| Egypt Egypt is the Arab world’s most populous nation, with nearly 80 million people. The Arab Republic of Egypt is transcontinental, with a land bridge between Africa and Asia. Egypt long has been a pivotal place. It was from Egypt that God delivered the Israelites out of exodus and on Egypt’s Mount Sinai that He gave the Ten Commandments to Moses. The history of Christianity in Egypt has been one of both tribulation and blessing. Since its beginning, Christianity in Egypt has been influential in shaping doctrine and the way believers follow Christ. — Baptist Press Timeline of Egyptian history By Trent Parker, writer, International Mission Board, in Europe 2-3 A.D. Shortly after Jesus’ birth, Joseph and Mary took Him to Egypt to escape the wrath of King Herod. 43 A.D. Mark, the gospel writer, took Christ’s message to the Egyptians and saw many converts. While in the city of Alexandria, Mark meets Ananias, a shoemaker, who became the first convert of that great Christian city. Mark later made Ananias the bishop of Alexandria. Ananias is said to be the first bishop of the Coptic Church, which today is one of the oldest churches in Christianity. 64 A.D. Nero persecutes Christians throughout the Roman Empire after the fire of Rome. The largest numbers of converts during Nero’s persecution were not the Jews or the Greeks but Egyptians. Egyptian believers were bold in their faith and worshiped Christ in the open — even building churches in full view of the empire. 200 A.D. Many Egyptian Christians move to the wilderness and form the first monastic societies. Anthony the Great and Macarius of Egypt were among the many monks who became known as the “Desert Fathers” and taught Christians the values of asceticism and a simple lifestyle in pursuing God and holiness. 313 A.D. Emperor Constantine issues the Edict of Milan granting religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire. Alexandria then becomes one of the three centers of Christianity alongside Rome and Antioch. 325 A.D. Egyptian Christian and theologian Athanasius goes to the Council of Nicaea to defend Christianity against the Arianism heresy that denied the divinity of Christ. This was one of the major turning points in defining a Christian doctrine. 412 A.D. Cyril of Alexandria, an important Christian theologian, defends against the Nestorian heresy, which claimed Christ had two separate natures — one that was God and one that was human. The work of Cyril and other early Egyptian Christians helps modern believers to better understand Jesus Christ as presented in the Bible. 451 A.D. After the Council of Chalcedon, which outlined the nature of the divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ in the Chalcedonian Creed, the Coptic Church of Egypt split from Rome and has been a distinct church ever since. 639 A.D. Invading Muslim Arabs absorbed Egypt into the Islamic Caliphate (political system). A small segment of the Coptic Church continued throughout this reign. 1517 A.D. The Ottoman Turks took control of Egypt from the Islamic Caliphate. 1801 A.D. The Ottomans (along with British forces) fended off the invading French under Napoleon Bonaparte. 1953 A.D. The Republic of Egypt was established. 2010 A.D. Egyptian Muslims began to conflict with the Coptic Christians, culminating in the suicide bombing of a Coptic church in Alexandria on New Year’s Day 2011. January 2011 A.D. Following political unrest in Tunisia and Yemen, Egyptian citizens cry for reforms in their government and freedom they have not had since the rule of Anwar Sadat, president of Egypt from 1970 until his assassination in 1981. |
NASHVILLE — As Egyptians continue to riot against and for their government, which has been moderate Muslim and cooperative with the United States and Israel, two Tennessee Baptists from Egypt expressed their grave concern that Islam will be strengthened in the world by what seems to be the inevitable changes in Egypt. Neither man thought the original U.S. position of asking Hosni Mubarak, president, to step down immediately was wise. They agreed that the U.S. government does not realize the threat posed by the Muslim Brotherhood, made up of fundamentalist Muslims, in this situation.
Riots in Egypt began Jan. 25 and continue as of press time on Feb. 7. Riots in the Middle East began in Tunisia and also have erupted in Yemen and Jordan.
Sam Gadallah, pastor, Arabic Baptist Church, Nashville, and Raouf Ghattas, retired representative to the Arab world, International Mission Board, Southern Baptist Convention, of Murfreesboro, spoke to the Baptist and Reflector. Both men are natives of Egypt. Gadallah lived there 42 years and Ghattas 30 years.
