Weekly Bulletin 29th January 2023

The Departure of St. Anthony the Great (Antonius). 30th January - 22nd Toba

On this day, of the year 355 A.D., St. Anthony the Great, the star of the wilderness, and the father of all monks, departed.

This righteous man was born in the year 251 A.D. in the city of Qimn El-Arouse, to rich parents who loved the church and the poor. They raised him up in fear of the Lord. When he was twenty years old, his parents departed, and he had to take care of his sister. Once, he entered the church and heard the words of the Lord Christ in the Gospel, «If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven; and come, follow Me.» (Matthew 19:21)

He returned to his house, decided to fulfill this commandment and considered it directed to him personally. He gave his wealth to the poor and needy, and he took his sister and placed her with some virgins. At that time, monasticism had not yet been established. All those who wanted to live a solitary life went and lived on the outskirts of the city. This was what St. Anthony did as he dwelt alone, worshipping and living an ascetic life.

The devil fought him there by afflicting him with boredom, laziness, and the phantoms of women. He overcame the devil›s snares by the power of the Lord Christ. After that, he went to one of the tombs, and he resided therein and closed the door on himself. Some of his friends used to bring him food. When the devil perceived his ascetic life and his intense worship, he was envious of him, and he beat him mercilessly, then left him unconscious. When his friends came to visit him and found him in this condition, they carried him to the church. After he somewhat recovered, he went back to the same place. The devil again resumed his war against St. Antonius, only this time the phantoms were in the form of wild beasts, wolves, lions, snakes and scorpions. They appeared as if they were about to attack him or cut him into pieces. But the saint would laugh at them scornfully and say, «If any of you have any authority over me, only one would have been sufficient to fight me.» At his saying this, they disappeared as though in smoke, for God gave him the victory over the devils. He was always singing this psalm, «Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered; let those also who hate Him flee before Him.» )Psalm 68:1( St. Anthony used to prepare a quantity of bread that would sustain him for six months. He did not allow anyone to enter his cell, and whoever came to him, stood outside and listened to his advice. He continued in this condition of solitary worship for 20 years. Then by God›s command, he went to El-Fayyoum and confirmed the brethren there in the faith, then returned

to his monastery.

During the time of persecution, he longed to become a martyr. He left his monastery and went to Alexandria. He visited those who were imprisoned for the sake of Christ and comforted them. When the Governor saw that he was confessing the Lord Christ publicly, not caring what might happen to him, he ordered him not to show up in the city. However, the saint did not heed his threats. He faced him and argued with him in order that he might arouse his anger so that he might be tortured and martyred. But God preserved him all along, according to His will, for the benefit of many, and so the Governor left him alone. Then the saint went back to his monastery according to God›s will, and many came to visit him and to hear his teachings. He saw that these visits kept him away from his worship. As a result, he went far away to the eastern desert. He travelled with some bedouins to the inner wilderness for three days, until he found a spring of water and some palm trees, and then he chose to settle there. On this spot now stands the monastery of St. Anthony the Great. The bedouins came to him with bread, and the Lord drove away all the wild beasts from this place, for his sake. On occasions, he would go to the monastery on the outskirts of the desert by the Nile to visit the brethren, then return to his inner monastery. His fame spread abroad and it reached Emperor Constantine. The Emperor wrote to him, offering him praise and asked him to pray for him. The brethren were pleased with the Emperor›s letter, but St. Anthony did not pay any attention to it, and he said to them, «The books of God, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, commands us everyday, but we do not heed what they tell us, and we turn our backs on them.» Under the persistence of the brethren who told him, «Emperor Constantine loves the church,» he accepted to write him a letter blessing him, and praying for the peace and safety of the empire and the church. One day, he was bored, and he heard a voice telling him, «Go out and see.» He went out and saw an angel who wore a girdle with a cross, one resembling the holy Eskiem, and on his head was a head cover (Kolansowa). He was sitting while braiding palm leaves, then he stood up to pray, and again he sat to weave. A voice came to him saying, «Anthony, do this and you will rest.» Henceforth, he started to wear this tunic that he saw, and began to weave palm leaves, and never got bored again.

St. Anthony prophesied about the persecution that was about to happen to the church and the control of the heretics over it, the church victory and its return to its formal glory, and the end of the age. When St. Macarius visited St. Anthony, St. Anthony

clothed him with the monk›s garb, and St. Anthony foretold him what would be of him.

