CAIRO: Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox church has decided to suspend prayers preceding Easter celebrations later this month as part of efforts to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The church, which last month ordered the closure of churches and suspension of services nationwide, said the decision was taken on Thursday during a meeting chaired by Pope Tawadros II.
“Prayers, including Holy Week services, which are considered the most important rituals in the Coptic Orthodox church, will be suspended” until the pandemic is contained, a statement posted on Facebook said.
Holy Week prayers precede Easter Sunday, which this year will be celebrated on April 19 by the Orthodox community, one week later than the Catholic Easter.
Church spokesman Boulos Halim said these were “unprecedented and historic” measures implemented to stem the crisis.
On March 21, the church ordered the closure of all churches and suspended ritual services, masses and other religious activities for two weeks to combat the spread of the virus.
With Thursday’s decision, these measures will continue until further notice.
It was not yet clear if Pope Tawadros II, who heads the Coptic church, would go ahead with a pared-down midnight mass ahead of Easter.
Coptic Christians are the largest non-Muslim religious minority in the Middle East and account for 10-15 percent of Egypt’s predominantly Sunni Muslim population of 100 million.
Also in March, Egypt’s Catholic church said it was suspending masses until further notice.
Egypt so far has recorded 71 deaths out of 1,070 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus.
Authorities have imposed tough measures to limit social interaction in the Arab world’s most populous country, including a night-time curfew that went into effect last week.
Those violating the measures could face fines of up to 4,000 Egyptian pounds ($250) and jail sentences.
Authorities have also closed schools and universities, while air traffic has been halted until April 15.
Egypt Coptic church suspends Easter Holy Week services over virus
https://arab.news/regn2
Egypt Coptic church suspends Easter Holy Week services over virus
- The church said the decision was taken on Thursday during a meeting chaired by Pope Tawadros II
- Church spokesman Boulos Halim said these were “unprecedented and historic” measures
Israeli FM urges Jews to move to Israel a week after Sydney attack
- “Today I call on Jews in England, Jews in France, Jews in Australia, Jews in Canada, Jews in Belgium: come to the Land of Israel! Come home!” Saar said
JERUSALEM: Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called on Sunday for Jews in Western countries to move to Israel to escape rising antisemitism, one week after 15 were shot dead at a Jewish event in Sydney.
“Jews have the right to live in safety everywhere. But we see and fully understand what is happening, and we have a certain historical experience. Today, Jews are being hunted across the world,” Saar said at a public candle lighting marking the last day of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.
“Today I call on Jews in England, Jews in France, Jews in Australia, Jews in Canada, Jews in Belgium: come to the Land of Israel! Come home!” Saar said at the ceremony, held with leaders of Jewish communities and organizations worldwide.
Since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Israeli leaders have repeatedly denounced a surge in antisemitism in Western countries and accused their governments of failing to curb it.
Australian authorities have said the December 14 attack on a Hanukkah event on Sydney’s Bondi Beach was inspired by the ideology of the Islamic State jihadist group.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Western governments to better protect their Jewish citizens.
“I demand that Western governments do what is necessary to fight antisemitism and provide the required safety and security for Jewish communities worldwide,” Netanyahu said in a video address.
In October, Saar accused British authorities of failing to take action to curb a “toxic wave of antisemitism” following an attack outside a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, in which two people were killed and four wounded.
According to Israel’s 1950 “Law of Return,” any Jewish person in the world is entitled to settle in Israel (a process known in Hebrew as aliyah, or “ascent“) and acquire Israeli citizenship. The law also applies to individuals who have at least one Jewish grandparent.zz
