8 - 14 February 2001
Issue No.520
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 8 - 14 February 2001 Issue No.520 |
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Inner strength
"POWER" was the theme of this year's seminar by the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church at the Book Fair, reports Nadia Abou El-Magd. Speaking on Tuesday, Pope Shenouda told the large and predominantly male crowd that he did not "mean violence, but power, which is one of God's prerogatives."
Tight security cordoned off the hall, and many who could not make it inside watched the Pope speak on a large screen erected outside. Alluding to a strength that is inner and spiritual, not physical, he argued: "The aggressor is weak, and the victim is strong."
Answering a question by Al-Ahram Weekly on the rulings pronounced by the Sohag criminal court on those involved in violent incidents in the southern village of Al-Kosheh, an angry Shenouda responded, to great applause: "We are going to file an appeal against this verdict." On Monday, the court convicted four of the 96 defendants on trial for wide-scale rioting in Al-Kosheh a year ago that left 20 Copts dead. None of the four convicted Muslims was found guilty of murder.
The majority of questions at the two-hour seminar dealt with political issues, beginning with a suggestion that Shenouda accompany the Sheikh of Al-Azhar and "shock" the world by visiting Jerusalem. Shenouda reaffirmed his position that visiting Jerusalem under Israeli occupation amounts to normalisation of relations with Israel. He reiterated that he cannot visit Jerusalem without his Muslim and Arab "brothers": "I cannot visit Jerusalem on the authority of an Israeli entry visa, but if I received a visa from my friend Yasser Arafat, there would be a response."
On the possibility of another visit, this time to Iraq, Shenouda confirmed that he had received an invitation from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "Showing our feelings for Iraq is a good thing," he stated.
Shenouda declined to answer a question asking whether Egyptian Copts are "discriminated against." And asked about a census count of Copts, he said, "We are after spiritual, not political, gains."
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