When the day of the departure of St. Paul, the first hermit in the desert, drew near, St. Anthony went to him. St. Anthony buried St. Paul the hermit after he had clothed him in a tunic which was a present from St. Athanasius the Apostolic, 20th Pope of Alexandria. When St. Anthony felt that the day of his departure had approached, he commanded his disciple to hide his body and to give his staff to St. Macarius, and to give one sheepskin cloak to St. Athanasius and the other sheepskin cloak to Anba Serapion, his disciple. He stretched himself on the ground and gave up his spirit. The angels and the saints took his spirit and carried it to the place of perpetual rest. This saint lived for 15 years, struggling in the way of holiness and purity. His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.

The Departure of Pope Cyril IV (Kyrillos), 110th Pope of Alexandria.

31st December - 23rd Toba

On this day also, the great father Pope Kyrillos IV (Cyril), 110th Pope of Alexandria, departed. He was born in the town of Sawamaa of the district of the city of Girga, to righteous parents in the year 1816 A.D. They gave him the name David (Daoud) after his grandfather. His father brought him up and educated him well. He grew up despising the things of the world and its vanities. When he was 22 years old, he went to the monastery of St. Anthony, where he conducted himself virtuously and lived an ascetic life, which convinced the abbot of the monastery, Father Athanasius (El-Kalousni), to clothe him with the garb of the monks. He continued to read and to study the holy books.

Two years after David’s ordination as a monk, the abbot of the monastery departed. David (Daoud) was chosen, by the consensus of the monks, to become their abbot. Pope Petros “El-Gawli” (Anba Petros VII), 19th Pope of Alexandria, ordained him a priest, and he appointed him as abbot of the monastery. He took care of the state of affairs of the monastery and those concerning the monks.

He was very sharp intellectually and was very well versed in religious matters. When a problem transpired among the Ethiopians concerning some doctrinal issues, the Pope, Anba Petros called upon him to go to Ethiopia to solve these problems. He performed his duty admirably. Father Daoud returned on July 13, 1852, to find that Pope Petros had departed on April 15, 1852. When they tried to choose a successor to the Pope, there was a split in the people’s opinions. Some

wanted Father Daoud and others wanted to choose someone else.

Finally they decided to ordain Father Daoud an auxiliary bishop in the year 1853. He performed his duties as such, for a year and two months, during which, he showed discretion and good conduct, that made him worthy to be chosen patriarch on the 28th of Bashanse of 1571 A.M. (1854 A.D.).

He devoted all his efforts to disciplining the youth and educating them. He established the great Coptic school in the patriarchate. He also established another school in Haret-El-Sakkayeen. He paid great attention to the teaching of the Coptic language. He also established a great printing house and printed many church books. Generally, the progress of the Copts at that time attributed to his efforts. He demolished the old church in the Patriarchate and built another, but he could not complete it because of his absence in Ethiopia for the second time. This great pontiff upheld the canons of the church, and was charitable to the poor and the needy, and was deeply loved by his flock. He departed on the 23rd of Tubah in 1577 A.M. (1861 A.D.)

His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.

The Martyrdom of the Forty-Nine Saints, the Elders of Sheheat (Scetis).

3rd February - 26th Toba

On this day, the forty-nine elder priests of Sheheat, Martinos, the envoy of the emperor, and his son, were martyred.

Emperor Theodosius the Less, the son of Emperor Arcadius, did not have a son. He wrote to the elders of Sheheat asking them to pray to God to grant him a son. St. Isidor wrote back to him saying that God did not will for him to have a son who would participate with the heretics after him.

When the Emperor read the message, he offered thanks to God. Some people gave him the advice to marry another wife to have offspring from her to inherit the empire after him. He said to them, «I cannot do anything except what the elders of Sheheat demanded.» He sent an envoy whose name was Martinos to consult with them about that. Martinos had a son named Zius who accompanied him on his visit to the elders in order to receive their blessings.

When they arrived and the elders read the message, they took the messenger to the body of St. Isidor, for he had departed. They called on him saying, «Our father, we have received a letter from the Emperor. What shall we say to him?» A voice came from the pure body saying, «What I had said before, I also say now, that the Lord will never give him a son to participate with the heretics, even if he marries ten women.» The elders wrote back to the Emperor recounting what they heard.

