Book Chapters by Michael Saad
Scripturalizing the Human: The Written as the Political, 2015
This posting includes only some pages of the book chapter. For the whole chapter, please follow t... more This posting includes only some pages of the book chapter. For the whole chapter, please follow the above links (under "Files") for the publisher Routledge and Google Books.
Copts in Egypt comprise the single largest body of Christians in the Middle East. Since the 1970s there have been waves of Coptic immigrants due to discrimination, persecution, and violence. In the Diaspora, their search for identity—its actualization and preservation—has resulted in forms of scripturalization expressed in oral tradition, martyrology, art, architecture, language, literature, liturgy, music, monastic spirituality, and education. These and other discursive practices provide Diaspora Copts the resources with which they can integrate, construct, and preserve identities based on a complex and hybridized relationship with Egypt and their new homelands.
The book chapter analyzes seven forms of scripturalizing (shrining/ sacralizing) Coptic identity in the Diaspora: In logical sequence of objectivity and subjectivity: Oral Tradition - Dr. Fatin Morris Guirguis; Martyrology - Dr. Febe Armanios; Art - Dr. Stephane Rene and Mrs. Monica Rene; Language and Literature - Mr. Hany N. Takla; Liturgical Music - Dr. Michael Henein; Monasticism - Dr. Maged (Deacon Severus) Mikhail; and Education - His Grace Bishop Suriel.
Coptic Civilization: Two Thousand Years of Christianity in Egypt, 2014
Full chapter is available at Google Books:
https://books.google.com/books?id=-2Z2AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA28... more Full chapter is available at Google Books:
https://books.google.com/books?id=-2Z2AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA285&dq=saad+coptic+civilization&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj7nI6unc3SAhXJilQKHWprDQAQ6AEIHDAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
The Coptic world, which is identified by people, communities, churches, tradition, faith, art, architecture, music, language, a calendar, and a long history, has become a borderless phenomenon. Unimaginable fifty years ago, today there is a living presence of Coptic civilization in most countries of the world.
Exposed to an array of economic, political, social, and professional pressures in their homeland Egypt, the Copts have been immigrating in large numbers since the 1960s. In Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, the Copts have formed communities, churches and organizations. While the historical background of the immigration process and the spread of Coptic Christianity worldwide are discussed in several references, this chapter will focus on aspects of civilization and culture, especially religious culture, of the immigrant Copts.
To create and sustain a civilization, individuals must make a commitment to community goals and efforts; they must dream and plan, believe and sacrifice. As they spread across the world, the Copts carried with them a wealth of Coptic art, music, architecture, language, literature, tradition, and spirituality. These treasures are being preserved and promoted by the immigrants and the second generation in various locales: homes, churches, community centers, and universities (via programs of Coptic studies).
As is clear from several of the chapters in this book, the majority of Coptic civilization forms, such as art, music, language, literature and architecture, are sustained by and manifested within the Coptic Orthodox Church. Therefore, besides its spiritual mission, the church has become the medium through which many aspects of Coptic civilization are transmitted to the Diaspora.
The Coptic Christian Heritage: History, Faith, and Culture, 2014
The history of contemporary Egypt is most starkly marked by two revolutions: the army revolution ... more The history of contemporary Egypt is most starkly marked by two revolutions: the army revolution in 1952 and the populist revolution in 2011. Throughout the nearly two thousand years of Christianity in Egypt, the ecclesiastical hierarchy and the Coptic people have often been subject to forces of discrimination and persecution by both Christian and non-Christian governments. Modern history is no exception. Copts are, however, much more than an oppressed Christian minority. As this volume illustrates, they are inheritors and preservers of an ancient civilization, builders of a modern nation, and defenders of Christian orthodoxy. The popes of this era—Pope Yusab II (1946–56), Pope Kyrillos VI (1959–71), and Pope Shenouda III (1971–2012)—played a significant role in recent Coptic history, as have the activities and faith of the Coptic people, the modernization of Egypt, the rapid expansion of the Coptic Diaspora, and the spread of globalization and ecumenism.
This chapter seeks to describe and analyze the flow of crucial events in Coptic history from Pope Yusab’s election in 1946 up to the present day, noting especially the internal and external challenges in the 1950s, relief and progress in the 1960s, relations between church and state under Pope Shenouda III, the achievements made despite hardships over the last four decades, and the role of the Copts in the 2011 revolution. Within this historical context, certain topics are addressed including the problematic personal status law, the evolution of Ethiopian–Coptic relations, ecumenical progress in and outside Egypt, and the development of the Coptic world and Coptic media. Other topics germane to this era, such as spirituality, monasticism, liturgical and linguistic revivalism, theological developments, music, and art, are covered in their respective chapters.
Coptology by Michael Saad
Coptic Church Review, 2006
With deep respect and sincere gratitude, the Coptic Church Review dedicates this issue (Volume 27... more With deep respect and sincere gratitude, the Coptic Church Review dedicates this issue (Volume 27, Number 1) in memory of one of its most respected and most prolific authors, The Reverend Dr. Otto Friedrich August Meinardus who died at Ellerau, Germany on 18 September 2005.
Shortly before his departure, Professor Meinardus sent two papers to Coptic Church Review, which are published in this special issue: “About the Laity in the Coptic Church,” and “Coptic Piety and Parable of Jonah.”
Including these two articles, Dr. Meinardus wrote 24 articles for Coptic Church Review; the first one, “Consecration of the Holy Myron,” was published in Volume 12, No. 3, 1991.
This memorial issue also includes three articles in tribute of the great Coptologist Otto Meinardus: 1) “Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus,” by Reverend Dr. John H. Watson. 2) “Professor Otto Meinardus (1925-2005) Writing about the Copts,” by Dr. Cornelis Hulsman. 3) “A Tribute to Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus (1925-2005),” by The Reverend Lyle H. Rasch.
Proceedings of the 2016 International Congress of Coptic Studies, 2024
This article situates the life and legacy of Eva Habib el Masri (1912-83) through the twin lenses... more This article situates the life and legacy of Eva Habib el Masri (1912-83) through the twin lenses of her leadership as a feminist (in Egypt) and her later role in the establishment of Coptic communal life in the Diaspora (New York and New Jersey, United States). For her, these two roles were complimentary rather than in tension, despite the patriarchal nature of the Coptic Church in which she was a proactive player. While el Masri has been recognized in the secondary literature for her pivotal leadership in the Egyptian Women’s Movement (1930s-50s), her Coptic identity is hardly, if ever, inspected, let alone her later leading role as an organizer in the North American Coptic Diaspora. This article therefore fills gaps in the socio-religious-historical narrative as much as it offers el Masri as a case study of the forces and issues surrounding the establishment of the Coptic Orthodox Church in America.
Proceedings of the 2016 International Congress of Coptic Studies, 2024
The web-based Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia (CCE) project of Claremont Graduate University (CGU) ... more The web-based Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia (CCE) project of Claremont Graduate University (CGU) serves as an evolving central repository for Coptic Studies and the Coptic heritage. Drawing on written articles created for the 1991 Coptic Encyclopedia, the CCE expands this publication into the digital humanities. It is a transdisciplinary effort that permits many different aspects of Coptic Christianity, culture, and civilization to be in conversation not only with each other but with the world. This plenary address by Saad Michael Saad, CCE’s managing editor and chair of CGU’s Coptic Studies Council, provided history, status, methodology, statistics, and goals of the CCE project and its impact on Coptic Studies.
Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia, Aug 16, 2022
The study of Dr. Farag Mikhail Moussa (1892-1947) provides a unique perspective on the study of C... more The study of Dr. Farag Mikhail Moussa (1892-1947) provides a unique perspective on the study of Coptic-Ethiopian church relations. Dr. Moussa was heavily involved in the diplomatic and ecclesiastical negotiations from 1929, the time he was appointed Egypt’s first consul to Addis Abab, until almost the end of his life in 1947. His name is even mentioned in the Coptic Synaxarion (14 Pa’onah, Departure of Pope Yoannis XIX) along with fellow negotiator Mirrit Boutros Ghali.
Journal of International Migration and Integration, 2017
In recent decades, Coptic Egyptian immigrants have steadily adopted new homelands throughout the ... more In recent decades, Coptic Egyptian immigrants have steadily adopted new homelands throughout the world, most significantly in Europe, North America, and Australia. Their efforts perpetuate their religious and cultural identity and connect diaspora communities and experiences to the mother church as well as to the realities of marginalization and persecution of their co-religionists in Egypt. However, relatively little research has been carried out on the virtual or digital presences of diaspora Copts, all the more significant in the wake of the so-called Arab Spring.
Focusing on religious identity, this article fills a lacuna by analyzing three case studies of electronic identity mediation and preservation in the Coptic diaspora:
(1) the online ecclesiastical-pastoral and educational presence of Bishop Suriel of Melbourne,
(2) the spiritual-social-cultural mission of the Los Angeles-based Coptic television station LogosTV, and
(3) the global collaborative academic project of the digital Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia.
These are part of an emerging electronic Coptic diaspora (e-diaspora)—a form of borderless territoriality—that functions to compensate for the loss of territorial and socio-religious-cultural-political control in Egypt and provide Copts with virtual territorial gains and borderless space for community and consciousness raising.
Journal of Coptic Studies, 2014
From the earliest days of the Coptic Orthodox Church to the 2012 election of Pope Tawadros II, th... more From the earliest days of the Coptic Orthodox Church to the 2012 election of Pope Tawadros II, the methods of selecting 118 Coptic patriarchs have been multifarious and in some aspects unique in the history of Christendom. Existing scholarship on the traditions of Coptic patriarchal selection often includes generalizations in place of rigorous statistical analysis. This study remedies the deficiency through historical and quantifiable analysis of the methods of patriarchal selection over the nearly two thousand-year history of the Coptic Orthodox Church. The following eight methods of selection were identified in order of frequency: consensus among clergy and laity, election by the presbyters of Alexandria, appointment by predecessor, election by laity acting alone, casting of lots among final nominees, governmental interference, divine appointment or vision, and election by bishops acting alone. Despite the variety of methods — and despite the social and political trials of the Copts — a democratic thrust has continued to exert itself, with the most recent patriarchal election being no exception. The study also includes critical examination of the current patriarchal election law, decreed in Egypt in 1957, which formalized casting of lots among the top three elected candidates.
