Scholars of all creeds
were stunned as the pages
of
Coptic
history began
to reveal the massive
contributions of the Copts to Christian civilization in its formative centuries
—Aziz S. Atiya
The Copts and Christian Civilization
www.cgu.edu/sor/tracks
Coptic Studies
The Copts, once the dominant religious group
in Egypt, remain that country’s largest Christian
minority and a compelling track for specialized
study at Claremont Graduate University (CGU).
The Coptic Studies concentration—one of
a half-dozen specialized tracks within CGU’s
School of Religion (SOR)—allows master’s
and doctoral students a chance to enrich
their advanced degree with a concentration
in a once-dominant Christian faith
that continues to be important today.
why
COPTIC STUDIES
track of study
COURSES FED BY MILLENNIA OF SCHOLARSHIP
The Coptic Studies curriculum provides a comprehensive
survey of the religion’s influential history and current
membership, and is an invaluable contribution to such degree
programs as the History of Christianity or Philosophy and
Religious Theology. Courses include a Coptic literature seminar,
“The Religious Heritage of Egypt,” “Coptic Art and Archaeology,”
and “Christianity in Egypt: History and Culture.”
Claremont Graduate
University (CGU) is the
graduate-only university
of The Claremont Colleges
Consortium (CUC)
n
AN INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED DIRECTOR
Helping guide SOR’s Coptic Studies track is Dr. Gawdat Gabra,
whose visiting professorship is endowed. The former director
of the Coptic Museum in Egypt, Gabra received his PhD in
Coptic Antiquities from Münster University in Germany. He has
taught in Egypt, Europe, and the US, and served as chief
editor for the St. Mark Foundation for Coptic History Studies
in Cairo. Among his many books is Coptic Monasteries,
Egypt’s Monastic Art and Architecture.
n 35 miles east of
Downtown Los Angeles
n Combined resources
between CGU, CUC, and the
Claremont School of Theology
(CST) amount to more than
two-million volumes
—over 250,000 in the field
of religion alone—
and over 70,000 journals
0612 / 500
A HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY FOR CGU STUDENTS
CGU is engaged in the landmark project of updating and
uploading the Coptic Encyclopedia to the Internet. Under
Professor Gabra’s leadership, and with participation of scholars
worldwide, the Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia (CCE) will
expand its initial 2,800 articles with updates that explore every
aspect of the Coptic faith.
AN INVESTED COPTIC STUDIES COUNCIL
An active Council for Coptic Studies creates and maintains
relationships between the program and the Coptic world. To
promote scholarship in New Testament studies, iconography,
liturgy, monasticism, sacred music, and others, it sponsors
conferences, lectures, and cultural events that draw
on the community’s rich cultural assets.
CLAREMONT
GRADUATE
UNIVERSITY
Claremont Graduate University
School of Religion
831 N. Dartmouth Ave.
Claremont, CA 91711
(909) 621-8085
religion@cgu.edu
www.cgu.edu/religion