When the messenger wanted to return, the pagan berbers attacked the monastery. One of their great elders, whose name was Anba Yuannis, called upon the brethren and said, «The berbers have come to kill us. Whoever amongst you would like to become a martyr, let him stand, and whoever is afraid, let him hide in the palace.» Some of them hid in the palace, but he remained with the forty-eight elders, who were all slaughtered by the berbers. Martinos and his son were hiding. The son looked up and saw the angels placing the crowns of glory on the elders who were killed. The son said to his father, «I see spiritual beings putting crowns on the heads of the elders. I shall go to receive a crown like them.» His father replied, «And I also shall go with you, my son.» Both revealed themselves to the berbers. They were killed and received the crown of martyrdom. After the berbers had gone, the monks who were hiding in the palace came down, took the bodies, and placed them in a cave. They sang and said praises before the cave every night. Some people from the city of Batanoon came and took the body of Anba Yuannis and returned to their city. The elders of the monastery returned the body after a while. Also, some people from El-Fayyoum came and stole the body of Zius, the son of Martinos. When they arrived at the lake of El-Fayyoum, the angel of the Lord returned him to where the body of his father was. The elders also tried to separate the body of Zius, the son, from the body of his father several times, but they could not. Every time they moved the body of Zius, the angel of the Lord would return it to its place. One of the fathers heard one night, in a vision, someone saying, «Praise God, we were not separated in the flesh, nor are we separated when we are with Christ. Why do you want to separate our bodies?»

When persecution became rampant and the attacks on the monastery continued, the fathers relocated the bodies, to a cave which they built beside the church of St. Macarius. At the time of Anba Theodosius, 33rd Pope of Alexandria, they built a church for them. When Anba Benjamin, 38th pope, came to the wilderness, he established a feast day for them on the 5th day of Amshir, which was the day of the relocation of their bodies to this church. In time, the church building deteriorated, and they moved the bodies to one of the cells until the time of Ibrahim El-Gohary, who built a church for them around the end of the 18th century, where they placed the bodies of the saints. The church is still in existence today in the monastery of St. Macarius. The cell in which the bodies were kept is known today in Coptic as the cell of Ehme› Epseet, or the cell of the forty-nine. Their prayers be with us. Amen.

Meditations on the Bible Readings

3rd Sunday of the Blessed month of Toba John 3: 22-36

“He must increase, but I must decrease” John 3:30. Who is first? God or I? This might seem to be an easy question to answer … but the practical application is extremely hard and not as simple as it seems … in fact, this question might be present in our lives in a reduced status or on a different level … for the head of the family; is it him or her first or the family members? And the servants (of the church) in their service, the question is: his or her honour and benefits first or his or her service and those being served? The servant here is the Sunday school teacher, the deacon, the priest or the bishop … it is a question which every man is confronted by it in his or her various aspects of life … even in technical (and professional( aspects of work … is one’s own benefits ( comes first or true principles and moral values )come first(?

How easy it is for one to give himself or herself preference … to put one’s self before all others … thus one can become selfish and only sees his or her own … and how difficult it is to reconcile one’s needs as well as others’ needs … a complicated and troubling equation … it even might be more difficult than forgetting one’s need and attending only to others’ needs.

John the Baptist gives us a great example of the man who denies himself completely … he himself becomes non-existent for God’s sake and the service of others … a stranger in the wilderness wearing camel’s skin and eating locust and honey … appears in the world for short period in it he fulfilled his service to the best he could … and quickly he disappeared without asking for any honours for himself or wages or even praise despite he deserved to be called “among those born of women there is not a greater one” (Luke 7:28).

John the Baptist has offered a great service for the whole of mankind … and he did not ask for any reward … he prepared the way for the Lord Jesus then disappeared … can we learn from John the Baptist; self-denial … how? To serve not expecting a reward … to learn self-denial.

+ He who has the bride is the bridegroom .. This is the feelings of a servant … for he or she does not serve for themselves … but they serve the heavenly bridegroom … while they are servants of the bridegroom to see and rejoice (in His service) … St Paul the apostle sets an excellent example in self-denial for the others … “when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel. For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law

