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[[Image:ChristCopticArt.jpg|frame|Coptic icon of Christ]]
The '''Coptic Orthodox Church''' is the portion of the [[Church of Alexandria]] which broke from the Byzantine churches in the wake of the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council]] in [[Chalcedon]] in 451. Sharing a common heritage before with the Chalcedonian Church of Alexandria, it traces its origins to the [[Apostle Mark]]. The church is one of the [[Oriental Orthodoxy|Oriental Orthodox]] churches. Its leader is the Coptic Pope of Alexandria, currently [[Shenouda III Theodore II (GayyidSobhi Baki Soleiman) of Alexandria|Pope Shenouda IIITheodore II]]. The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria cares for about 18 million Coptic Orthodox Christians in Egypt and abroad, besides being the Mother Church of both the [[Church of Ethiopia|Ethiopian ]] and [[Church of Eritrea|Eritrean]] Orthodox Tewahido Churches. More than 95% of the Christians of Egypt are Coptic Orthodox, but other "Patriarchates/Patriarchs of Alexandria" also exist (Coptic Catholic, Greek/Latin Catholic and Greek Orthodox - see 'Coptic Christianity Today' below), as well as small Protestant and Anglican denominations.
{{orientalchurches}}
==Coptic Christianity today==
[[Image:Coptic festival.jpg|thumb|450px|left|Coptic Festival in Upper Egypt.]]
The current Coptic Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria is Pope [[Shenouda III Theodore II (GayyidSobhi Baki Soleiman) of Alexandria|Shenouda IIITawadros II]]. There is a small [[Coptic Catholic Church]] ([[Eastern Rite Catholic]]) established in the 19th century and headed by a Patriarch of Alexandria in communion with the Pope of Rome. The [[Melkite Greek Catholic Church]] has little presence in Egypt, but is headed by a Patriarch of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem.
By some accounts there are about 60 million Coptic Orthodox Christians in the world: they are found primarily in Egypt (roughly 15 million), Ethiopia (roughly 38 million [http://www2.wcc-coe.org/pressreleasesen.nsf/index/pr-05-55.html]), and Eritrea (roughly 2 million), but there are significant numbers in North America, Europe, Australia, Sudan and Israel, and in diaspora throughout the world making approximately another 3 to 4 million. However, as applied to the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Tewahedo Church of Ethiopia]], which in 1959 was granted her first own Patriarch by Coptic Pope [[Cyril VI (Atta) of Alexandria|Cyril VI of Alexandria]], the word ''Coptic'' can be considered a misnomer because it means ''Egyptian''. The [[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Eritrean Orthodox Church]] similarly became independent of the Tewahedo Church during the 1990s. These three churches remain in [[full communion]] with each other and with the other [[Oriental Orthodoxy|Oriental Orthodox]] churches.
* [http://online.mq.edu.au/pub/AHPG856/coptic_mq.html The MA Program in Coptic Studies at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia]
* [http://www.france-copte.net France-copte.net Coptic Website in France, Autor Mikhail David]
* [http://www.copticmidlanddioceseukmidcopts.co.uk org Official Website of Coptic Orthodox Diocese in the Midlands & Affiliated Regions U.K.]
==Bibliography==
* [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arbible/message/25832 Selected Bibliography about Coptic Christianity]
[[Category:Jurisdictions|Alexandria (Coptic)]]
[[Category:Oriental Orthodox|Alexandria]]
[[Category:Jurisdictions|Orthodoxy in Africa]] [[ar:كنيسة قبطية أرثوذكسية]][[fr:Église d'Alexandrie (copte)]][[ro:Biserica din Alexandria (Copticcoptă)]]