Studies in World Christianity, Dec 1, 2010
The present state of the Coptic Orthodox Church in America could not have been imagined fifty yea... more The present state of the Coptic Orthodox Church in America could not have been imagined fifty years ago. As an integral part of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt, the young archdiocese in America evolved from non-existence to a formidable 151 parishes, two monasteries, three seminaries and many benevolent, educational and media organisations. Waves of immigration from Egypt brought not only Copts, but also a wealth of Coptic art, music, architecture, literature and spirituality. These treasures are being preserved and promoted by the immigrants and the second generation; in the homes, churches and community centers; and also at American universities via programs of Coptic studies.
This article covers the above topics and discusses a few of the challenges that come with immigration and assimilation, especially when the community desires to maintain the depth and versatility of an ancient religious culture.
Coptic Church Review, 2009
Over the last 40 years, Iris Habib el-Masry (1910-1994) has earned high distinction as a Coptic ... more Over the last 40 years, Iris Habib el-Masry (1910-1994) has earned high distinction as a Coptic Church historian. While her Arabic language publications are among the most widely quoted in the historical literature of the Coptic Church , her impressive work as a theologian, politician, psychologist, educator, and philanthropist is not as widely known. This article presents an introduction to her contributions to certain areas of politics and theology, while exploring in more detail unique features of her writing that may offer a framework for Coptic feminine theology.
Coptic Church Review, 2009
As Professor of Archaeology at the University of Colorado in Boulder (1968-2009) specializing in ... more As Professor of Archaeology at the University of Colorado in Boulder (1968-2009) specializing in Ancient Egypt and the Middle East, Dr. Boulos Ayad Ayad published more than 170 books, chapters, monographs and articles on topics as varied as Ancient Egypt, Nubia and Sudan, Coptic Archaeology, the Jewish antiquities in the Nile Valley, and the ancient Semitic languages and their relationship to the ancient Egyptian languages.
Ayad’s Coptology topics connected religions, cultures, languages, events and people across the Middle East and over several millennia. He explored, for example, the elements in Coptic life and worship that were influenced by ancient Egyptian music, art, architecture, spirituality, wisdom literature, science and technology.
The Christian Century, Feb 23, 2000
Because Egyptians are deeply rooted in religion, religion must be the foundation of any lasting p... more Because Egyptians are deeply rooted in religion, religion must be the foundation of any lasting political, social or legal structure. Providing a theological justification for human rights is very persuasive to the masses.
Even the Muslim moderates, liberals and modernists must seek to understand human rights theologically. Like Christianity, Islam insists on God’s sovereign claim on all human beings. This implies that all human rights must be grounded in God’s right to sovereignty over human life, dignity, freedom, property and the future.
Revelation positively molds the structures built on reason, natural law and human rights. By revealing humanity’s true nature, its relationship to God and its eternal worth, revelation deepens and broadens the dimensions of human existence.
Newspapers-English by Michael Saad
Watani International, Sep 25, 2016
This year's Congress saw 275 scholars, students, and members of the Coptic community from 24 coun... more This year's Congress saw 275 scholars, students, and members of the Coptic community from 24 countries on six continents converge on the CGU campus to present and discuss 171 papers, tackling various aspects of Coptic studies.
Watani International, May 2, 2010
When worshippers go to Catholic churches across America during 2010, they may be surprised to see... more When worshippers go to Catholic churches across America during 2010, they may be surprised to see Coptic iconography on the front cover of the missal books used for liturgical services. The icon depicts the Last Supper (and first Eucharist) and was painted by the world renowned Coptic iconographer Dr. Isaac Fanous (1909-2007). The Catholic Missal acknowledges the source of the icon: the Holy Virgin Mary Coptic Orthodox Church in Los Angeles. This edition of the missal, Breaking Bread 2010, is widely used at Catholic churches in the United States. It is published by OCP in Portland, Oregon (www.ocp.org/products).
Fanous revived features of ancient Egyptian art to create a unique and contemporary form of Coptic iconography. Through his active participation in painting churches of the Coptic diaspora in America, he created iconic works of Coptic art that have justly earned global appreciation.
Besides expressing the spirit of ecumenism of the Catholic Church in the United States, this publication is also a testimony to the distinction of Coptic art in general and Isaac Fanous's iconography in particular. Southern California is fortunate that the walls of six of its Coptic Orthodox Churches have been painted by the great master iconographer. Reprints of these icons can be obtained from www.theotokos.org.
Watani International, Jul 6, 2008
In this book, Dr. Sami Ibrahim Boulos writes about the history of the early Coptic community in A... more In this book, Dr. Sami Ibrahim Boulos writes about the history of the early Coptic community in America. As an immigrant himself, he describes the challenge of observing and participating in a new culture without losing their own rich heritage. This book is about the struggle of these Copts to hold on to that heritage and to maintain their identity which was in danger of being overcome by the new environment in the lands of immigration.
When the book is read, credit will be given to those who toiled long and hard to establish the first Coptic Orthodox community and the first Coptic Orthodox Church building in the Western Hemisphere: St. Mark Church in Jersey City, New Jersey. This documentation will provide an example to be emulated by future generations. They will be motivated to follow the same model of determination and resourcefulness as those pioneers.
The book will also be a good reference for scholars of all backgrounds who are interested in analyzing the immigration experience of the Copts. Surely, many MA and PhD dissertations on the topic of Coptic community establishment in America will find in this book a valuable and unique resource.
Dr. Sami Boulos is uniquely qualified to write this fascinating history. Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1922, he joined the Sunday School movement in Cairo in 1937. He came to America in 1955 and participated in establishing the Coptic community and a few Coptic churches. His life ministry included starting several Sunday Schools in Egypt, mentoring Sunday School teachers, conducting workshops for adults, and preaching in several churches. He wrote six books besides the subject one. Four on the Life of Christ, one on raising children, and one (in Arabic) about women of the Bible. Earlier, he taught at the Coptic Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He is former Dean of Education at the State University of New York. That made him the first Egyptian to serve as a college dean in America.
Dr. Boulos, however, did not write the book from his memoirs or documents alone. He invited many of the early founders for a full week of workshops to gather memoirs and documents from the community and reach a consensus on the contents of the book. Among those who participated are Dr. Maher and Mrs. Leila Kamell, Dr. and Mrs. Haroun Mahrous, Dr. Elhamy Khalil, and Dr. Atef Moawad, all of whom arrived in America in the 1950s.
Watani International, May 6, 2007
There is a renaissance of Coptic studies occurring at Claremont Graduate University (CGU), where ... more There is a renaissance of Coptic studies occurring at Claremont Graduate University (CGU), where Coptology has been through phases of development since the 1960s. The current phase was put into action in 2007 through a collaborative vision and efforts by the university administration, faculty, Coptology professor Gawdat Gabra, and St Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society.
In fact, the goal of establishing a world center for Coptic studies at CGU is a realizable dream. The center would encompass high caliber academic studies in Coptic civilization, history, literature, music, Christian Arabic literature, art, art history, archeology, theology, patristics, hagiography, daily life documents, monasticism, architecture, Coptic role in political life, and sociology.
Watani International, May 6, 2007
An update on 9/9/2023: Since 2020, Fr Mina has been serving at Christ The Redeemer Coptic Orthodo... more An update on 9/9/2023: Since 2020, Fr Mina has been serving at Christ The Redeemer Coptic Orthodox Church in Lakewood, California. He is also Vice President, Department of Mission and Evangelism (DOME) in the Coptic Diocese of Los Angeles: https://ladiocesemission.org/ . He, and a team of missionary volunteers, were guests at LogosTV Coptic Civilization (E060) – From Los Angeles to Bolivia and the World: https://youtu.be/GISluYOaCXc/ .
Abstract: On Sunday, 29 April 2007, His Grace Anba Serapion, Bishop of Los Angeles, and three visiting bishops ordained Dr Mina Ghebrial as a priest in the Diocese of Los Angeles. Fr Mina received his M.D. degree from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia in 1995. After completing a three-year pediatric residency at University of California Irvine, he entered private practice in Southern California.
Watani International, Sep 24, 2006
In 1960, Ernest Tune moved to California to earn his Doctor of Theology from Claremont School of ... more In 1960, Ernest Tune moved to California to earn his Doctor of Theology from Claremont School of Theology (CST) and later serving as CST Library Director. Soon after, he was heavily involved in the translation of the Nag Hammadi Codices at Claremont Graduate School under the leadership of Professor James Robinson. In the years 1989-2005, Dr. Tune participated in the Coptic Texts Seminar and became an Advisory Board member of the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity (IAC) and its bibliographer.
In 1996, Dr. Tune donated his extensive personal research library to the IAC. This voluminous Tune collection, later moved to a larger home at CST Library, contains materials covering the languages, literatures, history and archeology of the Nile Valley cultures from the early Hellenistic period through the early medieval period of Coptic and Nubian Christianity.
Watani International, Jul 23, 2006
In 357 AD, St Athanasius wrote Life of Antony in Greek for the world to read. It was translated t... more In 357 AD, St Athanasius wrote Life of Antony in Greek for the world to read. It was translated to Latin and Coptic immediately after. This article discusses three points:
(1) How the Copts may benefit today from this masterpiece of Christian literature which changed lives around the world.
(2) The importance of the first time ever the book is translated from Coptic to English (Tim Vivian, Cistercian Publications, 2003). The Coptic (and by extension its English) translation uses the closest vocabulary that St. Antony employed in his native language, as he primarily spoke and wrote in Coptic in his sermons and communications.
(3) The worthiness of the Life of Antony as an essential addition to world school curriculums, national reading campaigns in Egypt, and the Coptic world Sunday schools.
