Bishop and Doctor of the Church, Saint Cyril of Alexandria participated in one of the first and most important Councils faithfully supporting a dogma about Mary.
Grandson of Theophilus, bishop of Alexandria, Egypt, Saint Cyril was born in that city around 370. He received a good cultural and theological education and was initiated very early into ecclesiastical life. Already from a very young age he took part together with his uncle in important meetings, such as the so-called Synod of the Oak.
He quickly learned about ecclesial dynamics such as the deposition of the bishop of the city of Constantinople with the triumph of the Alexandrian see. In 412, still quite young Cyril succeeded his uncle as bishopupon his death.
He therefore found himself governing the influential church of Alexandria and carried out this important task for 32 years, until his death. With him the church was prosperous and thanks to the strong ties that bound it to the church of Rome it managed to establish primacy throughout the East.
Defends the dogma of Mary’s divine motherhood
During the period of his episcopate there was a strong dispute between the churches of Alexandria and that of Constantinople led by patriarch Nestorius. The two churches were at odds over one controversy in particular: it was a question of great doctrinal importance.
The theme of the conflict was the dogma of the divine motherhood of MaryThe dispute will end with Council of Ephesus, in 431and saw the full affirmation of the thesis strenuously supported by Cyril, that is, the one which concerned the Blessed Virgin Mary, who was solemnly proclaimed as Mother of God.
Two factions had formed: the followers of Cyril and the Nestorians who instead supported the thesis of Nestorius. The controversy was bitter and Cyril was strongly attacked with insults and contempt. But he undaunted continued assiduously to defend the Madonna and to support the dogma of her divine motherhood.
She, there Theotokos, which means “Mother of God” from the Greek considered by Nestorians simply as “Mother of Christ”. They only wanted to recognize this title: a subtlety that was based on the Nestorian conception of Jesus detached from humanity. For him Mary represented only a connection with men, since he was physically born from her womb.
Cyril, on the other hand, underlined the conjunction between Mary Mother of God and the dogma of the Incarnation whereby God became incarnate, taking upon himself the human condition and maintaining both natures, human and divine, in the person of Jesus.
Doctor of the Church rich in wisdom
Saint Cyril he wrote works and documents to counter Nestorius’ theses. He asked for the help and discernment of the bishop of Rome and it was Pope Celestine I who resolved the dispute by stating when in fact he supported Cyril.
Cyril first wrote a pastoral letter to the faithful, in which he refuted the errors of Nestorius. At the same time he maintained a personal correspondence with him to try to bring him to recognize the correct faith in Jesus Christ.
Subsequently the saint wrote three more letters, two of which were then addressed to the heretical bishop by the Council Fathers during the Council of Ephesus. There he extensively expounded the Christological doctrine linked to the Scriptures and Tradition.
For this defense, which also included that of the dogma of the Incarnation, Saint Cyril was given the nickname of Doctor Incarnationis. A man of great wisdom, he wrote a multitude of works, from commentaries on various books of the Old and New Testaments to treatises in defense of the Trinitarian doctrine. He died in 444 and pope Leo XIII proclaimed him Doctor of the Church in 1882.
