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A History of the Church in Africa

and reforming worship” (Shaw 1996, 69). Later, the king of Alwa, the
southernmost kingdom of Nubia, wrote to request missionaries and
Longinus responded to the call. The results were dramatic with the king,
his nobles, and many people being baptized (Shaw 1996, 70). Werner
provides further insights into the work of Longinus in Alodia:

Longinus converted a number of Merotic temples into churches.
The pictures of the Meroitic gods were destroyed and a cross was
put in their place.… It is possible Longinus did not return from
Alodia, but died there. Thus Alodia, like Nobatia, became part of
the anti-Chalcedonian family of churches under the patriarachate of
Alexandria. John of Ephesus closed his remark with this statement:
“These things were fulfilled with the help of God in the year 580 and
were written down by us.” (37)

A review of the available literature reveals that the evangelization
of Nubia proceeded over a period of decades. Unfortunately, it is not
possible to know how long the process took. Perhaps the sheer size of
the territory was a handicap. In any case, archaeologists have proven
that Christianity had spread to Nubia. Bowers observes that “They
[archaeologists] have evidence…predating A.D. 540, including a humble
church of unbaked bricks at Faras perhaps as early as the middle of
the preceding century” (15). Werner adds: “Conversion appears to have
proceeded rapidly and after about one or two generations, to be Nubian
meant to be Christian” (39).Some scholars believe remnants of Nubian
Christianity could be found in the area as late as the nineteenth century.
A question arises: What kind of Christianity took root in Nubia and how
deep were the roots of the faith? Perhaps the most perplexing question
is; why did Christianity in Nubia eventually collapse?

Evidence suggests that the Christian kingdoms in the region resisted
Islam for several centuries. For example, Isichei notes:

Near Faras, archaeologists found a cave that was inhabited by an
eighth-century hermit: “Theophilus this least of monks who wrote
these writings on my dwelling,” in 739. The texts he chose to write
on his whitewashed walls over a period of years shed a vivid light
on the religious sensibility of an eighth-century Nubian monk. (32)

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