Uploads
Book Chapters by Michael Saad
Copts in Egypt comprise the single largest body of Christians in the Middle East. Since the 1970s there have been waves of Coptic immigrants due to discrimination, persecution, and violence. In the Diaspora, their search for identity—its actualization and preservation—has resulted in forms of scripturalization expressed in oral tradition, martyrology, art, architecture, language, literature, liturgy, music, monastic spirituality, and education. These and other discursive practices provide Diaspora Copts the resources with which they can integrate, construct, and preserve identities based on a complex and hybridized relationship with Egypt and their new homelands.
The book chapter analyzes seven forms of scripturalizing (shrining/ sacralizing) Coptic identity in the Diaspora: In logical sequence of objectivity and subjectivity: Oral Tradition - Dr. Fatin Morris Guirguis; Martyrology - Dr. Febe Armanios; Art - Dr. Stephane Rene and Mrs. Monica Rene; Language and Literature - Mr. Hany N. Takla; Liturgical Music - Dr. Michael Henein; Monasticism - Dr. Maged (Deacon Severus) Mikhail; and Education - His Grace Bishop Suriel.
https://books.google.com/books?id=-2Z2AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA285&dq=saad+coptic+civilization&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj7nI6unc3SAhXJilQKHWprDQAQ6AEIHDAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
The Coptic world, which is identified by people, communities, churches, tradition, faith, art, architecture, music, language, a calendar, and a long history, has become a borderless phenomenon. Unimaginable fifty years ago, today there is a living presence of Coptic civilization in most countries of the world.
Exposed to an array of economic, political, social, and professional pressures in their homeland Egypt, the Copts have been immigrating in large numbers since the 1960s. In Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, the Copts have formed communities, churches and organizations. While the historical background of the immigration process and the spread of Coptic Christianity worldwide are discussed in several references, this chapter will focus on aspects of civilization and culture, especially religious culture, of the immigrant Copts.
To create and sustain a civilization, individuals must make a commitment to community goals and efforts; they must dream and plan, believe and sacrifice. As they spread across the world, the Copts carried with them a wealth of Coptic art, music, architecture, language, literature, tradition, and spirituality. These treasures are being preserved and promoted by the immigrants and the second generation in various locales: homes, churches, community centers, and universities (via programs of Coptic studies).
As is clear from several of the chapters in this book, the majority of Coptic civilization forms, such as art, music, language, literature and architecture, are sustained by and manifested within the Coptic Orthodox Church. Therefore, besides its spiritual mission, the church has become the medium through which many aspects of Coptic civilization are transmitted to the Diaspora.
This chapter seeks to describe and analyze the flow of crucial events in Coptic history from Pope Yusab’s election in 1946 up to the present day, noting especially the internal and external challenges in the 1950s, relief and progress in the 1960s, relations between church and state under Pope Shenouda III, the achievements made despite hardships over the last four decades, and the role of the Copts in the 2011 revolution. Within this historical context, certain topics are addressed including the problematic personal status law, the evolution of Ethiopian–Coptic relations, ecumenical progress in and outside Egypt, and the development of the Coptic world and Coptic media. Other topics germane to this era, such as spirituality, monasticism, liturgical and linguistic revivalism, theological developments, music, and art, are covered in their respective chapters.
Coptology by Michael Saad
Shortly before his departure, Professor Meinardus sent two papers to Coptic Church Review, which are published in this special issue: “About the Laity in the Coptic Church,” and “Coptic Piety and Parable of Jonah.”
Including these two articles, Dr. Meinardus wrote 24 articles for Coptic Church Review; the first one, “Consecration of the Holy Myron,” was published in Volume 12, No. 3, 1991.
This memorial issue also includes three articles in tribute of the great Coptologist Otto Meinardus: 1) “Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus,” by Reverend Dr. John H. Watson. 2) “Professor Otto Meinardus (1925-2005) Writing about the Copts,” by Dr. Cornelis Hulsman. 3) “A Tribute to Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus (1925-2005),” by The Reverend Lyle H. Rasch.
Focusing on religious identity, this article fills a lacuna by analyzing three case studies of electronic identity mediation and preservation in the Coptic diaspora:
(1) the online ecclesiastical-pastoral and educational presence of Bishop Suriel of Melbourne,
(2) the spiritual-social-cultural mission of the Los Angeles-based Coptic television station LogosTV, and
(3) the global collaborative academic project of the digital Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia.
These are part of an emerging electronic Coptic diaspora (e-diaspora)—a form of borderless territoriality—that functions to compensate for the loss of territorial and socio-religious-cultural-political control in Egypt and provide Copts with virtual territorial gains and borderless space for community and consciousness raising.
This article covers the above topics and discusses a few of the challenges that come with immigration and assimilation, especially when the community desires to maintain the depth and versatility of an ancient religious culture.
Ayad’s Coptology topics connected religions, cultures, languages, events and people across the Middle East and over several millennia. He explored, for example, the elements in Coptic life and worship that were influenced by ancient Egyptian music, art, architecture, spirituality, wisdom literature, science and technology.
Even the Muslim moderates, liberals and modernists must seek to understand human rights theologically. Like Christianity, Islam insists on God’s sovereign claim on all human beings. This implies that all human rights must be grounded in God’s right to sovereignty over human life, dignity, freedom, property and the future.
Revelation positively molds the structures built on reason, natural law and human rights. By revealing humanity’s true nature, its relationship to God and its eternal worth, revelation deepens and broadens the dimensions of human existence.
Newspapers-English by Michael Saad
Fanous revived features of ancient Egyptian art to create a unique and contemporary form of Coptic iconography. Through his active participation in painting churches of the Coptic diaspora in America, he created iconic works of Coptic art that have justly earned global appreciation.
Besides expressing the spirit of ecumenism of the Catholic Church in the United States, this publication is also a testimony to the distinction of Coptic art in general and Isaac Fanous's iconography in particular. Southern California is fortunate that the walls of six of its Coptic Orthodox Churches have been painted by the great master iconographer. Reprints of these icons can be obtained from www.theotokos.org.
When the book is read, credit will be given to those who toiled long and hard to establish the first Coptic Orthodox community and the first Coptic Orthodox Church building in the Western Hemisphere: St. Mark Church in Jersey City, New Jersey. This documentation will provide an example to be emulated by future generations. They will be motivated to follow the same model of determination and resourcefulness as those pioneers.
The book will also be a good reference for scholars of all backgrounds who are interested in analyzing the immigration experience of the Copts. Surely, many MA and PhD dissertations on the topic of Coptic community establishment in America will find in this book a valuable and unique resource.
Dr. Sami Boulos is uniquely qualified to write this fascinating history. Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1922, he joined the Sunday School movement in Cairo in 1937. He came to America in 1955 and participated in establishing the Coptic community and a few Coptic churches. His life ministry included starting several Sunday Schools in Egypt, mentoring Sunday School teachers, conducting workshops for adults, and preaching in several churches. He wrote six books besides the subject one. Four on the Life of Christ, one on raising children, and one (in Arabic) about women of the Bible. Earlier, he taught at the Coptic Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He is former Dean of Education at the State University of New York. That made him the first Egyptian to serve as a college dean in America.
Dr. Boulos, however, did not write the book from his memoirs or documents alone. He invited many of the early founders for a full week of workshops to gather memoirs and documents from the community and reach a consensus on the contents of the book. Among those who participated are Dr. Maher and Mrs. Leila Kamell, Dr. and Mrs. Haroun Mahrous, Dr. Elhamy Khalil, and Dr. Atef Moawad, all of whom arrived in America in the 1950s.
In fact, the goal of establishing a world center for Coptic studies at CGU is a realizable dream. The center would encompass high caliber academic studies in Coptic civilization, history, literature, music, Christian Arabic literature, art, art history, archeology, theology, patristics, hagiography, daily life documents, monasticism, architecture, Coptic role in political life, and sociology.
Abstract: On Sunday, 29 April 2007, His Grace Anba Serapion, Bishop of Los Angeles, and three visiting bishops ordained Dr Mina Ghebrial as a priest in the Diocese of Los Angeles. Fr Mina received his M.D. degree from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia in 1995. After completing a three-year pediatric residency at University of California Irvine, he entered private practice in Southern California.
In 1996, Dr. Tune donated his extensive personal research library to the IAC. This voluminous Tune collection, later moved to a larger home at CST Library, contains materials covering the languages, literatures, history and archeology of the Nile Valley cultures from the early Hellenistic period through the early medieval period of Coptic and Nubian Christianity.
(1) How the Copts may benefit today from this masterpiece of Christian literature which changed lives around the world.
(2) The importance of the first time ever the book is translated from Coptic to English (Tim Vivian, Cistercian Publications, 2003). The Coptic (and by extension its English) translation uses the closest vocabulary that St. Antony employed in his native language, as he primarily spoke and wrote in Coptic in his sermons and communications.
(3) The worthiness of the Life of Antony as an essential addition to world school curriculums, national reading campaigns in Egypt, and the Coptic world Sunday schools.
Copts in Egypt comprise the single largest body of Christians in the Middle East. Since the 1970s there have been waves of Coptic immigrants due to discrimination, persecution, and violence. In the Diaspora, their search for identity—its actualization and preservation—has resulted in forms of scripturalization expressed in oral tradition, martyrology, art, architecture, language, literature, liturgy, music, monastic spirituality, and education. These and other discursive practices provide Diaspora Copts the resources with which they can integrate, construct, and preserve identities based on a complex and hybridized relationship with Egypt and their new homelands.
The book chapter analyzes seven forms of scripturalizing (shrining/ sacralizing) Coptic identity in the Diaspora: In logical sequence of objectivity and subjectivity: Oral Tradition - Dr. Fatin Morris Guirguis; Martyrology - Dr. Febe Armanios; Art - Dr. Stephane Rene and Mrs. Monica Rene; Language and Literature - Mr. Hany N. Takla; Liturgical Music - Dr. Michael Henein; Monasticism - Dr. Maged (Deacon Severus) Mikhail; and Education - His Grace Bishop Suriel.
https://books.google.com/books?id=-2Z2AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA285&dq=saad+coptic+civilization&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj7nI6unc3SAhXJilQKHWprDQAQ6AEIHDAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
The Coptic world, which is identified by people, communities, churches, tradition, faith, art, architecture, music, language, a calendar, and a long history, has become a borderless phenomenon. Unimaginable fifty years ago, today there is a living presence of Coptic civilization in most countries of the world.
