The spiritual leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Tawadros II, led Christmas Mass on Thursday night in the cathedral of the Nativity of Christ in Egypt’s new capital, in the desert east of Cairo.
As his habit since taking office seven years ago, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi dropped by to greet the Coptic pontiff and the congregation at the cathedral shortly before the service began.
Mr El Sisi delivered a message of unity between the country's Muslim majority and the Christian community, which accounts for 10 per cent of Egypt’s 102 million people.
“Don’t let anyone come between us or sow sedition,” he said. “May God help me to be an honest and trustworthy servant for the nation and you. Let me tell you this: this country is ours and it’s big enough for all of us.”
Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on Friday, nearly two weeks after most of Christendom’s other denominations.
Of the world’s Christian communities, the orthodox churches in Russia, Ethiopia, Serbia and Ukraine are the major ones that join Egypt’s in celebrating Christmas on January 7.
The Coptic Orthodox Church traces its origins to the first century AD when the apostle Mark is said to have visited Egypt. Mark is regarded by Egypt’s Christians as the first Pope of Alexandria.
Early Christians in Egypt suffered persecution under Roman rule and continued to face systematic, albeit intermittent, persecution for centuries afterward.
Mr El Sisi is particularly popular among Egypt’s Christians because he led the military’s removal in 2013 of president Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, which is outlawed as a terrorist group by Egypt.
Morsi’s one year in office was a source of serious concern for the Christians, who feared persecution under his rule.
Militants attacked Christians and scores of their places of worship in the days and weeks that followed Morsi’s removal.
There have also been attacks in recent years against Christians in northern Sinai, where militants have for years been fighting government forces.
Christian pilgrims have also been killed while travelling to remote desert monasteries south-west of Cairo.
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
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Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
'Young girls thinking of big ideas'
Words come easy for aspiring writer Afra Al Muhairb. The business side of books, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to the 16-year-old Emirati. So, she followed her father’s advice and enroled in the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s summer entrepreneurship course at Abu Dhabi University hoping to pick up a few new skills.
“Most of us have this dream of opening a business,” said Afra, referring to her peers are “young girls thinking of big ideas.”
In the three-week class, pupils are challenged to come up with a business and develop an operational and marketing plan to support their idea. But, the learning goes far beyond sales and branding, said teacher Sonia Elhaj.
“It’s not only about starting up a business, it’s all the meta skills that goes with it -- building self confidence, communication,” said Ms Elhaj. “It’s a way to coach them and to harness ideas and to allow them to be creative. They are really hungry to do this and be heard. They are so happy to be actually doing something, to be engaged in creating something new, not only sitting and listening and getting new information and new knowledge. Now they are applying that knowledge.”
Afra’s team decided to focus their business idea on a restaurant modelled after the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Each level would have a different international cuisine and all the meat would be halal. The pupils thought of this after discussing a common problem they face when travelling abroad.
“Sometimes we find the struggle of finding halal food, so we just eat fish and cheese, so it’s hard for us to spend 20 days with fish and cheese,” said Afra. “So we made this tower so every person who comes – from Africa, from America – they will find the right food to eat.”
rpennington@thenational.ae
