In the evening of Friday, November 27, a delegation led by the Custos of the Holy Land met Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II. As is his religious duty, he arrived on Thursday in Jerusalem from Egypt in order to attend the funeral of Archbishop Anba Abraham, Archbishop of Jerusalem and the Middle East.
“Sayedna,”he began stating in Arabic, “we want to first of all present our condolences. We are on very good terms with the Coptic Church and we had great respect for Archbishop Anba Abraham. He was not simply an important ecclesiastical figure but a deeply spiritual man who always spoke the truth, and who always provided a personal spiritual reflection on the various feasts.”
The delegation consisted of 11 Franciscans, including four Egyptian brothers. A gift exchange took place at the beginning of the meeting. The Franciscans gave the pope a pearl box containing a relic of Calvary, and he presented them with an icon of the Virgin and Child.
The Coptic Pope expressed his closeness to the late archbishop, saying that they had met at the monastery of St. Pishoy inWadi El Natrun. “I experienced the beginning of my monastic life alongside the Fr. Sedrak, who later became Archbishop Anba Abraham. (...) He was a man full of God's Spirit. We view his passing as a great loss to the Coptic Church, but also for us here because of his [strong] relationships with other churches and with the Muslim and Jewish communities. And it is not an easy task to maintain quality relations with everyone.”
According to Coptic tradition, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Jerusalem is second to the Pope. Anba Abraham was appointed archbishop and he was promoted to the rank of metropolitan on the same day. According to the Pope, he is the only one for whom this process has been sofast. For other archbishops this usually entails decades of waiting.
“We have a good relationship with the Catholic Church in Egypt and specifically with the Franciscans. We thrive onactive love, and we must build good relations with everyone. In Egypt, we are a national minority (...); our church is spread out over 60 countries worldwide. This scope strengthens our relationship with the Catholic Church. In January, there will be a meeting between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church in Cairo.”
He praised the Egyptian Franciscan friars in Arabic, explaining the duty of sympathy and loyalty. "My coming is also an opportunity to express the strong bond between all of us, all Christian churches, who are witnesses to Christ. I try to build strong ties with all churches without any exception. Our role as Christians is to keep our hearts open to all churches and religious organizations throughout the world, so as tobring peace. This city is called Urashalim, the city of peace, but where is peace?”
The Franciscans took turns speakingabout their order. The Pope learned more about [what is going on at] their monasteries and he paid particular attention to Christian schools and to their brother teachers and directors at the schools belonging to the Custody of the Holy Land.
He thanked the Franciscan delegation who came to meet him, and he imparted his blessing, while mentioning Mons. Anba Abraham in his prayer.
The next day, on November 28, the archbishop’s funeral that was held at St. Anthony’s Church was full. Local church representatives, civil authorities and a large number of locals and friends of Archbishop Anba Abrahamwere present. The Franciscan delegation also came to bid their last farewells and offer up their condolences.
Nizar Halloun
“Sayedna,”he began stating in Arabic, “we want to first of all present our condolences. We are on very good terms with the Coptic Church and we had great respect for Archbishop Anba Abraham. He was not simply an important ecclesiastical figure but a deeply spiritual man who always spoke the truth, and who always provided a personal spiritual reflection on the various feasts.”
The delegation consisted of 11 Franciscans, including four Egyptian brothers. A gift exchange took place at the beginning of the meeting. The Franciscans gave the pope a pearl box containing a relic of Calvary, and he presented them with an icon of the Virgin and Child.
The Coptic Pope expressed his closeness to the late archbishop, saying that they had met at the monastery of St. Pishoy inWadi El Natrun. “I experienced the beginning of my monastic life alongside the Fr. Sedrak, who later became Archbishop Anba Abraham. (...) He was a man full of God's Spirit. We view his passing as a great loss to the Coptic Church, but also for us here because of his [strong] relationships with other churches and with the Muslim and Jewish communities. And it is not an easy task to maintain quality relations with everyone.”
According to Coptic tradition, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Jerusalem is second to the Pope. Anba Abraham was appointed archbishop and he was promoted to the rank of metropolitan on the same day. According to the Pope, he is the only one for whom this process has been sofast. For other archbishops this usually entails decades of waiting.
“We have a good relationship with the Catholic Church in Egypt and specifically with the Franciscans. We thrive onactive love, and we must build good relations with everyone. In Egypt, we are a national minority (...); our church is spread out over 60 countries worldwide. This scope strengthens our relationship with the Catholic Church. In January, there will be a meeting between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church in Cairo.”
He praised the Egyptian Franciscan friars in Arabic, explaining the duty of sympathy and loyalty. "My coming is also an opportunity to express the strong bond between all of us, all Christian churches, who are witnesses to Christ. I try to build strong ties with all churches without any exception. Our role as Christians is to keep our hearts open to all churches and religious organizations throughout the world, so as tobring peace. This city is called Urashalim, the city of peace, but where is peace?”
The Franciscans took turns speakingabout their order. The Pope learned more about [what is going on at] their monasteries and he paid particular attention to Christian schools and to their brother teachers and directors at the schools belonging to the Custody of the Holy Land.
He thanked the Franciscan delegation who came to meet him, and he imparted his blessing, while mentioning Mons. Anba Abraham in his prayer.
The next day, on November 28, the archbishop’s funeral that was held at St. Anthony’s Church was full. Local church representatives, civil authorities and a large number of locals and friends of Archbishop Anba Abrahamwere present. The Franciscan delegation also came to bid their last farewells and offer up their condolences.
Nizar Halloun