Exposed to an array of economic, political, social, and professional pressures in their homeland Egypt, the Copts have been immigrating in large numbers since the 1960s. In Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, the Copts have formed communities, churches and organizations. While the historical background of the immigration process and the spread of Coptic Christianity worldwide are discussed in several references, this chapter will focus on aspects of civilization and culture, especially religious culture, of the immigrant Copts.
To create and sustain a civilization, individuals must make a commitment to community goals and efforts; they must dream and plan, believe and sacrifice. As they spread across the world, the Copts carried with them a wealth of Coptic art, music, architecture, language, literature, tradition, and spirituality. These treasures are being preserved and promoted by the immigrants and the second generation in various locales: homes, churches, community centers, and universities (via programs of Coptic studies).
As is clear from several of the chapters in this book, the majority of Coptic civilization forms, such as art, music, language, literature and architecture, are sustained by and manifested within the Coptic Orthodox Church. Therefore, besides its spiritual mission, the church has become the medium through which many aspects of Coptic civilization are transmitted to the Diaspora.
This chapter seeks to describe and analyze the flow of crucial events in Coptic history from Pope Yusab’s election in 1946 up to the present day, noting especially the internal and external challenges in the 1950s, relief and progress in the 1960s, relations between church and state under Pope Shenouda III, the achievements made despite hardships over the last four decades, and the role of the Copts in the 2011 revolution. Within this historical context, certain topics are addressed including the problematic personal status law, the evolution of Ethiopian–Coptic relations, ecumenical progress in and outside Egypt, and the development of the Coptic world and Coptic media. Other topics germane to this era, such as spirituality, monasticism, liturgical and linguistic revivalism, theological developments, music, and art, are covered in their respective chapters.
Shortly before his departure, Professor Meinardus sent two papers to Coptic Church Review, which are published in this special issue: “About the Laity in the Coptic Church,” and “Coptic Piety and Parable of Jonah.”
Including these two articles, Dr. Meinardus wrote 24 articles for Coptic Church Review; the first one, “Consecration of the Holy Myron,” was published in Volume 12, No. 3, 1991.
This memorial issue also includes three articles in tribute of the great Coptologist Otto Meinardus: 1) “Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus,” by Reverend Dr. John H. Watson. 2) “Professor Otto Meinardus (1925-2005) Writing about the Copts,” by Dr. Cornelis Hulsman. 3) “A Tribute to Dr. Otto F. A. Meinardus (1925-2005),” by The Reverend Lyle H. Rasch.
Focusing on religious identity, this article fills a lacuna by analyzing three case studies of electronic identity mediation and preservation in the Coptic diaspora:
(1) the online ecclesiastical-pastoral and educational presence of Bishop Suriel of Melbourne,
(2) the spiritual-social-cultural mission of the Los Angeles-based Coptic television station LogosTV, and
(3) the global collaborative academic project of the digital Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia.
These are part of an emerging electronic Coptic diaspora (e-diaspora)—a form of borderless territoriality—that functions to compensate for the loss of territorial and socio-religious-cultural-political control in Egypt and provide Copts with virtual territorial gains and borderless space for community and consciousness raising.
This article covers the above topics and discusses a few of the challenges that come with immigration and assimilation, especially when the community desires to maintain the depth and versatility of an ancient religious culture.
Ayad’s Coptology topics connected religions, cultures, languages, events and people across the Middle East and over several millennia. He explored, for example, the elements in Coptic life and worship that were influenced by ancient Egyptian music, art, architecture, spirituality, wisdom literature, science and technology.
Even the Muslim moderates, liberals and modernists must seek to understand human rights theologically. Like Christianity, Islam insists on God’s sovereign claim on all human beings. This implies that all human rights must be grounded in God’s right to sovereignty over human life, dignity, freedom, property and the future.
Revelation positively molds the structures built on reason, natural law and human rights. By revealing humanity’s true nature, its relationship to God and its eternal worth, revelation deepens and broadens the dimensions of human existence.
Fanous revived features of ancient Egyptian art to create a unique and contemporary form of Coptic iconography. Through his active participation in painting churches of the Coptic diaspora in America, he created iconic works of Coptic art that have justly earned global appreciation.
Besides expressing the spirit of ecumenism of the Catholic Church in the United States, this publication is also a testimony to the distinction of Coptic art in general and Isaac Fanous's iconography in particular. Southern California is fortunate that the walls of six of its Coptic Orthodox Churches have been painted by the great master iconographer. Reprints of these icons can be obtained from www.theotokos.org.
When the book is read, credit will be given to those who toiled long and hard to establish the first Coptic Orthodox community and the first Coptic Orthodox Church building in the Western Hemisphere: St. Mark Church in Jersey City, New Jersey. This documentation will provide an example to be emulated by future generations. They will be motivated to follow the same model of determination and resourcefulness as those pioneers.
The book will also be a good reference for scholars of all backgrounds who are interested in analyzing the immigration experience of the Copts. Surely, many MA and PhD dissertations on the topic of Coptic community establishment in America will find in this book a valuable and unique resource.
Dr. Sami Boulos is uniquely qualified to write this fascinating history. Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1922, he joined the Sunday School movement in Cairo in 1937. He came to America in 1955 and participated in establishing the Coptic community and a few Coptic churches. His life ministry included starting several Sunday Schools in Egypt, mentoring Sunday School teachers, conducting workshops for adults, and preaching in several churches. He wrote six books besides the subject one. Four on the Life of Christ, one on raising children, and one (in Arabic) about women of the Bible. Earlier, he taught at the Coptic Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He is former Dean of Education at the State University of New York. That made him the first Egyptian to serve as a college dean in America.
Dr. Boulos, however, did not write the book from his memoirs or documents alone. He invited many of the early founders for a full week of workshops to gather memoirs and documents from the community and reach a consensus on the contents of the book. Among those who participated are Dr. Maher and Mrs. Leila Kamell, Dr. and Mrs. Haroun Mahrous, Dr. Elhamy Khalil, and Dr. Atef Moawad, all of whom arrived in America in the 1950s.
In fact, the goal of establishing a world center for Coptic studies at CGU is a realizable dream. The center would encompass high caliber academic studies in Coptic civilization, history, literature, music, Christian Arabic literature, art, art history, archeology, theology, patristics, hagiography, daily life documents, monasticism, architecture, Coptic role in political life, and sociology.
Abstract: On Sunday, 29 April 2007, His Grace Anba Serapion, Bishop of Los Angeles, and three visiting bishops ordained Dr Mina Ghebrial as a priest in the Diocese of Los Angeles. Fr Mina received his M.D. degree from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia in 1995. After completing a three-year pediatric residency at University of California Irvine, he entered private practice in Southern California.
In 1996, Dr. Tune donated his extensive personal research library to the IAC. This voluminous Tune collection, later moved to a larger home at CST Library, contains materials covering the languages, literatures, history and archeology of the Nile Valley cultures from the early Hellenistic period through the early medieval period of Coptic and Nubian Christianity.
(1) How the Copts may benefit today from this masterpiece of Christian literature which changed lives around the world.
(2) The importance of the first time ever the book is translated from Coptic to English (Tim Vivian, Cistercian Publications, 2003). The Coptic (and by extension its English) translation uses the closest vocabulary that St. Antony employed in his native language, as he primarily spoke and wrote in Coptic in his sermons and communications.
(3) The worthiness of the Life of Antony as an essential addition to world school curriculums, national reading campaigns in Egypt, and the Coptic world Sunday schools.
In this interview, Professor Behlmer speaks (among other things) about the motivation driving her mission in Coptology, the MA program in Coptic Studies at Macquarie University which she directed for several years, why the study of St. Shenouda has escalated so much worldwide in the 21st century, and the Coptic collection in the Museo Egizio, Turin, Italy.
As passionate believers in education, the Attallahs generously gifted to learning institutions. Besides the library at Chapman, they endowed a chair in Humanistic Psychology at the University of Southern California and a chair in Church Relations at Chapman University.
As one of the first Copts to settle in the Los Angeles area, the Atallahs were among the congregation that gave birth to the Coptic community there. Donna remembers with delight the first Coptic liturgy in Los Angeles celebrated in 1963. Their apartment building was a dwelling and gathering place which helped the embryonic Coptic community strengthen its ties and form the nucleus of St. Mark Church.
1) The foundation of Macquarie's groundbreaking degree program as a collaborative effort between Professor Naguib Kanawati of the Macquarie faculty and H.G. Anba Daniel, Coptic Orthodox Bishop of Sydney.
2) The role of Coptic clergy and laity in raising funds, donating, promoting, and becoming students and graduates.
3) The selection of the world-renowned Coptologist Professor Heike Behlmer to lead the program.
The program is a success story as shown on its current website (accessed 28 Oct 2020):
https://www.mq.edu.au/faculty-of-arts/departments-and-schools/department-of-ancient-history/engage-with-us/coptic-studies
Mina Rodolph Yanney was especially touched by children with disabilities or illnesses. With tears in his eyes, Mina once said how fortunate he was to have led such a wonderful life for 40 years, and that if the cancer beat him that he would die a happy man because he had been blessed with a great family and wonderful friends.
Born in Assiut in 1963 Mina Rodolph Yanney came to the United States with his family in 1968. From a young age, Mina loved and helped the poor and homeless; people that were dirty, disheveled, and unattractive. He would serve them personally or bring them home to give them food, occasionally without his parents’ knowledge.
His Holiness graciously acknowledged the efforts of the architects, Nabil and Isis Selim, who designed the magnificent church according to the principles of Coptic architecture. It is one of the largest Coptic churches outside Egypt.
Later in the evening, the Diocese of Southern California and Hawaii, under the auspices of H.G. Bishop Serapion, celebrated the Golden Anniversary of the Monasticism of H.H. Pope Shenouda (18 July 1954).
