The Egyptian government announced today to legalize 74 churches and service buildings in Egypt. This raises the total number of legalized churches and service buildings to 1568 out of 5540 requests submitted to the Committee.

The number of total recorded cases of Corona virus in the USA reached 75 thousand, which has become more than what was recorded in Italy. US President Donald Trump announced emergency case in New York, Texas and Florida due to the Coronavirus, where more than one 1000 people died due to the virus.

After all churches in America were shut down due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus, Father Felopater Aziz, priest of the Coptic diocese in New York, moved the altar of the church to his home, where he celebrates daily masses. The priest broadcasts the daily masses on social media to get in touch with the congregation praying for God to save the world from the epidemic.

Father Paulos Halim, spokesman for the Coptic Orthodox Church, invited the people to stay at home to prevent the spread of the epidemic and protect their families and country. He added the church is praying that the crisis come to an end and believe that it works for the good and will teach people to humble before God.

The Coptic Diocese of New York and the Pontifical headquarters in North America issued a statement to warn the Coptic people about the seriousness of the Corona virus assuring that some Coptic priests and members of the church were tested positive for the virus. Statement added that the situation is very serious and that the church is facing unprecedented situation in the modern history. It is worth mentioning that Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church announced it is shutting down all churches nationwide and suspended all its services due to Coronavirus in order to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

In an attempt to break the cycle of the epidemic, Bisho Ermia advised the Coptic people to stay at home and avoid going out as possible due to Coronavirus. This comes as the Coptic church is celebrating the Great Lent, during which the people fast and celebrate daily Holy Masses.

Bishop Bemen of Naqada and Qus returned home after a medical trip to the United States of America. He was diagnosed with angina last January and underwent medical surgery in the heart.

In a painful scene that did not happen In history, a priest of an Italian church stood alone in the church praying without the congregation after the churches were closed and the curfew imposed on the city due to the Coronavirus. The priest found no way but to ask the people of the church to send him their personal pictures to put them in their seats and pray for them.

Family of the Coptic minor girl Samira Khalaf Ibrahim demanded the police to investigate the disappearance of their daughter. The 17 years old girl has went to a private class in her city in Kafr el-Sheikh before her phone was closed and she never returned home.

The Monastery of St. Bishoy in Wadil Natron announced that the late bishop Srabamon is to be buried left a will to be buried under the legs of his teacher Pope Shenouda III. The monastery has prepared a special shrine for its bishop according to his will.

After a sectarian clashes was at hand due to a shared topic on Facebook by a Coptic man who works abroad, which was considered inappropriate and offensive. Wise clergy in Gowair village in Mallawy decided to visit houses of the Muslims and Christians in the village and apologized for the inappropriate action. Friday prayer speeches addressed the matter as well and called for peace and coexistence.

A group of Coptic activists in the United States of America established the American Coptic Council in New York, with the official presence of the Egyptian embassy, parliamentarians, and a number of Coptic leaders in America. The council aims to support Egypt and provide a diverse vision on a number of issues related to the economy, citizenship, and representation of Egypt abroad by providing a realistic picture of Egypt after the June 30 revolution. The Council was established by Dr. Joseph Ibrahim, Dr. Ashraf Ashamallah, Irene Bakhit and Michael Lyon.

Bishops Angelos of Shubra and Gabriel of Austria visited the Ambassador of Egypt in Austria Omar Amer to offer condolences on the death of former president Hosni Mubarak. A military funeral was held to the former president who was leader of the Air forces during the war on 1973 and the state of general mourning was declared in Egypt for 3 days.

After holding a reconciliation session between Muslims and Copts, 2 Copts and 6 Muslims were released in Faw village in Dishna. The sectarian attacks dates back to the New Year s Eve when extremists attacked houses of Copts in protest of holding Christian prayers.

Bishop Makarious of Minya received yesterday Mr. Jeffrey Adams, Ambassador of England to Cairo, who visited the path of the holy family in Minya with his wife. During the visit, Adams strengthened the importance of the province, its history, and archaeological value.

Giza court issues final verdict next April 12 on 9 defendants who were accused of attacking the church of Kafr Hakim and killing 11 police officers in Kerdasa police station. The defendants were sentenced for life imprisonment while they were fugitive, and their trial was repeated after they were arrested.

Dr. Ahmed Abdel-Raouf, head of the Central Administration for Monitoring and Evaluation at the Ministry of Awqaf, stated that Sheikh Abdullah Rushdie repeated irregularities have been referred to the competent prosecution, and added that the ministry has prevented him from preaching. The decision was taken until the end of the investigation of his controversial opinions and publications, which are seen as not appropriate for the preachers. It is wroth mentioning that Roshdie has recently declared that Sir Magdy Yacoub can’t enter heaven because of his good deeds since he is an infidel.

Social media has spotted the picture of Miven Malak, Daughter of martyr Malak Faraj who was slain by ISIS in Libya. She embraced the statue of her father and was very proud to see him as martyr who sacrificed his life for Christ sake.

Many times did we hear about the disappearance of Coptic girls, and many of them are linked to romantic relationships, bad circumstances and polarization, but other reasons were revealed by Coptic girls who reported about fake companies who claim to be owned by Christians and claim they cooperate with the church to find jobs for Coptic girls. The companies claim to have connections with monks and nuns and start collecting their personal information and talk to them on the phone and get manipulated by the deceitful people.

The Chaldean Church in Egypt participated at a conference about Freedom of Religion invited by His Excellency Mr. Gambolo Cantini, Ambassador of Italy, at the Italian Cultural Center in Cairo. The conference came as an extension of the Declaration of the Human Brotherhood Document signed in Abu Dhabi between His Holiness Pope Francis and the Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayeb. The conference discussed ways of dialogue and common matters between religions in order to eliminate religious extremism and conflicts between religious groups.

The Faith and Faith Committee of the Diocese of Maghagha announced that HG Bishop Aghathon will host a weekly program entitled “Education and The Creed" and will be broadcast on Facebook. The program aims to present the correct teachings, and face wrong teachings, modern heresies, and misconceptions, which are spread widely in multiple places. The first episodes of the program will be broadcast in the begining of the Great Lent, on Monday, February 24, 2020.