The first Divine Liturgy celebrated in almost 5 months in Fayoum diocese was celebrated at the Cathedral of St. George today after teh diocese decided to reopen. The Churches were closed last March due to the spread of Corona virus and services and holy masses were suspended. A number of members of the church scouting team and church officials organized the event to make sure the rules of social distancing and other precautionary measures are taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The Monastery of the Virgin Mary in Dornkah announced it will be opened before visitors during the fasting of the virgin which starts Tomorrow. Limited numbers of visitors will be allowed this year and all precautionary measures will be taken due to the spread of Corona virus.

Egypt’s Ministry of Youth and Sports launched (Ready to 30 days challenge) campaign from 1 to 30 August aiming to spread the culture of playing sports among citizens to maintain better health. The challenges of the campaign vary from walking, walking with wheelchairs, running, riding bicycles, kayaks, and riding motorcycles.

The Monastery of the Virgin Mary at Jabal al-Tair in Samalut decided to open its doors to visitors during the fasting of the Blessed Virgin Mary starting on August 7th till August 22nd. The church pledged to impose the precautionary measures on the visitors after 5 months of closure due to the spread of Corona virus.

The Archdiocese of the Coptic Orthodox in Fayoum Governorate decided to increase the attendance numbers in weddings and funerals and baptism ceremonies. The church allowed 5 people to attend the baptism ceremony, 15 people to attend weddings and funerals in addition to a priest and a deacon.

Bishop Bfnotious of Samalout held a meeting with priest sod the diocese for the first time in 5 months after the suspension of meetings and church activities due to the Corona virus. In the meeting, they decided to return the masses and following the social distancing and preventive measures. Another meeting will be held on September 5 to assess the situation.

Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark See, congratulated President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, Dr. Mostafa Madbouly Egypt’s Prime Minister and Dr. Ali Abdul Aal, head of Parliament on the occasion of celebrating the feast of Eid El-Adha. Pope wished Egypt safety and prosperity and victory over the surrounding challenges.

The American Magazine The Wake said that converting the Hagia Sophia Museum into a mosque is one of the most important signs of the decline in Turkey s secular character. It added that such conversion came as announcement of Erdogan telling the world that Turkey is no longer secular. It added that the Turkish government is trading on religion to achieve political benefits and to fight the secular parties in Turkey.

The official spokesman of the Egyptian Orthodox Church revealed that the church has played a remarkable role in caring for and serving its children and the surrounding community in Indonesia through spiritual, health and social services that were provided to those affected by the emerging crisis of the Corona virus. In order to keep pace with the growth of the service, the resident servant of Indonesia, Amir Ramzi, was ordained a priest and called Father Petros. It is worth mentioning that there are five Coptic Churches in Indonesia: the Church of St. Pope Kyrillos VI and St. Simeon in Bekasi, the Church of the Ascension in Manado, the Church of Our Lady and Saint Mark the Apostle in Surabaya, the Church of Archangel Michael and St. Moses in Malang, and the Church of St. George and St Abu Nafir in Central Kalimantan.

The Diocese of Beheira, Matrouh and the five western cities held the forty-fifth annual day of the Diocese s servants, entitled "Rejoicing in the hope, persevere in the tribulation” via video conferencing technology. The Conference was held with the participation of Archbishop Pachomius of Behira and Bishop Michael of Qubba and nearly 219 of the parish servants.

Father Poulos Halim, spokesman for the Orthodox Church, said no statements were issued from the media center concerning the enthronement of Bishop Makarious in Minya and Abu Qurqas diocese. He added that some journalists expected the decision but it is not confirmed yet.

The monastery of the Virgin Mary in the Mountain of Jabal al-Tir in Samalut announced it opens its doors before visitors during the Virgin’s fasting from August 7 to the Virgin Mary’s Day on August 22, while preserving all precautionary measures. The monastery’s decision comes after months of closure due to the Corona crisis.

Father John Fawzi, priest of the Church of Our Lady and Pope John Paul II in the village of Al-Ezia, Assiut Governorate, said that the Virgin Mary made a miracle and restored sight of a blind woman. He added that the woman came to the church everyday for 4 month asking for healing and the Virgin gave her what she asked for.

Bishop Bemwa of Suze inspected the new church of St. Mina and Pope Kyrillos in the diocese. He followed up the construction work of the services building after building the walls.

Bishop Pfnotious of Samalout headed today the Divine Liturgy without the presence of any of the congregation at the Church of the Savior of the World in Samalout. The Churches of the diocese are still closed due to the spread of COVID-19 and they are going to be gradually opened starting from next month.

Coptic diocese in the United States of America said that it has zero tolerance policy towards any incidents of sexual harassment. This came after a Coptic priest was dismissed after being convicted of sexual harassment.

His Eminence Bishop Makarious of Minya and Abu Qurqas held a meeting with the priests of the diocese to discuss the precautionary measures taken to secure the reopening of churches starting from August 3. Bishop Makarious said that everybody should follow the instructions especially as some people refuse to disclose their infection and others may not realize they are infected with COVID-19.

The Egyptian Parliament approved the establishment of Catholic and Evangelical endowment bodies just like the Coptic Orthodox Church. The decision comes to ensure equality between all Christian denominations in Egypt and to enable such bodies to manage and invest the assets and funds of the Churches.

Dr. Mohamed Mahmoud Abu Zaid, Deputy of the Minya Governor, held a meeting with the committee to supervise the path of the Holy Family restoration project in Minya over video conferencing technology. This came to follow up the implementation of the work of the second stage of developing the path of the Holy Family’s journey in Jabal Al-Tair monastery. The project aims to develop the area that was visited by the Holy Family 2000 years ago and turn it into an international touristic place visited by millions of tourist from all over the world.

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark See, agreed to include a new church inside The National Unity Complex ‘Long Live Egypt’. The complex will be established inside Al-Moqattam neighborhood in Cairo and is considered a message of national unity among the Egyptians.

Catholic church in Egypt announced that priest Samy Qelada was removed from priesthood and doesn’t belong to the Council of Churches of Egypt. Statement added that the priest announced himself a bishop and ordained a number of priests, but they are not recognized as well.