The juxtaposition of natural elements with theological concepts abounds throughout the icon. The resurrected Christ places grapes into the cup of life. These grapes are from a vine that branches out from the tree depicted as the wooden cross onto which Christ is crucified. The blood of the new covenant drips from the hands of the crucified Christ into the same cup. In the foreground, the infant Jesus holds grains of wheat representing the bread of life, which is His body nailed to the cross.
Since its creation in 1955, this painting has been shown in many public and private exhibits throughout Egypt.
The image of the icon is courtesy of Mikhail Wadie Shenouda.
Born in Sohag on 6 May 1885, Habib El-Masri became an important national leader among the men and women who transformed Egypt to a modern sovereign state governed by a constitution and institutions and grounded on principles of independence, democracy, liberty, justice, and equality.
At age 34, Habib El-Masri participated in the 1919 Revolution and the struggle that secured the Declaration of 28 February 1922. Representing the Prime Minister, El-Masri met with Field Marshal Lord Allenby, the British High Commissioner for Egypt, to formally receive the Declaration which acknowledged Egypt as an independent sovereign state. A constitution was promulgated in April 1923, and soon after a bicameral legislature, consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives, was established. El-Masri became the first Secretary General of the Egyptian Senate in December 1923.
One of El-Masri’s most important services to the Coptic Church and community was his legendary legal defense for seventeen years to keep the property known as Anba Roweis Land in the possession of the Coptic Patriarchate. This land is now the site of St Mark Cathedral in Cairo, the papal residence, the Coptic Theological Seminary, and other ministries of the Coptic Church.
In the interview, Professor Vivian discloses what made him choose Coptology as a field of study for his Ph.D., discusses the future of Coptic studies in America, describes his excavations at monastic sites in Egypt, and explains what positive role can orthodoxy in general, and Coptic orthodoxy in particular, play in American life.
Throughout the event, acknowledgements were made to Fr. Mikhail Saad (1909-1996), his founding of the St Mary & St Joseph Church (from a project to reality, 1950-1956) and House of Grace (from blueprints in 1975 to construction starting in 1988 to operation in 1994). This included the hospital which became operational a few months before his departure on 25 January 1996.
In the minutes 24-33, Fr. Boulos Sobhy gave a presentation about the above history. A plaque honoring the name of Fr. Mikhail Saad was given by Pope Tawadros at minute 73.
في الدقائق ٢٤-٣٣ يقدم الاب القمص بولس صبحي تاريخ تأسيس الكنيسة وبيت النعمة.
This video along with the following text in Arabic was posted on Facebook on 1 May 2023 by Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
المركز الثقافى القبطى الارثوذكسى
(١ مايو ٢.٢٣)
قداسة البابا يزور مستشفي "بيت النعمة" بالإسكندرية
زار قداسة البابا تواضروس الثاني مساء اليوم الاثنين مستشفى "بيت النعمة" التابعة لكنيسة السيدة العذراء والقديس يوسف البار بسموحة تحت مظلة الأمانة العامة للمستشفيات الكنسية القبطية الأرثوذكسية التي أسسها المتنيح القمص ميخائيل سعد مؤسس خدمة بيت النعمة ومؤسس الكنيسة.
وافتتح قداسة البابا قسم الاستقبال والطوارئ بعد تطويره ليسع ١٠ أسرة لخدمة مرضى الطوارئ وافتتح أيضًا عيادتي قسم الأسنان بعد تطويره، وزار قداسته صيدلية المستشفي وقسم الاستعلامات والعلاقات العامة.
بعدها حضر قداسته حفل تكريم مجلس إدارة المستشفي المنتهية مدته وتضمن الحفل فقرات وكلمات عديدة من أعضاء مجلسي الإدارة السابق والجديد وكهنة الكنيسة ومسؤولي الأمانة العامة للمستشفيات. ثم كرم أعضاء المجلس السابق والذين ساهموا ولهم بصمة في خدمة المستشفي.
وألقى قداسته كلمة روحية عن كيفية الاستمرار في تقديم خدمة طبية مميزة من خلال ثلاثة محاور: التقدير: للذين تعبوا. التجديد: للمنشأة والأجهزة. التطوير: في الرؤية والأفكار
The friendship between Al Haj Abdel Nasser Hussein, father of the late President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt, and Hegumen Mikhail Saad (my father) included visitations and conversations between 1960-1968 in Alexandria, Egypt. This article summarizes the exchanges of feelings and thoughts between the two men and seeks to describe meaningful Muslim-Christian relations that existed in Egypt then and hopefully would overcome today’s challenges. This article in Arabic is also written in English, and both were published in Watani, 22 January 2006.
Abouna Mikhail Saad was an eloquent preacher who was well versed in the Scriptures. One of his main themes was the grace of Jesus Christ which empowered people to remain steadfast in faith. Grace, he explained, had the spiritual power to touch and change the heart and mind. The gifts granted to people by God Almighty through grace, which imbued the life of Abouna himself, gave him the power to struggle without ceasing until he rested in piece at age 87, so as to achieve the aim which he had set before his eyes including establishing the House of Grace.
As a parishioner, the author reflects on her experience, and the historical record, of Fr. Mikhail Saad as an outstanding Coptic preacher. She also provides a brief biography of him as the founder of St Mary & St Joseph Coptic Orthodox Church in Semouha, Alexandria, Egypt, and the House of Grace complex of services.
By Hegumen Shenouda Anba Bishoy, Sunday Schools Magazine, vol 51, no 2, February 1997, pp 31 -32.
1) Faithful church ministry (principles, practices, books, diaspora visits),
2) His letters of sympathy and comfort,
3) God acknowledges His servants (House of Grace),
4) His care for missions to Africa (with HG Bishop Antonious Marcus),
5) His zeal for internal unity of the church,
6) Heavenly declaration of his departure,
7) His last article in Watani (Christmas message, 7 January 1996), and
8) The fruits of his faithful ministry and warm words of farewell.
https://chicago.academia.edu/MichaelSaad/Fr-Mikhail-Saad
1) Psalm 19/20: The Lord shall hear you in the day of your trouble (third hour).
2) Psalm 22/23: The Lord is He who shepherds me (third hour).
3) Psalm 69/70: O God, be mindful to my help (sixth hour).
4) Psalm 90/91: He who dwells in the help of the Most High (sixth hour).
Then Fr. Mikhail advises to pray these four psalms daily for three purposes:
1) For blessing and seeking the care of God.
2) To keep us away from evils and stumbles.
3) For protection from those who hate us.
Then Fr. Mikhail concludes the letter with best wishes for the Coptic new year and adding, "May our Lord bless your life and fill it with peace, joy, strength, and good fruits. Amen."
* Introduction by HG Bishop Shenouda, who in 1971 became HH Pope Shenouda III.
* Thanks to Coptic-Treasures.com for providing the PDF as an open source.
* The book includes a translation to Arabic of a section in Simon H. Leader, Modern Sons of the Pharaohs, London, 1918. Leader wrote about Bishop Abraam from personal experience.
Sunday Schools Magazine, vol 16, no 8 & 9, Oct-Nov 1962, pp 43-45, 56.
a plurality of junctions spaced along the length of the main waveguide for coupling selected signals in the different frequency bands in and out of the waveguide, at least one of the junctions being located in an overmoded portion of the waveguide, each of the junctions having an unbalanced or pseudo-balanced feed with only a single side-arm waveguide for transmitting and receiving the signals;
and filtering means disposed within the main waveguide and operatively associated with each junction therein for signals in the highest frequency band, the filtering means having (1) a stopband characteristic for coupling signals in the highest frequency band between the main waveguide and the junction and the side-arm waveguide connected thereto, and (2) a passband characteristic for passing signals in lower frequency bands past the junction.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the waveguide has an overmoded section with a square cross section and a single-moded section with a rectangular cross-section, with the overmoded and singlemoded sections being joined by a transition section having at least one side wall which is tapered to effect the transition from the square cross-section to the rectangular cross-section.
R(p) = Rl (p) + { [ R2 (p) – R1 (p) ] / L(p) } l(p)
where R is the transverse dimension from the longitudinal axis of the horn to the side wall of the horn, l is the axial distance along the horn measured from the end where the horn begins to flare outwardly, R1 and R2 are the radii of the horn at opposite ends of the horn section defined by the equation, L is the axial length of the horn section defined by the equation, and the exponent p has a value greater than two and less than about 7, to effect a substantial reduction in the TM11 mode level.
the polarizer comprising a waveguide of circular or square cross-sectional shape dimensioned to simultaneously propagate signals in two different frequency bands and two arrays of conductive elements,
each array comprising a pair of diametrically opposed rows of conductive elements extending inwardly from the walls of the waveguide.
[ r(p)/a ] – [ l(p)/b ] = 1
where a and b are constants, r is the radius of the transition, l is the axial distance along the transition measured from one end, and the exponent p has a value greater than two.
The dumbbell-shaped cross-section is totally devoid of corners and other abrupt protrusions and is defined by a geometric equation in which specific parameters can be correlatively optiminzed to improve desired electrical properties of the waveguide. The waveguide is rendered "semi-flexible" by the provision of helical corrugations having a staggered disposition of opposing corrugation crests and troughs, whereby the breakdown air gap and, consequently, the maximum power rating is increased.
mutual benefits of the strategic relation between the adjunct faculty and the engineering school are outlined. Some suggestions are offered to enhance the relation to include
areas such as university and society linkage, academic strategy development, role modeling, internship and technology transfer. The mission of adjunct faculty is thus
redefined and expanded.
The applicability of this technique is illustrated by the analysis and measurement of two transitions. It is shown that theoretical prediction of coupled-mode amplitudes is reliable for gradual tapers where the flare angle is small. For large flare angles, more rigorous coupled-mode theory has to be employed.
Both articles highlight several aspects of the 11th International Congress of Coptic Studies hosted by Claremont Graduate University (California) and organized by St Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society, 25-30 July 2016. Having participated and attended a number of presentations amid the bustle of the Congress, I here share with the reader some of my observations.