, that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some” 1Corinthian 9:18 – 22) … “we have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonoured! To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labour, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things (1 Corinthian 4:10-13) … and also said “ But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in sleeplessness, in fasting; by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things” 2 Corinthian 6:4-10). St Paul desired to transcend to heavens … but in his view the only thing which made him prefer to be on earth is for the sake of his brethren and relative in the flesh )and their salvation( … for the sake of preach- and ing and serving others … this is the same feeling Moses the prophet showed when prayed with pleadings that the Lord have mercy on His people and forgive their sins when they made the golden calf to worship (Exodus 32) … Moses even said to God entreating Him to forgive the peoples sins “I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.” If You will not forgive them (Exodus 32:32) … indeed amazing is the feelings of the servant who burns himself in the service (as a candle) to enlighten the others … St Peter the 17th pope (of the Coptic Church) and the seal of martyrs … prior to his martyrdom, he prayed to God with great might and asked that the emperor does not kill others and his blood be the last to be shed in his days … and indeed the Lord listened to his prayers and he was the seal of martyrs in his time. Another saint sold his clothing to donate the price to the poor … we also hear of Anba Abram (the late bishop of Faioum) who reached a great level of self-denial to deny himself of all things … he accepted to live in an old house with no furniture or any comforts befitting of a bishop … offering all to the poor … again the church history tells us of one of

the Coptic ministers named Youhanna Al-Abeh who was a minister of the government (around 1042 –1045AD) at the time of the Fatima Khalifate and he was an honest minster with good manners and welcoming of all people regardless of faith or religion and loving of the church even if it meant self-denial for the benefit of his people and the church … the khalif (ruler) loved him because of his loyalty and honesty … the khalif used to boost about him before the noblemen and leaders of the community … one of the noblemen named Sahem El-Deen got annoyed from this and said to the khalif “but he is a Christian” which made the khalif angry because of this phrase and said “I want a noserany (Christian) because the Christian is protective of his faith and image” … and all the noblemen blamed the jealous nobleman for his saying and the khalif jailed him … the nobleman’s wife went to minister Youhanna’s and asked his forgiveness and intercession to save the nobleman … and indeed he interceded on his behalf and was released … but this jealous nobleman stayed with his hate and anger … one day a war erupted and this nobleman became the leaders of the army … this gave him the chance to take revenge so he forged a letter (from the Coptic minister) which contained many secrets and it was addressed to the king of the enemies and presented it to khalif as evidence (of the Coptic minister’s treason … this made the khalif very angry and ordered the execution of the Coptic minister … some of the noblemen asked the khalif to investigate first the allegations, thus he appointed a high ranking nobleman to lead the investigation after the war has ended and he was an admirer of the Coptic minister … and he found out the truth about the forgery and informed the khalif who ordered the release of the Coptic minister and the arrest and jailing of the jealous nobleman … as a way of compensation the khalif asked the Coptic minister to ask for what he wants, so asked to be allowed to build a church which was granted … the Coptic minister was able to build 2 churches; one named after St Barbara and the other for St Serguis Bacchus (( the 2 churches existing till today), the churches of St Barbara and Abu Serga at Old Cairo) … but the khalif asked him to demolish of one of the 2 churches as he has given him permission for only one church … the Coptic minister could not decide which church to demolish, so he fasted for a long time and visited both church daily and could not come to a decision between the 2 churches … till he became ill because of it and leaned against a wall (in the church) and asked for some water to drink and when they brought water for him, he has departed and died … the khalif was saddened for his death and his honour he ordered that both churches be kept, one he has given permission for and the

other as present to his departed friend and honest minister who has died as a martyr for a church … this minister was buried in the church of St Barbara and the Lord has honoured him by heavenly light shining on his burial place. And you, beloved do you deny yourself for others … do you deny yourself for the sake of your family? Do you practice self-denial for your children? Or you bring them up and labour with them for your own sake? All you are interested in, is that they serve your needs and self-benefits even if it was against their own good and future … are you a selfish father? Are you a selfish mother? Remember the bible direction “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children” (Ephesians 6:4).

+ He must increase, but I must decrease .. Are you ready to decrase for God’s sake? Are you willing to be humiliated for your love of God and for the sake of His commandments? Are you willing to lose in material possessions because of your love of the King Christ? We often do good awaiting a reward in return! … our compliments became an important part of our activities and life … there are some who do not come into the church only to offer a compliment in weddings and funerals … and often our compliments are against God Himself! There are some who will become very enraged if not greeted by friends in a warm manner or ignored when he or she was seen some where … this can be even a reason for separation and quarrel … to the extent of not being able to accept an excuse (for such an incident) … often we are quick to judge others before we hear their excuses. This is the selfishness … the I which makes one contained in one’s self and cannot see but himself or herself only … but even, makes one wanting to increase on account of others and cannot tolerate for some-one else to increase on his or her account. Beloved, learn how to become a blossoming bloom … smiling to others and gaining all … even those who do not give you attention … learn to give unconditional love without being rewarded for this is the person filled with God’s love … but those who offer love in exchange for a reward is an empty person and does own the love he or she is trying to offer! … practice to become candle lighting up (for others) … offering it’s light and brilliance to all around it … without knowing them or seeing them … but (a candle) melting in silence and without much noise to light (the way to God) for others … let us learn from St John the Baptist to be a friend of the bridegroom … labouring for Him and offering one’s self and life for Him … not for an earthly reward or honours on earth … but for the glory of the heavenly kingdom … then one can enlighten and say “all has been perfected (in the Lord)”.

