The Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church held an official session on Thursday morning, March 4, 2021, led by His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, at the papal residence in St. Bishoy Monastery, Wadi El-Natrun.
“His Holiness, the metropolitans, and the bishops gathering at the Logos Center in St. Bishoy’s Monastery for the Synod General Meeting.” His Holiness Pope Tawadros II | Papal Press Release.
As many as 97 members attended, several members apologized for not attending due to travel restrictions imposed in countries as England, Canada, and Australia. With more unable to join due to particular health conditions, they authorized individuals to represent them in voting and ratifying the Holy Synod’s decisions.
It is worth mentioning that the last held meeting for the Holy Synod was in June 2019, as arrangements were suspended in the previous year due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.
The General Meeting was preceded by three days of synodal committees’ meetings considering the affairs of dioceses, monasteries, convents, the family, education, media, pastoral care, Church services, public relations, ecumenical relations, and the immigration lands. All these meetings took place while observing the proper health measures.
The attendees discussed Church services during the last period in light of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, especially in utilizing digital applications as an alternative, as well as the research study carried out by the Coptic Institute for Church Administration and Development to evaluate and list the dioceses’ and churches’ gained knowledge during the past year of 2020.
The Holy Synod also discussed several proposals submitted by the synodal committees concerning:
- Supporting the spread of awareness concerning each individual’s responsibility towards the entire society and the importance of adhering to cautionary preventive methods as it is not against the faith while encouraging vaccinations made available by the government.
- Encouraging schools and daycares that are affiliated with churches, as well as Church education classes (Sunday School), to receive those with special needs, which allows acceptance of their disability by integration, and educates our children not to bully them
- It establishes a budget to support providing education and health for the children of prisoners and rehabilitate those released from prison psychologically and professionally, in cooperation with the Bishopric of Service and any other agencies.
- Supporting the country (Egypt) in its development efforts, especially in presidential initiatives such as “A Decent Life” (Haya Karima) and “100 Million Health” (100 Million Seha) … etc., and encouraging our children to benefit from them in coordination with the Bishopric of General and Social Services
- Celebrating festivals (carnivals) on Coptic occasions at the pastoral and congregational level to bridge the gap between different cultures and present our Coptic culture alongside our orthodox faith. It proposed to celebrate the following three fixed occasions in churches in the land of immigration:
- Feast of the Lord’s Entry into Egypt on June 1 (Bashans 24)
- Feast of Modern Martyrs (Libya Martyrs) on February 15 (Amshir 8)
- Moving of the Mokattam Mountain on November 27 (Hatoor 18)
The Holy Synod affirms its rejection of the spread of lies, deceptions, and malicious rumors on social media platforms and websites that cause confusion and misinterpretation of the church’s service and work.
The Holy Synod has issued several binding principles to set proper action and behavior in the Church of God.
The Synod decided to recognize the Monastery of St. John the Short – El-Alamein Road, Egypt, under the care of H.G. Bishop Domadius of Sixth of October City & Oseem. In this regard, the Synod celebrated the publishing of The Comprehensive Guide to Coptic Orthodox Monasteries for the first time.
The Synod also accepted the presented documentation concerning the late monk Yustus Al-Antony and the late Hegumen Bishoy Kamel; both departed in the 1970s in preparation for recognizing their sainthood (canonization).
It also decided to put the Faith Examination Subcommittee into action to examine all publications concerning the faith to preserve education’s integrity and purity.
The Synod also decided not to permit the burier of any priests or archons (Church lay leaders) within the walls of any church and its attachments, service houses, or any of its properties, including weather farms or service retreat houses/resorts; it is also not permissible to transfer any departed buried priests.
The Holy Synod is also awaiting the Christian Family Law’s approval presented to the Egyptian Parliament.
His Holiness the Pope and the members of the Holy Synod will celebrate the following events during the next week, God willing:
- The ordination of seven new bishops, as well as the enthronement of two bishops
- The Golden Jubilee Celebration of the Departure of Saint Pope Kyrillos VI
- Consecration of the Holy Myron oil for the 40th time in Church history
- Activation of the official website of the church on the internet
As we thank God for His abundant grace, we pray that He takes away this pandemic and keeps the world, our countries, and our churches in health, peace, and healing always.
As we thank God for His abundant grace, we pray that He takes away this pandemic and keeps the world, our countries, and our churches in health, peace, and healing always.
About Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church
The Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the highest Orthodox authority in Alexandria’s Coptic Orthodox Church. It formulates the rules and regulations regarding matters of the church’s organization and faith. The Patriarch of Alexandria chairs the Holy Synod.
The members are the church’s metropolitan archbishops, metropolitan bishops, diocesan bishops, patriarchal exarchs, missionary Bishops, auxiliary bishops, suffragan bishops, assistant bishops, chor-bishops, and the patriarchal vicars of the Church of Alexandria.
Delivered to you by COPTICNN™ | Coptic News Network on 2021-03-04 from El-Minya, Egypt
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