When the Copts migrated to different continents, they carried with them a wealth of Coptic art, music, architecture, language, literature, tradition, and spirituality. This article (in Arabic) portrays a few examples of how Coptic art and music were transferred to the Diaspora. As to art, the article points to the works of the late iconographers Isaac Fanous, Bedour Latif, and Youssef Nassif, along with several artists who are still contributing masterpieces. As to music, the article focuses on Coptic liturgical hymns by St Kyrel Choir (with concerts in London, Paris, and Stockholm).
These and other aspects of Coptic civilization, such as language, literature and architecture, are sustained by and manifested within the Coptic Orthodox Church. Therefore, besides its spiritual mission, the church has become the medium through which many forms of Coptic civilization are transmitted to, and preserved in the Diaspora.
I was privileged to have known Fr. Gawargious Mikhail (1930-2016) since the mid-1950s as my Sunday School teacher, youth leader, friend, role model, and mentor in engineering, spirituality, and Sunday School service. The ministry of Kamal Mikhail (his name before ordination) began in and around Alexandria circa 1950 and included work in rural areas. By the early 1960s, the centers he planted grew to 20-30 sites. One by one, they became established churches, some even fine basilicas, and he was the founder.
In 1965, as the authorities took notice of Kamal’s Christian ministry, they transferred him from Alexandria to a small rural town (Kum Ombo) near Aswan, to impede his preaching of the Gospel. They kept transferring him so that he would not establish roots. But God always opened the doors of ministry for him.
On 3 August 1975, H.H. Pope Shenouda III ordained Kamal Mikhail to serve at St. Mark Cathedral in Alexandria. This Alexandria ministry continued until his departure, with the exception of a period from 1980 to 1991, when he served once again at St. Mary & St. Joseph Church in Semoha, and when he came to Los Angeles to visit his children and seek medical treatment. In Los Angeles, he was a special blessing to many, including myself. His lifelong ministry is extended in the diaspora through many of his disciples around the world including his son, Hegumen John Mikhail, who serves at St. Justina Coptic Orthodox Church in Rancho Cucamonga, California.
The history of Sunday Schools and church building in Alexandria and certain regions of Egypt from the 1950s to the present would not be complete without tracing the footsteps and accomplishments of this good and faithful servant of the Lord.
Egyptian Christians in America." Read the 4-page program in English at the end of my 2-page article in Arabic describing this special event which included a Coptic choir singing and speeches by CGU President, faculty, and students of Coptic studies professor Dr. Gawdat Gabra. There was also book signing of The Churches of Egypt by its editor Carolyn Ludwig and contributor Dr. Gawdat Gabra.
Martha received two MAs in theology: one from the Coptic Orthodox Seminary in LA and another one from the Claremont School of Theology (CST). At CST, her MA thesis was entitled: "Alpha and Omega Educational Program: Knowing the Coptic Orthodox Church in Three Years." About this, she presented a paper at the Tenth Annual St Shenouda Society - UCLA Conference of Coptic Studies, 18-19 July 2008. Here is the abstract of that paper:
Education is a unique phenomenon that specifies the humankind. Simply it is passing knowledge and skills to the others. So it is considered the main motive for the humankind’s evolution and development. Christian education methodology can be found in six paradigms: family, tradition, personhood, the church, community, and Nature/Earth. In education there are three forms of curricula: Explicit, Implicit and Null curriculum. Jesus Christ established the Christian Education 2000 years ago; Considering Him as a role model in his way of education, we find that He used both the Explicit and Implicit forms of curricula in His teaching.
The Alpha and Omega is an educational program that provides a framework to develop a comprehensive educational curriculum within. It is designed for three successive years; age (11-14). The Alpha and Omega program is built on the seasons and feasts of the Coptic Orthodox Church using the Coptic calendar that stars September 11. The year is divided into four quarters and will have the same sequence in the three years. (1) Preparation for Nativity (Nayrouz to Christmas), Lessons are chosen from the Old Testament. (2) Living with Jesus Christ (Christmas to Easter), Lessons are chosen from the four Gospels. (3) Resurrection and Pentecost (Easter to the Apostles Feast), Lessons are chosen from the book of Acts and the Epistles. (4) Establishing the Church of God (Apostles Feast to Nayrouz), Lessons are chosen from Coptic Church history, tradition, doctrine, and rituals.
Fr. Mikhail Ibrahim was hegumen at St Mark Church in Shoubra, Cairo, Egypt from 1955 until his departure on 26 March 1975. A triad of giants collaborated in this church: Fr. Mikhail Ibrahim, Fr. Marcus Dawood, famous for authoring and translating about 175 books, and Archdeacon Ayad Ayad, famous for nationwide preaching.
Fr. Mikhail Ibrahim was a unique spiritual leader with uncommon humility, successful spiritual counseling, and fruitful prayers. He was gifted in restoring lost souls, strengthening families, and providing a role model for clergy and lay servants in the church. As such, his memory is revered by Copts around the world. The life and ministry of Fr. Mikhail Ibrahim was celebrated in a book by Pope Shenouda III and a film.
This article places the life of this spiritual father in the broader context of modern Coptic Church ministry.
Fascinated by Coptic literature and early Egyptian monasticism, German Coptologist Heike Behlmer wrote a PhD thesis on St Shenoute the Archimandrite and later a D.Phil. thesis on St Besa, Shenoute’s disciple. For many years, she acted as Ambassador Par Excellence of Coptic Studies throughout five continents. Of note, her renowned faculty positions at Göttingen University in Germany and Macquarie University in Australia.
In this interview, Professor Behlmer speaks (among other things) about the motivation driving her mission in Coptology, the MA program in Coptic Studies at Macquarie University which she directed for several years, why the study of St. Shenouda has escalated so much worldwide in the 21st century, and the Coptic collection in the Museo Egizio, Tu¬rin, Italy.
In 357 AD, St Athanasius wrote Life of Antony in Greek for the world to read. It was translated to Latin and Coptic immediately after. This article (in Arabic) discusses three points:
(1) How the Copts may benefit today from this masterpiece of Christian literature which changed lives around the world.
(2) The importance of the first time ever the book is translated from Coptic to English (Tim Vivian, Cistercian Publications, 2003). The Coptic (and by extension its English) translation uses the same vocabulary that St Antony employed in his native language, as he primarily spoke and wrote in Coptic in his sermons and communications.
(3) The worthiness of the Life of Antony as an essential addition to world school curricula, national reading campaigns in Egypt, and the Coptic world Sunday schools.
حديث مع عالم القبطيات ريتشارد سميث : علم نفسه اللغة القبطية حتى أصبح استاذا لها ومترجما لمخطوطات شهيرة ومؤلفا فى التراث القبطى
Title translation: "An Interview with Coptic Language Expert Richard Smith: He taught himself Coptic till he became a teacher of it, a translator of famous manuscripts, and author in Coptic heritage."
After teaching himself the Coptic language in the 1970s, scholar Richard Smith taught Coptic at Claremont School of Theology (CST) and Claremont Graduate University (CGU), translated ancient manuscripts such as the Nag Hammadi codices, and wrote and edited a number of books in the field including a student Coptic dictionary. In 2005, I had an opportunity to conduct this interview with Mr. Richard Smith. The timing was relevant since Mr. Smith was teaching a course in Coptic Language and Text Reading at a class jointly offered by CST and CGU with funding from the Coptic community.
The original, longer interview in English is published in the same issue of Watani (5 June 2005) and at: https://www.academia.edu/78642811/
This article is a historical-spiritual reflection on the many heavy crosses that Pope John Paul II (1978-2005) carried throughout his life (died on 2 April 2005). Born in Poland in 1920, he lost his mother at age nine. When Germany occupied Poland during WWII and killed about one third of the Catholic clergy, he enrolled in the underground seminary in 1942 and was ordained priest in 1946. His clerical career under the cruel persecution of communist Poland was courageous and costly. Elected Pope in 1978, he miraculously survived at least three assassination attempts. He pardoned the assailant whose bullets, on 13 May 1981, perforated the pope’s colon and small intestine and caused him to lose nearly three-quarters of his blood. The journey of physical suffering included living with severe injuries from assassination attempts and his last four years with Parkinson’s disease.
Despite all of that suffering, John Paul II achieved miracles for the liberation of the world, and presented the role model of a spiritual servant and leader in action, with grace and humility. Imagine the spiritual leader of one sixth of world population, even as ill and at age 80, obeying Christ’s commandment of washing the feet of others, and exceeding by kissing those feet!
Finally, the article contrasts the heavy crosses the pontiff has victoriously endured to the light crosses that the author has failed to endure.
On 10 Januaray 2005, the Coptic diaspora in Jersey City, NJ, offered four martyrs from the Armanious family: Hossam (48), his wife Amal Garas (37), and their daughters Sylvia (15) and Monica (8). The grisly murder sent a shock wave through the Coptic community in New Jersey and around the world. Years later, a Google search still results in updates and theories, one relates to the evangelical activities of all four members of the Coptic family that immigrated from Luxor in 1997.
At the time, Coptic organizations organized candle vigils in American cities and a full-page in the Washington Times (15 February 2005). In 2008, one of the alleged killers, Edward McDonald, received a 300-year sentence. This article discusses the history and activities of the four martyrs, the witness of their family and friends, and what does that mean to the battle between good and evil.
Lili Azmy Youssef (1956-2005) is an exemplary model of Coptic women in the diaspora. This article is both a tribute to her community service and a contribution to diaspora studies. In 1968, Lili immigrated with her parents (Azmy and Etidal Tadros) from Egypt. Later she received a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of California Berkeley then worked in a chemical plant in Chicago. There she participated in translation of Coptic liturgical books from Arabic to English.
In 1982, she married Dr. Moheb Youssef and they had their children Mina and Mariam. In 1987, the family moved to Southern California. She consistently taught second-grade class of Sunday School for 25 years until she battled with cancer and departed on 16 January 2005.
She worked hard to found the girls Ecclesiastical Choir (could be the first in Coptic America) at St John Church in Covina in 2004. For years, she served as a “class mother” in her children’s schools, volunteered at Harvey Mudd College (Claremont, CA) as her children enrolled there, and was an advocate of initiating studies in Middle Eastern Orthodox Christianity at Claremont Graduate University.
My new-year reflections in Watani (in Arabic), 16 January 2005:
Proclaiming a Year Acceptable to the Lord!
