Pimonakhos vol 8 issue 9 a4

Vol: 8 Issue: 9

Tout 1731 / September 2014

Finding Peace Despite the Suffering By: Father Lev Gillet As we endure these difficult times and suffering, we experience a range of emotions, including despair, anger, and restlessness. The Lord has blessed us with His peace and promised us victory over all evil.

“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you.” (Jn 14:27) Jesus gives His peace. He does not loan it; He does not take it back. The peace that is in Jesus – “My peace” – becomes the disciples’ final possession. At the beginning of each day, it is possible for me to be confirmed in the Saviour’s peace, no matter what anxieties the day brings.

The Saviour gives His disciples His peace at the moment when His Passion is about to begin. When He is confronted with the vision of immediate suffering and death, He proclaims and communicates His peace. If at such moments, Jesus is the Master of Peace, then the strength of this peace will not abandon the disciple in moments of lesser strife.

“But I say to you, do not resist evil.” (Matt 5:39). How scandalous and foolish is this statement in the eyes of men, and especially of unbelievers? How do we interpret this commandment – about turning the left cheek to the one who struck the right, giving our cloak to the one who took our tunic, walking two miles with the one who forced to go one mile already, giving a blessing to him who curses us? Have we explored the ways and means of loving our enemy – whether he be a personal or public enemy? “You do not know of what spirit you are…” (Lk 9:55) No, it is a question of resisting the Gospel. The choice is not between fighting and not fighting, but between fighting and suffering. Fighting brings about only vain and illusory victories, because Jesus is the absolute reality. Suffering without resistance proclaims the absolute reality of Jesus. If we understand this point, we see that suffering is a real victory. Jesus said: “It is enough” (Lk 22:38) when His disciples presented Him with two swords. The disciples had not understood the meaning of Christ’s statement, “He who does not have a purse, let

him sell his coat and buy a sword.” (Lk 22:36) What Christ meant was that there are times when we must sacrifice what seems the most ordinary thing, in order to concentrate our attention on the assaults of the evil one. But defense and attack are both spiritual.

Jesus goes out to the front of the soldiers, who with their torches and weapons, want to lay hands on Him. (Jn 18:4) He goes freely, spontaneously, to His passion and His suffering.

Jesus cures the servant whose right ear had been cut off by the sword of a disciple.

(Matt 26:51) Not only is Jesus unwilling that His disciple defend Him by force, but He repairs the damage that the sword has caused. It is the only miracle that Jesus performed during His passion.

The example of non-resistance that Jesus gave does not mean that He consents to evil, or that He remains merely passive. It is a positive reaction. It is the reply of the love that Jesus incarnates - opposed to the enterprises of the wicked. The immediate result seems to be the victory of evil. In the long run, however, the power of this love is the strongest.

The Resurrection followed the Passion. The non-resistance of the martyrs wore out and inspired the persecutors themselves. It is the shedding of blood that has guaranteed the spread of the Gospel. Is this a weak and vague pacifism? NO – it is a burning and victorious flame. If Jesus, at Gethsemane, had asked His Father for the help of twelve legions of angels, there would have been no Easter or Pentecost – and no salvation for us.

This article is an excerpt from a larger work entitled "A Dialogue with the Saviour"

Fr Joshua with a group of young youth

St Marks youth group at the monastery

Archangel Michael Church Youth

St Abraam Girls

St Dymiana Church Sunday School Boys Spending a retreat Page 3

Martyrdom of John of Phanidjoit

(13th Cent)

By: Hanny Takla The text tells us about a probably young Upper-Egyptian man, who was a merchant of imported women's fabrics. His extensive contacts with Moslems, especially crafty ones, resulted in him falling into sin with a woman and eventually he was forced to convert to Islam as a result. This happened during the reign of Osman the Ayyubite (1193-1198 AD). He later repented and took refuge with his children in a village near his own, called Pepleu. There, the village ruler was very favorable to Christians. After years of atoning for his sin, he decided to attempt to gain an official pardon from the king. At the time, el-Kamel was reigning in the name of his still-living father el-Adel. So he sailed to Cairo with his son(s).

There he sold the fabrics that he had and gave the money to his son(s). He apparently left his son(s) in the care of the Upper Egyptians that he was staying with. He met with a priest called John who tried to have him go to the Patriarch first before making his petition. But he opted to go to the king's physician Abu-Shaker instead. Abu-Shaker was not in favor of what the saint planned to do, but he failed to convince him of that.

In Cairo, he started to write petitions to the king with his request, which of course brought no reply. In his disappointment, he attended a feast of St. George, held in a village church near Cairo. There he met with another priest called Arous, who in some way provided an encouragement for what he was about to do.

Shortly after, he jumped in front of the king while parading on his horse and delivered his petition, personally and politely. This, of course, eventually got him arrested for three days so, according to the authorities, he would sober up. The Coptic officials got Abu-Shaker to go with them and meet the martyr in prison. A similar discussion, to the one that they had earlier, ensued and the result was again no change in the martyr's stand on the issue. The king that night also tried to persuade him to recant his statement publicly and then he would be assisted in relocating to another country where he could practice his Christianity. Politely again he refused such an invitation and was sent back to finish his three-day sentence.

