A young Egyptian man walked past the Egyptian Bible Society bookstore in central Cairo one day.
As was his habit, he stopped and read the day's scripture from the Bible displayed in the shop window.
On this day he was greeted by the following verse: "Jesus said to them: "For a little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you" (John 12:35).
It was God who called him to begin serving the Lord. After graduation, he was admitted to the priesthood and in 1971 he became Pope Shenouda III, Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church and spiritual leader of millions of Egyptian Christians, who make up half of the Arab Christians in the world.
Bible Pope
Almost 70 years after that day in 1945, Pope Shenouda now hears the words: "Good, good and faithful servant". Pope Shenouda was a strong champion of the Bible and was nicknamed the "Bible Pope" because of his incredibly strong love of scripture and his passion for teaching, preaching, studying and promoting the Bible as the foundation of the Christian faith and the center of believers' lives.
The thirst for Scripture that Pope Shenouda fostered in the Coptic Orthodox Church was one of the main reasons for the rapid growth of Bible study in Egypt over the last 40 years.
Egyptians in mourning
The death of the Pope is being mourned throughout Egyptian society. Within minutes of the news of his death being announced, every TV channel ran stories about this remarkable leader who affected all Egyptians. Many quoted his famous statement: "Egypt is not a country where we live, Egypt lives in us". Egypt has not had many charismatic leaders with integrity in recent years. Pope Shenouda stood out in this way from the other leaders in the country; he was a rare and wise statesman.
The government has given all Christians three official days off to mourn and all cultural events in the country have been canceled. There is an overwhelming atmosphere of respect and unity in this time of mourning. All political leaders are expressing their sympathy, while condolences are pouring in from Muslim neighbors, colleagues and strangers. One man recounts how the local mosque in their neighborhood had broadcast condolences over the loudspeakers. People gathered by the hundreds of thousands at the cathedral to say their goodbyes, and Muslims in the area provided them with water while others handed out sandwiches.
Insecurity among Christians
Such expressions of friendship are especially important in these times. Christians feel the loss of their Pope particularly keenly now that Islamists have taken over the Egyptian parliament and senate. His absence at a time when Egypt is moving towards the Islamization of society makes Christians feel especially vulnerable because they lack a strong spokesperson to speak for them.
Source: Egyptian Bible Society
