Pope Tawadros II to lead Easter Mass at Abassiya Cathedral

CAIRO - 7 April 2018: Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of Saint Mark Diocese will lead the Orthodox Easter mass at St. Mark Cathedral in Abassiya on Saturday.

The mass will be held on the Easter eve, also known as Holy Saturday. According to the bible, the day marks the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion on the Good Friday.

A presidential delegate along with an array of statesmen and public figures will be present during the mass.

The mass will also be attended by only 1,000 Coptic Christians as the Cathedral is being renovated, state-owned news agency MENA reported on Saturday.

Egypt is the home of the largest Christian community in the Middle East, estimated at 10-15 percent of Egypt’s population of more than 80 million people.

Many Orthodox churches, including those in Egypt, Russia and some Eastern European countries, base their Easter date on the Julian calendar, which often differs from the Gregorian calendar that is used by churches in European and North American countries, thus the Coptic Orthodox Easter period usually occurs later than the Easter period in western countries.

During the past few days ahead of Easter, hundreds of Copts headed to Jerusalem to visit Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity, the Jordan River, the port city of Jaffa and other holy sites.

Egypt has built an air bridge to transport elder Coptic Christians, who are allowed to perform pilgrimage in Jerusalem during the Holy Week, the week before Easter, starting March 30 to April 7.