Coptic bishop says controversial Quran statements were ‘Misunderstood’

23/09/2010

Bishop Bishoy, secretary of the Coptic Church’s Holy Synod, delayed delivering a scheduled speech at a conference held in Fayoum Wednesday evening in order to consult with his aides after hearing that the local press intended to publish a printed copy of his speech.

Bishoy insisted that what was written in the printed copy of his speech had been “misunderstood.”

“My question as to whether some verses of the Quran were inserted after the death of the prophet is not a criticism or accusation,” he said. “It’s merely a question about a certain verse that I believe contradicts the Christan faith.”

He went on to point out that, in meetings with officials at the Egyptian embassy in Cyprus, he had asserted that dialogue between friends could serve to resolve longstanding disputes. “How could this be interpreted as attacking the Quran?” he asked.

Sources at Al-Azhar, for their part, said that Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb would issue a “strong” statement on Saturday in response to Bishoy. The grand imam, said the sources, had been both “offended and astonished” by the bishop’s statements, given that religious leaders should support calls for national unity rather than incite sectarian strife.

The Muslim Brotherhood movement and a number of Islamic scholars have accused Bishoy of attempting to alter the meaning of certain verses of the Quran.

Translated from the Arabic Edition.

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