.The Dormition of Our Lady, the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos 29th January – 21st Toba

On this day, Our Lady, the all pure, Virgin St. Mary, the Mother of God, departed. As she was always praying in the holy sepulchre, the Holy Spirit informed her that she was about to depart from this temporal world. When the time of her departure arrived, the virgins of the Mount of Olives came to her, with the apostles, who were still alive, and they surrounded her bed. The Lord Jesus Christ, to Whom is the glory, with a host of thousands and thousands of angels came to her and comforted her and told her about the eternal joy that was prepared for her, and she rejoiced. The apostles and the virgins asked her to bless them. She stretched her hand and blessed them all, and she gave up her pure spirit in the hand of her Son and God, and He took .her spirit to the heavenly mansions The apostles prepared the body in a fitting manner and carried it to Gethsemane. Some of the Jews blocked their way to prevent them from burying the body. One of the Jews seized the coffin with his hands, which were separated instantly from his body and they remained attached to the coffin. He regretted his evil deed and wept bitterly. Through the supplications of the saintly apostles, his hands were reattached to his body, and he believed in the Lord Christ. .When they placed the body in the tomb, the Lord hid it from them St. Thomas the Apostle was not present at the time of St. Mary's departure. He wanted to go to Jerusalem and a cloud carried him there. On his way, he saw the pure body of St. Mary carried by the angels and ascended to heaven with it. One of the angels told him, "Make haste and kiss the pure body of St. .Mary," and he did When St. Thomas arrived where the disciples were, they told him about St. Mary's departure and he said to them, "You know how I conducted myself at the resurrection of the Lord Christ, and I will not believe unless I see her body." They went with him to the tomb, and uncovered the place of the body but they did not find it, and everyone was perplexed and surprised. St. Thomas told them how he saw the holy body and the angels that were ascending with it. They heard the Holy Spirit saying to them, "The Lord did not will to leave her body on earth." The Lord had promised his pure apostles to let them see her in the flesh once again. They were waiting for this promise to be fulfilled, until the 16th day of the month of Misra, when the promise was fulfilled and .they saw her The years of her life on earth were 60 years. She was 12 years old when she left the temple. She spent 34 years in Joseph's house, until the Ascension of the Lord, and 14 years with St. John the Evangelist, according to the commandment of the Lord which he told her at the cross, "Behold, this is your son," and ".to St. John, "Behold, this is your mother .Her intercession and blessings be with us. Amen

Coptic Orphans is proud to announce the appointment of its newest board member in Australia; Mr. Mena Mikhail. Mena is based in Melbourne and would love to hear from anyone wanting to learn more about this charity or how they could help out. Please contact Mena on 0431 057 383 or mena@heven.life.

Holy Baptism - Baby Alyssa ) Grace ) , daughter of Natalie & John Hanna St Mary’s Church - St. Mary’s - Sunday 22nd January 2023

Developments & Cash Position

New St Mary›s Church New Buildings

Work is progressing at the Church new buildings.

First floor of Car Parking is finished. Work is still progressing for the upper floor. It is expected to start work on the ground floor above the car park during February. Most Building works are expected to finish during June 2023. Final fittings for the building are expected during August - September 2023. Here is a brief about the Cash position of the project:

Total cost of the project is estimated 13 millions Dollars.

Architect and consultants paid so far $1,100,000

Amounts paid to the builders by 31st January $3,800,000

Amounts expected to be charged by the builders $9,000,000

Bank Loan approved: $8,800,000

Cost for furbishing the new church $300,000. Cash available for the project $1,500,000 Any donations will reduce the amount withdrawn from the loan.

Thanks for all those who contribute and support the project. Committing periodical payments is very helpful for meeting the continuing cost.

Please contact the Church treasurer if you wish to contribute regularly

Construction of New Buildings started Thursday 28th April

The new Building is expected to be ready within 9 months. church services are continuing as normal as in the Timetable inside the Bulletin. You can donate monthly contribution using Direct Debit forms available in the church or downloaded from church website. Cost of building works is around $13,000,000. Your support and donations will be blessing and very appreciated.