St. Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Theological College

St Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Theological College was established in 1999 soon after the enthronement of His Grace Bishop Suriel for the Diocese of Melbourne and its Affiliated Regions. For many years prior to this, students from Melbourne had desired to study theology at a Coptic Orthodox Theological College similar to the those established by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III in Egypt. Initially, students from Melbourne undertook distance learning through Pope Shenouda III Coptic Orthodox Theological College in Sydney, from which several of them subsequently graduated. Being a strong advocate for Christian education, one of His Grace's immediate priorities was to establish a Theological College in Melbourne to cater for students all over the diocese. In September 2000, a Catholic convent was purchased in Coburg to accommodate Saint Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Theological College, and in that same year papal decree No. 21/29 was issued by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III thereby establishing the College. In late December of 2001, through God's grace, the diocese purchased an exceptional property called Whitefriars Park, a old Carmelite Monastery established in 1937. In the heart of metropolitan Melbourne, with the capacity to cater to our needs for many years to come, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and one in which the hand of God could be felt at work. This new site became the official headquarters of the Diocese and the new home of St Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Theological College. In mid 2009 His Grace approved a major renovation of the Western ground-floor cloistered corridor to devote an entire wing exclusively to SACOTC. This wing now houses two state-of-the-art lecture theatres with full audio visual capabilities (lecture one seating 34 students, lecture two seating 48), a student lounge, and the St Athanasius College Library. The College strives to promote high quality courses by qualified professionals in all fields of theology. One of the aims of the College is to equip those students who are interested in ministry in the Church; be it in the priesthood, as lay teachers working as religious educators in our churches and schools, as youth leaders, and to prepare people for field mission throughout the diocese including the South Pacific. SACOTC also aims to provide an exciting and authentic learning environment, to those who are keen to learn about Orthodox Christianity, its history, and teachings. Saint Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Theological College is working towards achieving recognition as a Recognised Teaching Institution in the near future. We also hope that our units of study will gradually be available for online study. This will allow students from around the globe to study with us. We hope you enjoy touring our website and find it informative and we will be very happy to hear from you. We encourage you to study with us and we look forward to assisting you on your journey towards a deeper understanding of Orthodox faith, spirituality and life.