Pope Tawadros extends greetings on Eid Al-Adha to Sisi, Azhar grand imam

CAIRO – 4 July 2022: Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark Diocese extended greetings on Eid Al-Adha to President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Ahmed El-Tayeb, grand Imam of Egypt’s top Islamic authority Al-Azhar.

Pope Tawadros also greeted Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli, Minister of Interior Mahmoud Tawfik, Minister of Defense Mohamed Zaki, House of Representatives’ Speaker Hanafi El-Gibali, and Senate Speaker Abdel Wahab Abdel Razek.

The pope also congratulated Grand Mufti Shawki Allam and Minister of Awqaf (Religious Endowments) Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa on the eid.

President of the Evangelical Community in Egypt Andrea Zaki also sent a cable of greetings to President Sisi on the occasion of the eid. In his cable, Zaki voiced his heart-felt wishes to the president, praying for God to embrace Egypt with goodness, security and peace.

Zaki also sent cables of greetings to the premier, Al Azhar imam and the ministers of defense, interior affairs, education, social solidarity, agriculture, culture and justice.

He also sent similar cables to the mufti and the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) governor Tarek Amer.

Eid Al-Adha is one of the two most important religious holidays in the Islamic calendar, along with Eid Al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.

It marks the beginning of the annual hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia and commemorates Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his own son as an act of obedience to God. It is celebrated over four days.

Allam said Thursday that Eid Al-Adha will fall this year on Saturday, July 9.

Dar Al-Iftaa, the body responsible for issuing religious edicts, said in a statement on Wednesday that Arafat Day, the day before the start of Eid Al-Adha, will be on Friday, July 8.

“We want unity at Arafat Day, so our sighting of the crescent depends on the sighting of the crescent of Dhu Al-Hijjah in Saudi Arabia”, the Mufti said.

He added that the Islamic world follows Saudi Arabia in its sighting of the crescent because it is the only country entrusted with crescent sighting as it bears the responsibility of starting pilgrimage rituals.