At the conclusion of the three days he was brought up in front of the king in the midst of a public gathering in the marketplace to commemorate the sending of fleet ship(s), probably to participate in the crusaders' wars. Many people from different nationalities were in attendance along with the usual mob of marketplace, vendors and merchants, Moslem clerics, Mamlukes, etc. During this trial, the martyr affirmed his desire to be granted back his Christianity or be purified by the sword. The king tried to gently and lavishly persuade him to declare his Islamic faith again but was unsuccessful. Then he tried to scare him using a Mamluke called Philim but again to no avail. Finally he had him beheaded, though the head did not separate totally from the body. In the custom of the rulers at the time, they left the body hanging there as a warning to anyone contemplating making such a confession.

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The text also contains a record of eyewitness reports of several people about the martyr's character, as well as the events that occurred immediately following his death.

This included the mob scenes, beating of Christians, and the terror that reigned over the Christians that evening. It also tells about two nightmares that the king had, a few days after, where he saw the martyr who ordered him to have his body taken down.

He eventually ordered the martyr's body to be taken down and thrown in the Nile wrapped with the stones that were thrown at him. This section goes on to tell us the identity of the author and that it took him eleven months after the actual death of the martyr to investigate the truth of the story before writing it. The incident was in 1209 AD, and the date in the colophon for completing the writing of the manuscript is 121011 AD (From: The Thirteenth-Century Coptic Martyrdom Of John Of Phanidjoit, Reconsidered)

A Group of Bikers from all over Sydney during a fundraiser ride to the monastery to raise funds for Aaron to go to overseas for treatment from MS. We ask the Lord to give him healing.

Lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left By: Fr Anthony St Shenouda It seems that every year there is news of a Christian group somewhere around the world is being persecuted for their Christian faith. We hear of what’s happening to the Christians in Nigeria, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, etc.

In Egypt we can say with St Paul “if I must boast, I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity” (2Co 11:30) In the last few years in Egypt we came across the Alexandria bombing, the burning of churches all over Egypt, the forced displacement of many Christians from their homes.

I am not about to get into the debate about which Christian group suffered the most but what’s evident is that persecution is not foreign to our church (I mean we have named our calendar after the martyrs) and we seem to have worked out a great way of dealing with it, which is primarily biblical. We read in the Old Testament how the one condition that the people of God needed to come out of trouble was not a big army, advanced weapons or great political influence but there are dozens of instances when the people of God had none of that but all they had was a repentant hearts, bent knees in prayer and without failure God stood by them and protected them.

The most known of these stories is the story of Sennacherib king of Assyria when he threatened the people of God with destruction if they don’t surrender. The immediate response of King Hezekiah the king of Israel was “he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet.” (2Ki 19:1-2) When they met Isaiah the prophet they asked him to “lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.” (2Ki 19:4) I find this to be very important to highlight especially in the middle of these weekly news of Christians being massacred somewhere in the world. We as a church have a great role to play in praying and offering repentance so that God may interfere and give strength to the weak. We must not look at H.H. Pope Tawadrous’s call for the Copts to dedicate these two weeks of St Mary’s fast to those who are suffering around the world as a clever political move or a way of showing sympathy to those who are suffering but His Holiness has offered the real solution to the problem.

St Abanoub Church Youth Group spending a spiritual day at the monastery

Foundation stone for the new Complex Project

On Saturday the 23rd of August the monastery celebrated many occasions. First the feast of St Mary, secondly the celebration of the 19th anniversary since the beginning of the monastic life in the monastery as well as the unveiling of the foundation stone for the New Complex Project.

The day started with a liturgy then after lunch Bishop Daniel, the monks and the congregations went down to the designated area for the project and unveiled the foundation stone. After that a memorial tube was placed under the foundation of the building that contained a Bible, Newspaper of the day and some coins, a cross, a brief about the project, photo of the fathers.

We Also would like to announce that work in the new project has already started by putting down the Screw Piles for the foundation.

Contributions to this project are Not Tax Deductable and can be made to: Coptic Orthodox St. Shenouda Monastery Limited Acc No: 26-4341 BSB: 032-274 Westpac Bank

The Life of St George of Cappadocia ion t a c i l t P ub s St George is probably the most venerated e t a L saints in the Coptic Church. Hundreds of miracles are recorded for him and many churches are built after his name. His life is an inspiration for many young people for his courage for standing up for his Christian Faith despite the many tortures that he endured over seven years.

This biography is translated from an eleventh century Coptic manuscript in 1888, by Dr. E. A. Wallis Budge. Dr Budge is the curator of Assyrian and Egyptian Antiquities in the British Museum has for decades been recognized as one of the great translators of ancient manuscripts into the English language

’s Day r e h t a F l Specia