Picture: Coptic Church (Life time: 232) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Pope Demetrius of Alexandria
Patriarch of Alexandria from c. 189 to 232
SaintResearchedAncient RomePre-congregation
Feast: 9 October (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Born
127
Died
231
verified
Beatified
—
not needed: before formal processes
Canonised
By tradition
recognised before formal processes began
Who they were
Demetrius was Bishop of Alexandria from 188 to 231, the first bishop of that see of whom anything is known. He is said to have founded the first bishoprics in Egypt beyond Alexandria.
He placed Origen and then Heraclas at the head of the catechetical school.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: he has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.
Why that counted as sanctity
An early bishop who organised the Church of Egypt.
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Demetrius of Alexandria
- Wikidata Q559194 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Pope Demetrius I of Alexandria (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.