“Church to Facilitate Reconciliation Between the Eritrean Church and Her Children at Home and Abroad” : Coptic Holy Synod General Session

Gerges Mounir Hanna – OCP News Service – 03/06/2023

Cairo – Egypt: General session of the Coptic holy synod led by H.H. Pope Tawadros II in attendance of 107 of the 136 members was held in Logos Center of the Papal Residence in St. Bishoy Monastery – Wadi El-Natrun, Egypt. The session started on May 28, 2023, with meetings of synodal committees and subcommittees and concluded on June 02, 2023, with a general session.

With the recommendation, Standing Committee Coptic Synod resolved that they will facilitate reconciliation between the Eritrean Orthodox Church and her faithful at home and abroad.

Other Decisions with the name of the committee that suggested the same are as follows:

1- Pastoral Care & Service Committee

– Enabling the participation of servants in diocesan training institutes (programs) for individuals with special needs, and establishing a website for the committee to facilitate communication with the dioceses

– Enabling the development office of each diocese to identify developmental needs so that the Bishopric of Public & Social Services may provide technical support to them

– Seeking continuous and regular registration on the social care database, while emphasize education and increased support for serving children

– Spreading the culture of fostering children, which is a government initiative titled “A Child Needs a Family and a Family Needs a Child”

– Coordinating with the specialized centers for free addiction treatment that were established by the government. The committee also encourages servants to join the Coptic Center for Psychological Studies to prepare leaders in such a service

– Providing care for serving those who migrate for school or work within the scope of each diocese

– Urging the fathers the bishops and priests to pay attention to spread awareness of avoiding blood-related marriages due to its dangerous effects in terms of having children with genetic diseases

– Raising awareness of the culture of organ donation, such as liver transplants

– Paying attention to the various service groups (migrants, orphans, disabled, prisoners, unique cases, addicts, etc…) and their families spiritually, psychologically, and socially. Also, training servants to become qualified to serve such groups with the establishment of special homes for each group and coordinating between the dioceses to maximize the benefit

2- Family Committee

– Paying serious attention to the medical examination, preferably before engagement and not immediately before marriage

– Placing much emphasis on counseling and premarital classes that include topics on family planning, the dangers of female genital mutilation (FGM), and the dangers of blood-related marriage

– Placing emphasis on reading the “Pledge for the Bridegroom & Bride” before the Crowning prayer

– Forming a committee of graduates from accredited counseling institutes to resolve family disputes and affiliate it with the local Clerical Council

– Recommending the establishment of men’s meetings in every church

– Recommending promoting a service for children (childhood) in every church

– Paying attention to women’s meetings and provide clarification for the role of women at home through initiatives such as:

o “Gather the leftovers” concerning the rise in prices and inflation

o “Test the Spirits” (1 John 4:1) concerning staying away from the supernatural and magic

– Benefiting from the experiences of the elderly, and making sure to organize weekly meetings for them, as well as establishing special homes for those that cannot serve themselves

3- Public Relations Committee

– Consolidating the concept of citizenship by encouraging community participation in national projects, with an emphasis on positive dealings with presidential initiatives such as: Solidarity and Dignity for a Decent Life, especially since the Coptic Orthodox Church has become a member of the National Alliance for Civil Development Work

– Expressing appreciation to the Egyptian government and its agencies for the role it has played towards our Egyptian and Sudanese children since the beginning of the crisis, and we appeal to the political leadership in the current stage, after the development of events in Sudan where large numbers of Sudanese Copts were directly attacked in Khartoum and Omdurman, to facilitate their entry into the Egyptian land

4- Diocesan Affairs Committee

– Encouraging the work of the Non-married Consecration Committee and reviewing the consecration guidelines

– The Coptic Orthodox Church rejects all kinds of sexual perversions

5- Rites Committee

– The committee stressed that printing liturgical books is the responsibility of the Patriarchate only, and is approved by the Holy Synod. In addition, it is not permissible to add or change any phrase in the liturgical prayers except by an official decision from the Holy Synod

6- Faith & Education Committee

– Developing visual explanation to the Nicene Creed for all ages, and explaining “The Incarnation of the Word” by Pope Athanasius the Apostolic through artistic works in preparation for the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicea.

7- Ecumenical Relations & Dialogue Committee

– Continuing to be a member in the Anglican Oriental Orthodox International Commission as a committee for cooperation and relations without establishing any theological agreements

– The committee recommends continuing efforts to restore Deir al-Sultan – Jerusalem through communication with the concerned authorities in Egypt and abroad

8- Media & Information Committee

– Producing a series of short films of no more than three minutes on social media addiction, atheism, types of addiction, homosexuality, and transgenderism

– Advertising the application of the Coptic Orthodox Church website to communicate with the youth as an open channel for dialogue, and receive their questions and suggestions

– Producing a documentary film based on documented accurate research for the First Ecumenical Council of Nicea in celebration of the 1700th anniversary

9- Monasticism & Monasteries/Convents Affairs Committee

– Based on the committee’s recommendation, the Holy Synod decided to officially recognize the following six convents:

o First: Convents Inside Egypt:

1. The Wise Virgins Convent – Ismailia Road

2. Virgin Mary & Wedamon the Martyr Convent – Hager Armant

3. St. George & St. Syncletica (Seferinky) Convent – El-Alamein

o Second: Convents outside Egypt:

1. Archangel Michael Convent – Melbourne, Australia

2. St. Anne’s Convent – Austria

3. St. Mary, St. George & St. Philopateer Convent – Mississauga, Canada

10- Immigration Lands Affairs Committee

– Establishing an office in the Patriarchate to coordinate trips for the mother Church in Egypt (ones for medical, educational, service purposes for example)

– On the occasion of the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council in Nicea (325 AD), a theological seminar will be held during the Feast of St. Athanasius the Apostolic (May 15, 2025), organized by the Diocese of Los Angeles, in which research will be presented on the subject of the Ecumenical Council of Nicea

Secretariat Committee

– The Secretariat of the Holy Synod recommends visiting the following sites:

o The official website of the Coptic Orthodox Church: https://copticorthodox.church/

o The general website of Coptic hospitals: coptic-hospitals.org

o The Coptic Institute for Psychological Studies: coptic-cip.org

o The website of the Training Center for Servants with Special Needs: sacsob.com

Source: Coptic Orthodox Church

OCP News Service