Here is my humble attempt to bridge the gap between Egyptians! A gap of ignorance, misunderstanding and lack of communication..
I have been raised in a predominantly Muslim society which made me learn a lot about Islam and Muslims, this knowledge helped me to further understand my Muslim friends: their habits, their motives, their fears, and their restraints. But what about my Muslim compatriots?! They never needed to know more about their Christian partners. This happened due to many reasons: biased education, opinionated media, lack of communication means, and the marginalization of the Copts in the Egyptian society.
The lack of understanding -or the misunderstanding- is a huge obstacle facing our new Egypt. No one would disagree that we aspire after a better society, which doesn’t discriminate between its members. And I blame ignorance mainly, before intolerance, for the tragic sectarian clashes that happened in the past. The last incident in Atfeeh is a strong example of how ignorance can lead to disasters.
So, I propose here a channel of communication, I am ready to answer your questions about the Copts, with the aim of correcting any misconceptions, emphasizing on the commonalities, and seeking better understanding of the other. Some important remarks are needed though:
- This is not a debate arena
- This is not an apologetic one too
- I am not here to evangelize
- My answers will be more about information not proofs
- I am willing to answer all questions except for patronizing or demeaning ones
Please leave your questions in the comment area, and I’ll answer and post them as soon as possible, If you find this initiative helpful, please spread the word. I’ll be glad if I can be of a productive role in building our new society as much as I can!
مبادرة اسأل قبطي:
- هذا ليس مكان للمناظرات
- وهذه ليست ساحة دفاعية عن المسيحية
- لست هنا للتبشير :)
- وسوف تكون إجاباتي معلومات لا براهين
- وأنا على استعداد للرد على جميع الاسئلة باستثناء تلك التي بها نبرة استعلاء أو مهينة
Nofri!
What do you think of Europeans who come to the Coptic Church instead of the Roman Catholic or the Lutheran?
Nofri
and Xristos Anesti,
This is a hard question to answer, but the first thing that came on my mind is : “They are most welcome!!”. However, I have to say it is not an easy transition, they would face culture and language issues, specially in the beginning. This might discourage them in the early stage of transition, but those who persevere will eventually taste the richness of the Coptic Church, and would never let go of their faith.
There are huge differences between the Coptic and the RC/Lutheran Churches, I can’t even list in a comment, but it’s both faith and practices differences. I believe that Orthodoxy in general, has a unique perspective regarding dogma and practice which can’t be found in other traditions, So what I can suggest is: before taking any move, a person should study and research the Orthodox teachings, If S/he is convinced with the Orthodox teachings then the transition will be based on a solid foundation that can’t be shaken.
May the Lord bless you,
George
Are you allowed to keep your European culture when becoming Oriental Orthodox?
Hej
As long as these traditions are conforming to the scripture, I believe one can keep them..
When I talk about culture shock or differences, I mean in a context that might hinder the integration of the convert into the Coptic society, because demographically Coptic churches outside Egypt are mainly Egyptian expats, who carry their traditions with them from Egypt. I think the Coptic Church abroad has to work more in creating a more welcoming environment to the non-Egyptian members.
Nofri!
On Good Friday there is no Eucharist since Jesus was not risen at that time. Why are we then allowed to celebrate the Eucharist on x-mas when Jesus was in fact only born and not crucified and risen?
Hej Henrik, and sorry for the late reply…forgive me,
Eucharist is the essence of the liturgical life of the church, It is the life giving meal that we depend on for our spiritual nurturing,
And only during the whole Holy week (except for Covenant Thursday) the church stops breaking the bread. This is because this week we live the passion of Christ day by day starting from palm Sunday when He entered Jerusalem till His Crucifiction and death. Each hour we pray in the morning and evening prayers represent one event that happened during that week.
During the holy week we also replace the normal Canonical hours prayer from the Agpeya and replace them with the praise “Thok te ti Gom” (Thine is the power, the glory, the blessing, and the majesty, forever Amen), because the Psalms used in the canonical hours are prophesying the whole life of Jesus Christ, while during this week we focus on His passion, only verses talking about His passion are read during the holy week.
You know that on Covenant Thursday, many parts of the Liturgy are not prayed for the same reason. For example, What is known as the “Reconciliation Prayer” is not prayed because on Thursday, we haven’t been reconciled yet, because reconciliation happened because of Jesus’s redemptive death on the cross and His Triumphal resurrection.
To sum this, The church wants us to focus mainly on the passion of Jesus Christ during the holy week, because without His passion and death, we wouldn’t be celebrating the Eucharist any time.
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