Garbage City existed before its Coptic Christian residents, and they are the only ones willing enough to remain among the trash and help Cairo by sorting through it. The main issue, these days, is the lack of political representation and influence caused by a growing Muslim-Christian divide.
Read More(ANALYSIS) On Feb. 15, 2015, both were among the men beheaded by Islamic State soldiers on a beach in Libya. All 21 — 20 Egyptian Copts and a Ghanan who professed his Christian faith — were soon declared martyrs by the Coptic Orthodox Church.
Read More(ESSAY) Amid the pain and suffering in the Middle East, it is good to be reminded that beautiful things also happen there. One such remembrance came on Oct. 11 with the funeral of Father Simaan Ibrahim in Muqattam, in the southeast of Cairo. It was a funeral, with much lament, but was also a joyous occasion that drew 30,000 people to worship in the of the monastery of St. Simaan the Tanner Church, which he founded and led for 50 years.
Read MoreEgypt is developing the Holy Family Trail — a pilgrimage of sites from Jesus’ infancy to his wandering in the desert — hoping to revive its tourist industry battered by two years of COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The religious freedom of and even the number of Christians in Egypt is highly contested, but there are a number of important reasons why the Coptic pope declines to call discrimination against Christians “persecution.” A recent webinar by In Defense of Christians discussed the topic.
Read More(COMMENTARY) Four years after 21 Christians were beheaded by ISIS in Libya, a new book, The 21: A Journey into the Land of Coptic Martyrs, explores their ancient faith.
Read More(OPINION) In Egypt alone, we have about 2 million children in Sunday School every week. In America, we also have thousands and thousands and thousands, not only for children but also for youth. And this is the strength of the church. A church without youth is a church without a future. A youth without the church, is a youth that is lost.
Read More(COMMENTARY) The persecution of Christians and other minorities in the Middle East was not one of 2018's big news stories. Instead, this parade of horrors became a kind of "old news" that rarely reached the prime headlines offered by elite newsrooms.
Read MoreChristian women in Egypt face an epidemic of kidnapping, rape, beatings and torture.
Read MoreIn the midst of ongoing violence against Christians, poet and songwriter Nader Wanis founded a cultural center in St. Mark's Anglican cathedral to invite Muslims into the church to build peace through art and creativity.
Read MoreThere have been tears, but Copts still fill their churches. "There is sadness in their hearts, but they still hold to the responsibility that God has given: We are not afraid. We love. And we ask for justice," Bishop Thomas told TMP.
Read MoreEGYPT -- Any list of the embattled Christian communities in the Middle East would start with the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt and the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate in Damascus. It is also important to know that there are other small, but important, Christian communities in Egypt, Syria, and other lands in the region.
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