God who articulated the creation of the world and humans;
God, who carries the universe on His palm for billions of years;
God who loved us that He gave us Himself;
He is the one proclaiming to us a new acceptable year (Luke 4:19, Isaiah 61:2).
Who then dares not to hope for the future, await goodness, and work enthusiastically!"
HH Pope of Alexandria Kyrillos VI (1959-1971), canonized by the Coptic Orthodox Church on 20 June 2013, has been universally acknowledged as a deeply spiritual monk, the patriarch who remained a monk, the gifted miraculous healer of soul and body, and the go-to intercessor for millions of Copts worldwide.
This article investigates his views and expressions in national politics, and his capacity, as a purely spiritual person and leader, to still tie in positions in certain national political issues. As such, he presented a role model for his flock in political participation.
Youhanna Selim Elraheb (1920-1993) was born in Sanhour, Fayoum and graduated from Fouad I (Cairo) University as an architect in 1944. In that year, he was instrumental and successful, along with fellow leaders in the Sunday School movement in Giza, in pushing back against a new personal status law that the Nahhas government proposed to apply Islamic law (Sharia) on Christians. Youhanna and Isaac Fanous (who later became the most famous Coptic iconographer) toured Egypt to initiate protest telegrams to King Farouk. For this, and complex other reasons, the Nahhas government resigned and a new government was appointed on 7 October 1944.
As a brilliant architect, Youhanna Elraheb designed several church buildings such as the Coptic Deacons House in Giza (1957) and the All Africa Conference of Churches in Nairobi. He was also a leading member of the engineering teams that designed and executed the construction of the new St Mark Cathedral (Cairo), St Mina Monastery (Mariout), the Virgin Monastery (Bayad, Beni Suef), al-Mukattam ministry buildings, St Mary Church (Ard el-Golf), and St Mark Church (Toronto).
From the start of the Bishopric of Public and Social Services in 1962, Youhanna Elraheb was in the inner circle of advisors to Bishop Samuel (1920-1981), and personally volunteering in executing engineering and social projects. Of note were programs to serve the handicapped, the daily laborers, and garbage collectors in al-Mukattam, for whom they established two effective benevolent societies. This article lists several other monumental projects (in Egypt and Canada) in which Youhanna Elraheb was a leader or participant; all as a volunteer.
After immigrating to Canada in 1967, he returned to Cairo in 1977 to serve in the Bishopric of Public and Social Services, again with a focus on the Mukattam ministry. In 1986, Mrs. Susan Mubarak, Egypt’s First Lady (1981-2011), visited these projects in Mukattam, and Youhanna was one of the leaders making presentations (see photo).
When Bishop Samuel was martyred on 6 October 1981, it was natural that Youhanna was appointed an overseer of the Bishopric, and that lasted until Bishop Serapion was ordained for that ministry in June 1985. Later, Youhanna returned to Canada and continued his service to immigrants and the handicapped until his departure on 30 December 1993.
I am in debt to the distinguished leader and public servant Youhanna Elraheb for his moral and spiritual support. That includes the launch of a new phase in my writing career when he graciously adopted my manuscript, “Ecclesiastical Democracy in the Thought of Archdeacon Habib Girgis,” and got it published in Sunday School Magazine, vol. 46, January 1992, pp. 32-36. Youhanna was a loving disciple of Habib Girgis (1876-1951) and gave me first hand impressions about the great reformer who was canonized in 2013. My 1992 article was an analysis of Girgis’s 1942 book, The Practical Means Toward Coptic Reform. Concurrently, Youhanna reached to Sunday School House in Shobra, Cairo to issue a reprint of the book. Again, I wrote one of the Introductions of the reprint which appeared in 1993. May God bless their souls and reward them for their labor of love.
I would like this English summary of the Arabic article to draw feedback, corrections, and expansion from family and friends of the late Youhanna Elraheb so that I may be able to write an expanded version in English about him.
Dr. Blanche Iskander Mikhail (1945-2003) was Professor of Nursing at California State University Bakersfield (CSUB) and an internationally recognized scholar. H.G. Anba Serapion, Coptic Bishop of Los Angeles, spoke of her spirit of grace, peace and thanksgiving even during her last days of utmost suffering. CSUB President Tomas Arciniega also described her as first rate professor who employed all her gifts, talents, and knowledge to the service of the students and community. During a high visibility academic mission in Jordan, Blanche volunteered to be a nurse assistant at the home of the terminally sick operated by the Missionaries of Charity, Order of Mother Teresa. (An abridged English version of this article is published in the author's Newspapers Section on Academia.edu.)
LogosTV Coptic Civilization (E060) – From Los Angeles to Bolivia and the World – Fr Mina Ghebrial and Team. What did a seeking group from Los Angeles find or achieve in their purposeful visit to fellow Copts in Bolivia? As you expected: Christian fellowship, rejoicing in baptismal and Eucharistic sacraments, medical and social services, self search and find, the universality of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and much more. Guests: Fr. Mina Ghebrial, Christ The Redeemer Church in Lakewood, California, Christie Bolous, Fawzy Girgis, Mina Hakim, Adel Hanna, and Youstine Hanna. Host: Saad Michael Saad. First aired 7 March 2023
Beautiful melodies in Coptic, Greek, English, and Arabic; but the reflections are in English. Twelve sets of Crucifixion and Resurrection hymns, each sung by St Kyrel Coptic Orthodox European Choir and Beit Sahour Greek Orthodox Choir. The performance was in the ancient City of Bethlehem on 4 May 2019.
Co-hosts: Dr. Saad Michael Saad, Mary Ghattas (Claremont Graduate University) and Monica Mitri (Claremont School of Theology).
E-parthenos reads: “Today, the Virgin gives birth to Him who is transcendent, and the earth presents the cave to Him who is beyond reach…”
Pi-jinmisi read: “The virginal birth and the spiritual pains are paradoxical wonders…”
Ni-Cherubim reads: “The cherubim and the seraphim … proclaim and say ‘Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, and goodwill towards men.”
قناة لوجوس – الحضارة القبطية (١٢٢) – ميمري الصعود والعنصرة للأسقف بولس البوشي – الثروة اللاهوتية والآبائية والروحية التي أعطاها الأنبا بولس البوشي أسقف مصر في القرن الثالث عشر. نموذج هام للتراث العربي المسيحي للأقباط. ضيف الحلقة د. جوزيف موريس فلتس (دياكون أثناسيوس). تقديم د. سعد ميخائيل سعد. أول بث ٤ يونيو ٢.٢٤
Coptic civilization – one of the oldest world civilizations still in existence dating back millennia – is a treasure for all humanity because of its quality, its historical importance, and its spiritual dimensions.
This LogosTV program, which began airing on 5 March 2013, was founded by Dr. Gawdat Gabra and Dr. Saad Michael Saad. It continues to present segments on different aspects of Coptic civilization including Coptic history, identity, art, music, architecture, archeology, monastic life, language, literature, liturgy, and church life as experienced both in Egypt and across the Coptic Diaspora. Guest speakers and contemporary research come together to discuss what it means to be a Copt and how this dynamic, living Coptic identity informs, creates, and promotes Coptic civilization over time.
The title of this program as well as its purpose and contents were inspired by the book Coptic Civilization: Two Thousand Years of Christianity in Egypt, edited by Dr. Gawdat Gabra, and published by the American University in Cairo Press in 2014. S. M. Saad contributed Chapter 21, entitled Coptic Civilization in the Diaspora.
This document gives data on (and links to) 76 episodes in Arabic hosted by Dr. S.M. Saad on a monthly basis from 5 March 2013 through 28 December 2020.
قناة لوجوس – الحضارة القبطية (١٢١) – ميمري الصلبوت والقيامة للأسقف بولس البوشي – الثروة اللاهوتية والآبائية والروحية التي أعطاها الأنبا بولس البوشي أسقف مصر في القرن الثالث عشر. نموذج هام للتراث العربي المسيحي للأقباط. ضيف الحلقة د. جوزيف موريس فلتس (دياكون أثناسيوس). تقديم د. سعد ميخائيل سعد. أول بث ٧ مايو ٢.٢٤
Guest: HE Metropolitan Youssef, Metropolitan of the Southern United States. Host: Dr Saad Michael Saad. First aired 2 January 2024.
A rich episode on The City of the Living God. From Nazareth to Bethlehem to the earthly and the heavenly Jerusalem. Our responsibility toward the salvation of our City and the World, Civilization and Spirituality …
قناة لوجوس برنامج الحضارة القبطية (١١٦) – مدينة الله الحي – ضيف الحلقة نيافة الأنبا يوسف مطران جنوبي الولايات المتحدة. تقديم د. سعد ميخائيل سعد. مدينة البشارة السماوية الناصرة. مدينة الميلاد المجيد بيت لحم. مدينةالسلام والعهد الجديد أورشليم. المدينة المقدسة التي للملك المسيح. المدينة العروس أورشليم السماويه ... مسؤلية شعب الله نحو المدينة والكنيسة، الحضارة والروحانية
هذه الحلقة من قناة لوجوس تغطي تاريخ وعمارة دير القديس الأنبا هدرا السائح وباقي التراث المسيحي والرهباني في ايبارشية أسوان ... عمل الله مع نيافة الأنبا هدرا في ايبارشية أسوان وبالأخص إقامة كاتدرائية رئيس الملائكة ميخائيل وتعمير دير الأنبا باخوميوس وبناء مقر المؤتمرات وكنيسة في منطقة دير الأنبا هدرا واستضافة مؤتمر القبطيات هناك عام ٢٠١٠. عرض لدير الأنبا هدرا وغيره من الآثار القبطية من ادفو الي ابو سمبل.
قناة لوجوس الحضارة القبطية (٦٣) – أناستاسيس من الظلمة إلي النور – ضيف الحلقة د. ميشيل حنين (لندن) يشرح عددا من الألحان التي رتلها كورال سان كيريل القبطي الأوروبي بالاشتراك مع جوقة بيت ساحور للروم الأرثوذكس في بيت لحم في ٤ مايو ٢٠١٩. تقديم د. سعد ميخائيل سعد. أول بث ١٠ سبتمبر ٢.١٩
From hr:min 1:37, The Creation Concert, part 2. Guest: Dr. Michael Henein (London). Liturgical hymns by St Kyrel Coptic European Choir.
