Egypt’s Christians commemorate Holy Family’s journey

CAIRO – 1 June 2018: Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of Saint Mark will inaugurate the ceremony of the Holy Family’s journey on Friday evening in the Coptic Museum of Old Cairo.

Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and some Arab and foreign ambassadors will be attending the ceremony with a number of officials, as well as seven ministers and five governors.

The ceremony will begin with a speech by historian and intellectual Wassim al-Sisi, followed by Minister of Antiquities Khaled Anani, a speech by Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat, and a speech by Mustafa El-Feki, director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina.

Meanwhile, Bishop Begol, the head of Muharraq Monastery (Holy Virgin Mary Monastery in Assiut) chaired Friday a mass to commemorate the flight of the Holy Family in Egypt.

"Egypt is blessed with the visit of Jesus, his mother Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph who came to Egypt after fleeing Palestine," the bishop said while addressing the mass that was attended by a host of priests, monks and churchgoers.

The Monastery of the Holy Virgin Mary, also known as the Muharraq Monastery, or the Burnt Monastery, lies on the path of the flight of the Holy Family in Egypt. It is located about 60 kilometers from Assiut (327 kilometers south of Cairo).

The Monastery is referred to as "Al Muharraq" because "muharraq" is an Arabic word which means "burn or wound inflicted by fire" and the Monastery was partially burned by foreign invaders in the middle centuries. The monastery is unusual in that it is not located in the desert, reports MENA.

Mona Zaky, professor of Strategic Thought Planning, said that June 1 is the date of the beginning of the Holy Family’s visit to Egypt. This date deserves a national holiday because it reflects the greatness of Egypt that protected the Holy Family and provided safety when they were being chased.

The Holy Family came from Palestine to Egypt via the Arish road and arrived in Old Egypt, and then they moved to Upper Egypt. They hid there for a while and then returned to the north, passing through the Natroun Valley, and then continued their way back through Sinai to Palestine.

Pope Francis visited Egypt in April 2017, carried out mass and acknowledged the Holy Family’s journey in Egypt as an official Christian pilgrimage. This announcement puts the Holy Family tour on equal footing to Fatima in Portugal, suggesting that thousands of Christian tourists would visit Egypt.

Additional report with Walaa Ali and MENA