SSCN Voumes 1-10, 1994-2004

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

Gabra. It was titled: Problems of Coptic Monuments: Past and Present . It dealt with the problems encountered in field Coptic Archeology in Egypt. His presentation while lauding the monumental work of Dr. Peter Grossmann of the German Archeological Institute in Cairo, and our departed bishop Samuel, it recounted disturbing events and dangerous trends found. It seemed like there was a renewed interest by the Antiquities authorities in Egypt in the past few decades which was translated into many excavations and restorations of such monuments. Though this may seem a welcome step after decades of neglect of such monuments, it proved to be for the most part an unwelcome intrusion. The motivation was treasure-hunting and promotion of tourism rather than preserving and promoting such historical monuments. The result was in effect, though unintended, like the erasing of these monuments from the beautiful mosaic of Monastic History of Egypt, which is known as the Cradle of Monasticism. So now, instead of reading about these discoveries in scientific journals, you would find their mention in daily Egyptian newspapers. And by that time, the damage from these treasure-hunting expeditions would have been irreparable. I myself have seem some of these so-called excavations in the White and Red monasteries area in Sohag last year as well as the restoration done there which in essence done more damage to the historical value of the site than the sand of the deserts or its Bedouins dwellers. Dr. Gawdat utilized these presented facts to launch his call for promoting the study of the Coptic Culture through the establishment of a Chair of Coptic Studies in one or multiple major American Universities. The discussions on that item carried over into the Society's Business meeting which followed and will also be a topic discussed in future articles in this Newsletter. Coptic History: The five papers presented in this field were arranged in two sessions on Friday afternoon. The first was by Mr. Victor Hanna of Los Angeles, titled: Why the Arabs Invaded

Egypt? This paper advanced the hypothesis that the Arab invasion of Egypt was driven more by economic factors or need than by ideological or religious reasons as Arab historian have argued in the later centuries. He also argued that the peace that followed the victory of this new religion over its rival religions in the Arabian peninsula, produced an idled seasoned army of warriors and a larger community to sustain economically. The solution was to utilize these idle hands in improving the economic conditions of their people by sending them out, to hunt others' fortunes and bring it back. Though Egypt was felt to be an over ambitious target, but 'Amr ibn al-'As, who was familiar with Egypt, pushed the envelope with his ruler to make this event a reality. The author frequently drew upon recent events to bolster his arguments. The second paper was presented by Prof. Boulos Ayad Ayad , titled, The Revolution of the Copts (The Bashmourien) Against the Amawied and Abbasid Dynasties. In this paper the presenter sent gave a background to the origin and geography of the location that gave rise to the longest Coptic-led revolution in post-Arabic Egypt. This over a century long revolution won its greatest accomplishment by defeating the Baghdad Army of Al-Mamun. It also ended with the sending of another army which succeeded in ending the revolt by literally wiping out the native population, by either killing or exiling its members. This revolution was economically instigated by excessive taxation. The third paper advanced the audience further in time to 10 th Egypt. It was by Deacon Severus (Maged) S. Mikhail, titled: Fasting as a Communal Identity Among the Copts in the 10 th Century . The presenter introduced the attendees to how the type of fasting that the Copts were observing, served as an identifying mark, distinguishing them primarily from the Chalcedonian or the Melekite Church in Egypt. Two fasts were particularly discussed: First week of lent and the extra three days added to Advent (Fast before the Feast of the Nativity). He discussed the possible origins of each of these

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

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