Host: Dr. Saad Michael Saad. First aired 1 March 2016
1) Elhamy Khalil, "Father Antonious Henein (1944-2006) As I Knew Him: A pioneering priest who in 33 years of faithful ministry brought glories of Coptic heritage from Egypt to America." 17 December 2006. As a volunteer page editor for Watani International at the time, I was responsible for the production of this page.
2) Elhamy Khalil, "Hegumen Antonious Henein As I Knew Him." In Arabic, 17 December 2006.
3) Magdi Khalil, "The Repose of a Great Priest in Los Angeles." In Arabic, 26 November 2006.
4) Saad Michael Saad, "Abouna Antonious Henein and patronage of Coptic Heritage: He introduced the Coptic Church to the world as an icon of Christ." In Arabic, 18 November 2007.
1) Dr. Elhamy Khalil, “Bishop Samuel As I Knew Him: An architect of the Coptic Orthodox Church renaissance in the 20th century.” The article was in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the martyrdom of H.G. Anba Samuel on 6 October 1981. As a witness and often collaborator, Dr. Khalil explains the pioneering efforts of Bishop Samuel in the fields of evangelism, Sunday schools, social service, theological education, Coptic studies, and the formation of the Coptic diaspora.
2) Revd. Dr. John H. Watson, “The Coptophile Column.” This article is about Cardinal Franz Konig, Archbishop of Vienna, his efforts for mutual understanding among Christian churches, and his warm personal relationship with Pope Shenouda. Konig (d. 2004) was the founder of Pro Oriente to promote ecumenical relations between the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox Churches.
Sections of the article: 1) The codex when first seen in Geneva in 1983. 2) The Codex Was Bought in 2000 by Frieda Tchacos. 3) The Return to the Coptic Museum in Cairo; but When? 4) An Alternate Way to Make Money. 5) The Monopoly Goes On. 6) Sethian Gnosticism. 7) What is missing from The Gospel of Judas. 8) The Ghostlike Jesus of The Gospel of Judas. 9) The patchwork editing of The Gospel of Judas.
On 22 March 2016, the Coptology world paid its respects to one of the giants of Coptology, Professor James M. Robinson, who in the 1960s introduced Coptology to Claremont Graduate University. He was also an honorary president of the International Association for Coptic Studies (IACS), prolific author, delightful lecturer, and a gracious friend. Robinson was one of the few scholars who pushed against the media narrative and hype promoting the Gospel of Judas as something that was not. As a volunteer page editor for Watani International at the time, I invited Professor Robinson to contribute three articles on this topic. Here I post the second one here which has his personal encounter with the Gospel of Judas codex and a biography.
In this article, Professor Robinson discusses the following topics and much more:
1) The Al-Minya Discovery.
2) The Nag Hammadi Codices and The Gospel of Judas.
3) The Gospel of Judas as Heresy.
4) In 2006 the modern world will see (saw) for the first time the text of a second century Gospel of Judas. Will this Gnostic book reveal a novel, a heresy, a myth, or folklore of second century Alexandrian Greek literature?
5) After its publication, the manuscript it is (was) to be returned to Egypt for deposit with the Coptic Museum in Cairo.
1) Saad Michael Saad, “The Donna Ford and Fahmy Attallah Library of Arts and Humanities is Dedicated at Chapman University, Orange, California.”
2) Caroline Zakaria, “A Dialogue with a Contemporary Coptic Poet,” that is Professor Matthew Shenoda, now with Brown University. Discussion on his book, Somewhere Else. Minneapolis, MN: Coffee House Press, 2005.
3) A description for a book by Revd Dr. John H. Watson, Christians Observed: Narratives for Today’s Church. Portland, OR: The Alpha Press, 2004.
1) Saad Michael Saad, “Two Celebrations, Rejoicing as One: Pope Shenouda Consecrates St. John Church in Covina, California, and the Coptic Community Honors the Golden Anniversary of Pope Shenouda’s Monasticism.”
2) Elhamy Khalil, “The Tenth Anniversary of the Departure of a Visionary Leader: Fr. Saleeb Sourial (1916-1994) as I Knew Him; A Pragmatic Reformer in Spiritual and Social Fields.” The Arabic version is on page 2 of the PDF.
3) John E. McKenna, “The Coptic Church: The Faithfulness of Her Witness in Southern California.”
The conference in 2004 was to commemorate the St. Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society’s 25th year of activity. As such, it was most fitting to invite papers on all matters Shenoutian. Papers presented at the conference were later published in a volume obtainable from St Shenouda Society.
There are three articles in this page:
1) Mark Moussa, “Abba Shenoute the Archimandrite.”
2) Mark Moussa, “Conference on Abba Shenoute.”
3) Julie M. Raheb, “A Youthful Perspective on the Conference.”
This page is one of many that I edited and produced as a volunteer page editor for Watani International.
1) HG Bishop Youssef (Diocese of Southern USA), “Reflections on the Suffering of the Early Christians.” Upon studying Coptic persecutions, His Grace reflects on the question many have asked, “Why did the early Christians have to suffer?”
2) Ed Rizkalla (Coptic community of Washington DC), “The Origin and History of the Coptic Calendar.” The article includes an informative account (with a table in five languages) of Coptic months and addresses the discrepancy between the Coptic and Western calendars.
3) “First African Elected General Secretary of World Council of Churches.”
As such, the publication of this book marks a major success for the field of Coptic Studies at large and the broader recognition of the beloved reformer. The book also includes an extensive collection of rare photographs and documents from the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchal Archives in Cairo. In the words of Bishop Suriel, Habib Girgis helped Egyptians “to give meaning to their own struggles… to look within to understand their lives and to think of what lay beyond.”
Having labored hard to make the Copts conscious of their heritage, Habib Girgis awakened their self-consciousness through establishing or promoting several movements in which the revival of patristic theology was a primary component. For example, in his 17 volumes of al-Karma magazine (1907-1931), St Habib published for the first time the treasures of patristic literature available to him at the Patriarchal Library.
The results of these efforts became manifest not only in Habib’s writings and teaching at the seminary, but also in his students’ writings, which began to appear soon after. Two of those students, Fr. Manassa Youhanna (1899-1930) and Fr. Marcos Daoud (1897-1986) wrote and translated volumes filled with patristic theology. Later generations continued the march.
Bishop Suriel serves as a bridge builder between the Coptic experiences and identities in Egypt and the Diaspora, and his attainment of the PhD degree at a prestigious Roman Catholic university on Habib Girgis is an important example.
Bishop Suriel has graciously given to my LogosTV Coptic Civilization program two interviews on the life and influence of this famous educator. They are posted at the two attached links.
The results of these efforts became manifest not only in Habib’s writings and teaching at the seminary, but also in his students’ writings, which began to appear soon after. Two of those students, Fr. Manassa Youhanna (1899-1930) and Fr. Marcos Daoud (1897-1986) wrote and translated volumes filled with patristic theology. Later generations continued the march.
Guests in order: Dr. Esmat Gabriel (Philadelphia) on HH Pope Kyrillos VI (1959-1971) and Fr. Athanasius Farag (Rutherford, New Jersey) on Archdeacon Habib Girgis (1876-1951), both canonized by the Coptic Orthodox Church on 20 June 2013.
Host: Dr. Saad Michael Saad.
First aired: 23 July 2013.
On 20 June 2013, the Coptic Orthodox Church canonized Archdeacon Habib Girgis (1976-1951) who was the Dean of the Coptic Orthodox Seminary from 1918-1951. He was also the mentor to the next generation which led the church since then including H.H. Pope Shenouda III.
In the many books written by Girgis (aka Jirjis and Guirguis), one discovers the depth of his teaching on the work of the Holy Spirit as the foundation for the progress and growth of the church. He articulates that work, from sanctifying church members, to inspiring her leaders, to guiding her Holy Synod, to renewing her life. This article focuses on quotes from his book, Practical Means of Coptic Reforms, published in 1942 and reprinted in 1993.
For example, on p 193, Girgis puts before the Coptic Synod the role model of the first apostolic assembly when the apostles decreed no need to impose circumcision on the gentiles stating, “Being assembled with one accord, … it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us, …” (Acts 15:25-28).
In another example, p 194, Girgis elaborates on the Apostolic Cannon 34, “The bishops of every nation should recognize the leader among them, and do nothing unusual without his will. Let each one of them do what concerns his diocese only, and the leader also does nothing without their opinion. For this way unity is achieved for the glory of God by the Lord in the Holy Spirit.”
Second printing by the Coptic Sunday Schools House, 70 Raud el-Farag Street, Shoubra, Cairo, 1993. First printing was in 1942.
This article is a part of a series by Saad Michael Saad on the theme of people's participation in the decision making process of the church.
A critical analysis of the thought of Archdeacon Habib Girgis (1876-1951), canonized by the Coptic Orthodox Church on 20 June 2013, reveals his sincere conviction in church democracy. That is, the laity are participants with the clergy, not only in the ministry, but also in the decision making.
This article analyzes the concepts and framework of church organization which Habib Girgis dreamed of in his book, Practical Means for Coptic Reformation: Hopes and Dreams Achievable in Ten Years, published in Arabic in 1942.
In this book, Girgis constructs a system for church life, organization, government, and continuous reformation. Toward that goal, he does not consider church democracy as an imitation of western culture, nor a product of the political democratization of Egypt. On the contrary, he regards it as an ancient tradition in the Coptic Church grounded in the biblical truth, apostolic teaching, and early church praxis.
Having written this article some 30 years ago (Sunday Schools Magazine, Jan 1992), my enthusiasm for church democracy, so passionately expressed in this article, has turned into skepticism because democracy has been misused in our modern time in almost all frameworks, whether it is political, religious, professional, societal, or community organizations in which I participated or watched closely. So, something beyond democracy is needed. This article attempts to find that something in the thought of Habib Girgis.