The book I am recommending for October is Introduction to the Coptic Orthodox Church by Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty, a modern Coptic scholar of the highest order who is well-known as a prolific and profound writer and theologian with incredible insights.
Throughout their long history, the Copts have been blessed with exceptional individuals in each generation who write down their histories and beliefs for future generations. In our generation, Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty is one of these men, and this book succinctly summarizes the Coptic Church’s history, theology, and beliefs as understood and perceived in the late 20th century like no other.
The book is written in a distinctive format which is familiar to one who is familiar with other Coptic Church literature over the last century. For the average Western reader, the style of the book can be a bit daunting initially, but the treasures in it are definitely worth it. To orient you to this style of writing, here are some of my observed informal rules for it:
- The index is at the end of the book, not the front (I highly recommend checking the index first, to know what you are about to embark on).
- The references are only for direct quotes or exceptional statements—not for paraphrasing or to point the reader to further readings.
- The written style is akin to a homily, with a main point and sub-points for each chapter—not necessarily written to present a central thesis followed by supporting evidence as expected in more traditional Western writings.
Now, with those stylistic differences in mind, the book is a great introduction to the Coptic Church for the West and for the Copts themselves. It starts off with a general history of the Coptic Church from its birth to the twentieth century, then moves on to discuss the basic foundational theology of the Coptic Church and its dogmas, and finally ends with a discussion on issues specific to our time such as the role of women in the Church, immigration, and the Ecumenical Movement. There are not many books like this one, where it presents the Coptic past, present, and vision of the future by a member of the clergy who is well-trained in the academic tradition.
As a disclaimer, in the history section of the book, Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty clearly states that his objective is not “to present a historical review of the Coptic Church.” Rather, his objective is to “aim at manifesting the wondrous and immeasurable work of God with His church throughout the centuries.” But, for the most part, the section gives a sufficient overview of the history of the Coptic Church with the retelling of many Coptic traditions that cannot be found in standard historical books. It serves as a counterbalance to historical accounts in which the Copts’ side of the story is entirely neglected for a more “Rome-centric” view. As one would expect, a large section of the book is devoted to the Council of Chalcedon and the individuals behind that conflict. To quote him directly, “Nowadays it is very important to restudy and reexamine the Council of Chalcedon, not for the sake of reminding the world of wounds inflicted upon the Church of Alexandria by her sisters, the apostolic Churches, but in order to clarify the position of the Church of Alexandria.”
Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty’s work really shines in the following two sections, though, where he presents the theological foundations and dogmas of the modern Coptic Church. He is quite comfortable in easily presenting complex theological ideas for the reader, regardless of their prior knowledge or background. To him, “Theology is not philosophical thoughts to be discussed, but it is rather an experience of God’s redeeming acts in the believer’s life,” and his writing clearly shows it. For example, on the development of the monastic life he says, “The ascetic life does not mean an enmity to the body and its senses and energies, but rather it looks upon the body in sanctity as aiding the soul.”
The same eloquence and precision of his theological discussion is present when he discusses “hot topic” issues of recent history. The section on the recent Coptic immigration and assimilation in the West is superb, and he gives quite an insight by comparing Ethiopia and Coptic Churches in the West. In the process, he produces my favorite quote from the book. Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty writes that “we have to distinguish between tradition as a general Church thought and the traditions which concern the local churches. For example, Ethiopia accepted the tradition of using liturgies in her worship but did not use the same texts in their literality. She accepted the spirit and the general frame of the liturgies. Ethiopia also accepted the tradition of venerating icons but she used her own art and not the Coptic one. Thus the Coptic Church offered Ethiopia the essence of her tradition but not its details. Therefore if we preach to a foreign country, we have to present the Orthodox Church Tradition without obliging them to accept a certain local thought.”
Note about our book review series:
This month’s book review was written by Jonathan Adly. These books are meant to be a good entry point to learn more about the Copts. Our goal is to highlight books that are easily accessible, easy to read, and that shine a light on the Copts and their issues. If you would like to contribute, please contact us at copticvoiceus.@gmail.com.
This book is made freely available here.