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Corrected some article links. Added "Works" section pointing to online English translations at monachos.net
== Life ==
Cyril was born about 378 in the small town of Theodosios, Egypt, near modern day Malalla el Kobra. His mother’s brother, Theophilus, was a [[priest]] who rose to the powerful position of Pope of Alexandria. His mother remained close to her brother and under his guidance Cyril was well educated. His education showed through his knowledge, in his writings, of Christian writers of his day, including [[Eusebius of Caesarea|Eusebius,]] , [[Origen]], [[Didymusthe Blind|Didymus]], and writers of the Alexandrian church. He showed a knowledge of Latin through his extensive correspondence with the [[Bishop]] of Rome, [[Pope]] Celestine. His formal education appeared normal for his day: 390-392 grammatical studies at ages 12 to 14, 393-397 Rhetoric/Humanities at ages 15 to 20, and 398-402 Christian theology and biblical studies.
He was [[tonsure]]d a [[reader]] by his uncle, Theophilus, in the [[Church of Alexandria]] and under his uncle's guidance advanced in knowledge and position. He supported his uncle in the removal of St. [[John Chrysostom]] as [[archbishop]] of Constantinople, although this was justified as an administrative, not doctrinal, issue, as later Cyril supported John's return as when he contrasted Nestorius' unorthodoxy to Chrysostom's purity of doctrine to the imperial court.
Thus, Cyril and the Alexandrian party crossed swords with those of the Antiochian party in the imperial home court. After much in-fighting, Augusta Pulcheria, older sister of the Emperor Theodosius II, sided with Cyril against Nestorius. To rid himself of Cyril, Nestorius recommended to the emperor a [[Ecumenical Councils|council]] in Constantinople. But, when Theodosius called the council it was in Ephesus, an area friendly to Cyril. After months of manuevering the [[Third Ecumenical Council|Council of 431]] ended with Nestorius being removed from office and sent into exile.
Cyril died on [[June 27]], 444, but the controversies were to continue for decades, from the [[Robber_Council_of_869-870|Robber Council of Ephesus]] in 449 to the [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Council of Chalcedon]] in 451 and beyond.
== Legacy ==
As noted above, Cyril was a scholarly archbishop and a prolific writer. In the early years of his active life in the Church he wrote several exegeses. Among these were: ''Commentaries on the [[Old Testament]]'', ''Thesaurus'', ''Discourse Against [[Arianism|Arians]]'', ''Commentary on [[Gospel of John|St. John's Gospel]]'', and ''Dialogues on the [[Trinity]]''. In 429 as the Christological controversies increased, his output of writings was that which his opponents could not match. His writings and his theology have remained central to tradition of the Fathers and to all Orthodox even up today.
==Works==
* ''[http://www.monachos.net/patristics/christology/cyril_to_nestorius_2.shtml Second Epistle of Cyril to Nestorius]''
* ''[http://www.monachos.net/patristics/christology/cyril_to_nestorius_3.shtml Third Epistle of Cyril to Nestorius (containing the twelve anathemas)]''
* ''[http://www.monachos.net/patristics/christology/cyril_john_union.shtml Formula of Reunion: In Brief (A summation of the reunion between Cyril and John of Antioch)]''
* ''[http://www.monachos.net/patristics/christology/cyril_johnantioch.shtml The 'Formula of Reunion' between Cyril and John of Antioch]''
== Sources ==
