypt in the Modern World, 1950–2020
 1 The Evangelical Church Becomes Independent
 2 The Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Egypt Today
 3 CEOSS, the Protestant Council, and the Kasr al-Debarra
 4 A Final Word
Appendix 1: The Nicene Creed (Original Version), 325
Appendix 2: The Nicene Creed (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Version), 381
Appendix 3: The Chalcedonian Definition, 451
Bibliography
 Index
This is an introductory history that will appeal to scholars, students, and general readers in that it is a lucid, fast-paced narrative that is comprehensive but not exhaustive.
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Publisher:
Brill
Language:
English
Pages:
xvi, 364 pp,
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004754768

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