Gadallah
Gadallah, who has lived in the United States for 15 years and just returned Jan. 16 from a month-long visit to Egypt, said Americans still don’t understand Islam.
Most of the time, “Egypt is a very peaceful, wonderful country,” said Gadallah. But it has a “cancer” growing in it, which is Islam.
He hopes Mubarak can remain president for a while longer so he can “control this chaos.” If he doesn’t Egypt might become “another Iran.
“American people, especially the true Christian American people, please wake up. Don’t be deceived that Islam is a religion of love, forgiveness. They (Muslims) need to jihad. … They desperately need to change not only the world’s countries but especially the United States of America to Islam because America has been a supporter of Israel. Israel, according to the Qur’an, is the sole enemy to the Muslim, the prophet Mohammed and the Qur’an,” said Gadallah.
He quickly added that he is not prejudiced against Muslims, but is speaking the truth.
He hopes the American government will “be aware of this fact.”
Egyptians, though most are college graduates, are suffering from poverty, said Gadallah. About 40 percent of Egyptians are living in poverty. Also during his recent visit there he observed that prices have skyrocketed and there is not enough food. Finally, “there is a lot of corruption” there.
For Egypt, he has hope that the new government can guarantee the freedoms provided under Mubarak such as freedom of worship but he hopes for more for the Christians there including rights equal to those enjoyed by Muslim citizens. He blames the late Anwar El Sadat, president prior to Mubarak, for the strength of Islam in Egypt.
Ghattas
Ghattas is very upset at the American media, who are not presenting a clear picture of the crisis to Americans. The media are almost exclusively interviewing fundamental Muslims here and in Egypt though the country has many moderate Muslim residents who are supportive of Mubarak and Christian residents, said Ghattas, who served with the IMB for 20 years. Many Christian Egyptians are successful and educated, said Ghattas. He thinks about 20 percent of the country’s residents are Christian.
For instance, U.S. media are presenting the view that the protesters are mostly moderate Muslim and are peace loving.
His great fear is for Egypt to come under the control of fundamental Muslims, for them to attack Israel and a world war to break out.
A turning point for the world was 9/11, said Ghattas.
He also has seen the media and White House adopt “a harsh stand against Israel. We need to remember what the Bible teaches us about the outcome,” noted Ghattas.
“What is happening in Egypt will effect the Muslim ideology. Egypt was one of the most moderate Muslim nations and the intellectual center of Islam. It was considered the safety valve between Islam and the West. Now, however, we can see that this could change,” he wrote in an e-mail.
Ghattas, who also is a nuclear engineer, observed that he sees the “fingerprints of fundamental Islam” in the actions of the people trying to overthrow Mubarak. This is seen in the hanging of dummies, harsh statements written on the foreheads of people and using Midan el-Tahrir, also known as Liberation Square, as the main place for Muslim prayers, he explained.
Mubarak allowed Christians some freedom which was about all he could do in the situation he had, said Ghattas. Hopefully, his successor will also.
“There is no democracy in Islam as the West understands,” said Ghattas. Mubarak also brought economic growth and a diversified market and was respected by the West and Arab world.
Ghattas said from his contacts in the country, many people are thankful for Mubarak. Ghattas said Mubarak’s downfall was that he didn’t pass his power to another person like himself, “who would continue to guarantee freedoms for minorities.”
He is optimistic about the changes in Egypt, though, after hearing from someone at First Baptist Church of Cairo, who described the prayer meetings which have been held. The person also described moderate Muslims and Christians forming relationships as they have tried to deal with the riots.
Ghattas has experienced the lack of freedoms in Arab countries. He is the author of the book, A Christian Guide to the Qur’an, Building Bridges in Muslim Evangelism (Kregel, 2009).
When asked if he fears he has put himself and his family at risk by writing the book, Ghattas said some, but they depend on the Lord for their safety.
He added, “I’ve had the privilege to have troubles with a lot of Arab countries.”
More views from Gadallah
Gadallah asked Americans to pray for Egyptians, all Egyptians. Moderate Muslims can be lived with, he said, if controlled by the law or government.
The U.S. government doesn’t seem to realize that Islam “is the fastest growing religion in the United States,” said Gadallah, who holds a master’s degree from Cumberland University, Lebanon.
