While the original goal of the 'festal letters', written by the archbishops of Alexandria, was to announce the dates of Lent, Easter, and Pentecost, they developed into treatises with pastoral purposes, to be read out in the parishes and monasteries throughout Egypt and Libya. In this book, Hans van Loon studies the mystagogy of Cyril of Alexandria (ca. 378-444) as it can be descerned in his twenty-nine extant festal letters. After an introduction, which deals with the historical background of the festal letters and gives an overview of their contents, various aspects of Cyril's mystagogy are discussed in detail: the centrality of the mystery of Christ; the role of the sacraments; the archbishop's typological interpretation of the Old Testament, and his attitude towards Judaism; how he encourages the faithful to fast and to pray, and to live virtuous lives; and finally, how he envisages our relationship with God.
