Athanasius of Alexandria led the struggle against Arianism, and defined orthodox Trinitarian theology in his many doctrinal works.
[3] Didymus of Alexandria, in addition to being a voluminous biblical commentator and doctrinal writer, was the teacher of such luminaries as Gregory of Nazianzus, Evagrius Ponticus, Jerome, and Rufinus.
Cyril of Alexandria's writings on the unity of Christ defined the basic contours of what was to become orthodox Christology in subsequent centuries.
It has long been recognized by modern scholars that Augustine’s theology determined the course of medieval and Reformation debates about grace and free will, in addition to providing a sophisticated model for Trinitarian thought (in the De Trinitate),[5] creating what was in many ways a new approach to the genre of autobiography (in the Confessions),[6] and laying the groundwork for later Western ecclesiologies (in the City of God and the anti-Donatist writings).
[9] And, of course, medieval theology would have been inconceivable apart from Augustine, who is quoted more than any other patristic author, and Jerome, the eminent student of Didymus the Blind and translator of the Latin Vulgate.
Cornell scholar Toni Alimi has shown that slavery formed an important part of Augustine's ethics, and was cited directly by European enslavers in the early modern period.
Moreover, many African churches that flourished in antiquity have continued to exist up to the present time, with theological and liturgical traditions of their own.
Many Miaphysites were Copts (an indigenous Egyptian ethnic group) and went on to found the Coptic Orthodox Church, which endures to this day, with rich liturgical and theological traditions.
The general coordinators of the circle have been Oduyoye, Musimbi Kanyoro, Isabel Apawo Phiri, Malawian Fulata Moyo, and currently Musa Dube.
[20] However, recent evangelicals have begun to wrestle with the quest of developing a Christian theology which has African context in mind.