St. Alexander of Alexandria
Born: unknown
Died: February 26 or April 17, 326 or 328 CE
Feast: February 26
Patron saint of: N/A
Alexander was the 19th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, and his period of leadership was marked by trials and challenges. The biggest of these challenges was an excommunicated (and reinstated and then excommunicated again) priest named Arius who was spreading heresy across the Christian communities. Arius taught that Jesus the Son of God could not be co-eternal with God the Father and that the Son did not share any substance with the Father. Alexander spent much of his time and influence in battling this heresy and eventually called the first ecumenical council together to deal with the issue. The Council of Nicea, led by Alexander, created the Nicene Creed and eventually put Arianism to rest. Alexander died shortly after the Council of Nicea closed.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
