Early Life
Little is known for certain of Cyril's early life. He was born c. 376, in the small town of Theodosios, Egypt, near modern day El-Mahalla El-Kubra. A few years after his birth, his maternal uncle Theophilus rose to the powerful position of Patriarch 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, Origen, Didymus the Blind, and writers of the Church of Alexandria. He received the formal Christian education standard for his day: he studied grammar from age twelve to fourteen (390-392), rhetoric and humanities from fifteen to twenty (393-397) and finally theology and biblical studies (398-402). Note that unlike Hypatia he did not study 'mathematics, philosophy and astronomy', thus he and his followers came into conflict with the ancient University of Alexandria which pursued all forms of knowledge including science and human anatomy, politics and history according to the model inaugurated by Alexander the Great, the founder of Alexandria.
Read more about this topic: Cyril Of Alexandria
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