AD 43

Church of Alexandria

Traditional founding of the Church of Alexandria by Mark

Alexandria claimed an apostolic founder. Yet Clement and Origen — the city's own famous early Christian writers — never mention Mark's connection to it.

The year 40 is not where the traditions land

The 40 attached to this entry is not supported by the strongest traditions consulted. The official Coptic Orthodox and Greek Orthodox Patriarchate accounts both put Mark's arrival and the church's foundation at approximately 43.

Other traditions and reconstructions propose 43/44, 49, the 50s, or about 61. The Coptic calculation reaching 43/44 works from "the fifteenth year" after the Ascension.

Eusebius reports it as hearsay

The earliest explicit surviving witness is Eusebius, writing in the early fourth century. He says — using the cautious formula "they say" — that Mark was the first sent to Egypt, preached the gospel attributed to him, and established churches in Alexandria.

Eusebius does not call Mark "Patriarch." That is a later institutional title read back onto the account.

The silence of Alexandria's own theologians

Neither Clement nor Origen mentions Mark's connection with Alexandria — a silence that contributes to scholarly caution about the tradition.

Critical reference scholarship says when Christianity reached Alexandria is uncertain, and describes Mark's foundation as alleged rather than historically established. The arrival of Christianity in Egypt cannot be reduced securely to one person or one year.

Sources

Researched 23 Aug 2026 8 sources not yet audited Date disputed

How this was checked

Researched from the web into a fact sheet and rewritten from that sheet. This article has not yet had an independent model audit. How the pipeline works →

Date disputed. Sources disagree; the research places it at ~0043.

What the sources leave uncertain

The listed year 40 is not supported by the strongest traditions consulted. Official Coptic and Greek Orthodox accounts use approximately 43, while other traditions and reconstructions propose 43/44, 49, the 50s, or about 61.
Eusebius wrote roughly three centuries after the alleged event and explicitly framed the report as hearsay.
The Cambridge Dictionary of Christianity says Alexandria's conversion date is uncertain and calls its founding by Mark alleged.
The cobbler, healing, baptisms, and ordinations come from a medieval compilation of Coptic patriarchal traditions, not a first-century eyewitness source.