SSCN Voumes 1-10, 1994-2004

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

Another session for adults is also being held. All these classes are taught at the Los Angeles Coptic Center by Mr. Hany N. Takla, the Society president. 16. The Seventh Congress for Coptic Studies: It is scheduled to start on August 27 and continues until September 2, 2000. This being the premier event in Coptic Studies, we encourage all of our members to attend and participate if possible. Only a few months are left, so we all need to prepare to be able to contribute positively to the proceedings of this most prestigious event. Those interested in presenting papers there, are encouraged to contact the Society for coordination of topics and resources. Information is available through the following internet address: http://www.let.leidenuniv.nl/tcno/coptic/coptic_congress.htm A total of four papers have been approved by active members of the Society. A coordinating meeting with the participants in the Wadi 'N Natroun Symposium will be held there during the same period. 17. The Electronic Edition of the Coptic Encyclopedia : Work is progressing slowly on this project because of other commitments. So far all of the contents of the ASCII files received from the publisher has been reviewed, scanning of the illustrations is about 100% complete, and the Table of Contents has been completed. Other appropriate illustrations may also be included in the electronic version. According to Dr. Fawzy Estafanous, the organization's founder, this edition will be an electronic version of the original printed edition, with the exception of the inclusion of short annotations on articles that are being disputed by Coptic Church authorities and corrections of obvious errors. These extra items will be included in a separate volume and electronically be linked to the articles they pertain to. Each annotation will include the name of the presenter. Hany N. Takla, the Society's president, is in charge of this project, in his capacity as member of the Foundation's Executive Board. Projected completion date is late December, 2000, God's willing.

18. Modern Coptic Iconography on the Internet: We have been informed by Mr. Ehab Roufail of London, UK, that a new site for Modern Coptic iconography has been developed by him on behalf of our long-time friend Ms. Monica Rene. The site address is as follow: http://www.firstimageicons.com Ms. Rene is the wife of Dr. Stephane Rene, the renowned Coptic iconographer in London, whose work has been exhibited in Los Angeles twice in the past few years. His work in Southern California is found mainly at Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church in Orange County, where the Society has its regional center. His works are also found in other churches in the Greater Los Angeles Area. 19. The Life of The Jura Fathers: We received from Rev. Dr. Tim Vivian the following Communication: The monks of Gaul (modern France) in the fourth and fifth centuries were greatly influenced by the ammas and abbas of early Egyptian monasticism. Desert monasticism made its way to Europe through the Life of Antony by Saint Athanasius; the Conferences and Institutes of Saint Cassian, who had lived and traveled in Egyp ; and through Saint Jerome's translation of the Rules of Pachomius. One little known, but important monastic "desert" community was that of the Jura Fathers, founded by Saint Romanus around 435 A.D. in the forests of the Jura mountain range near modern Switzerland. The Rev. Dr. Tim Vivian, a member of the Society, along with Kim Vivian and Jeffrey Burton Russell, has translated the Life of the Jura Fathers from Latin and supplied an extensive introduction to fifth- century monasticism in Gaul, noting in particular the great influence that the Life of Antony had on the Jura Fathers. The book is available from Cistercian Publications (http://www.spencerabbey.org/cistpub/) in both paperback and hardbound and may also be found on the Web at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

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