One fact that Americans should consider, said Gadallah, is that of all of the ethnic groups living in the U.S., only one “tried to destroy this country.” He has been pastor of the Arabic Baptist Church in Nashville for 14 years.
Americans are so busy “chasing money,” that they don’t pay attention to these things, he stated.
“I want to try to influence our government (U.S.) to help the Christian people (in Egypt) to regain the normal rights as citizens,” said Gadallah.
Currently in Egypt Christians, also known as Coptic Christians, are not allowed to hold important jobs such as being police officers, judges and members of parliament. They also don’t normally work in important positions such as in banks, he described. Their businesses usually don’t prosper as much as a Muslim’s. They suffer prejudice when trying to obtain an important job. All Egyptians are obliged to study the Qur’an in the country’s schools, he said.
The Coptic Church must struggle with a lot of red tape, said Gadallah. If they want to repair anything in a church building, they must request and receive permission from the governor of the area like a state here.
The same kind of permission is required when building a church facility, he explained.
At this time he is not worried about his family in Egypt who live in a city away from Cairo and Alexandria where the riots are. He is very glad that communication was opened back up after six days of being shut down by the government.
Just like many Christians in Egypt, when he had the chance to immigrate, he was thrilled mostly because it allowed him to escape the persecution, said Gadallah.
“I thank the Lord very much to come to the United States. This was my wildest dream when I was young.”
He was chosen randomly by the country as part of an agreement with the U.S. since Egypt has friendly relations with the U.S., said Gadallah. He brought his wife and three children with him and arrived Aug. 25, 1995, he recalled.
He is proud to explain that he is a “pure Egyptian.” That is true because his ancestors were a part of the people who lived there before the country was invaded by Muslims in the 7th Century. After that Egyptians were “obliged by the sword to convert to Islam.” They also were forced to intermarry, explained Gadallah. Before this, Egyptians were 100 percent Christian, he added.
He is almost as proud to be an American as an Egyptian, said Gadallah, who works for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services as a case manager.
Christians should witness to Muslims, said Gadallah. Yet he advised that Americans be cautious around Muslims.
Americans should consider that though a Muslim has nice behavior and says he or she loves Christians and Jesus, they may be doing this with an ulterior motive which is jihad.
Muslims are taught by the Qur’an to aggressively, if necessary violently, spread Islam to all countries, said Gadallah. They can do whatever is necessary to spread Islam, he added.
He warned non-Muslims not to marry Muslims.
“Muslim people are everywhere now.”
He knows of Muslims who have become Christian, he said, some through TV broadcasts by satellite into Arab countries. But they often hide their Christianity, he said, because of the threat of violence to them by fellow Muslims.
In Egypt he lived under the governments of Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak.
Before the changes under Sadat, the Egyptian people were a peaceful people, said Gadallah.
From Ghattas
Pray for Egypt and the U.S. and the changes that will come, Ghattas said. Pray for Israel.
“We also need to remember the need for the church to understand Islam.”
Christians hold “the only solution to the conflicts in our world today.
“If we as Baptists and people of the Book do not take a stand to teach our churches how to love and witness to Muslims, we are a part of the problem, not the solution.”
Too many Christians are afraid of Muslims or angry at Muslims. Instead they should care enough to share Christ with them, said Ghattas.
“He (God) is the only solution for the world’s trouble today.”
He challenged people to consider befriending some of the many Muslims in the U.S. One way they can do this is by teaching them English. Many people use the program, English as a Second Language.
Many Muslims will accept a Bible in Arabic if they learn that it, like the Qur’an, includes stories on Joseph, Abraham and Solomon.
Even if not preparing to witness, Christians should be interested in the Qur’an, the Muslim Scripture, because 1.2 billion people believe it is God’s word, said Ghattas.
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This article was reproduced from the Tennessee Baptist Convention's website.
TBC website
Egypt Article
My take: We definitely want to keep Egypt and the people there in our prayers; however, we can't be surprised at increased tensions between Muslims and Christians, especially when it comes to politics and power. Hopefully increased tensions overseas will open the doors for American Christians to have respectful theological discussions with Muslim friends as we seek the Truth together.
