Religious Celebrations in Egypt reveal Schizophrenia of security and clergy since police only care about collecting money from the businessmen, I mean clergy! Police take money from the church and impose road traffic fees to collect money from the visitors. It is ironic that the security presence does not appear inside the celebrations and is limited to the gates in spite of the existence of millions of people. It is even more ridiculous is the Church s blessing of the celebrations, despite the fact that millions of human lives are under imminent danger. Millions of souls may be under attack, and yet the church cares only about money of the naive blessings collectors.

A report published yesterday of the United Nations Commission on the death of former President Mohamed Morsi and the death of his son Abdullah claimed that Morsi s death was the result of medical negligence and brutal treatment in his prison. Report said he was only allowed to leave his cell for one hour and had to remain in custody for twenty-three hours. The report added that Morsi was prevented from exercising and from reading newspapersas well as watching television. The report also mentioned that his son Abdullah had been killed in Egyptian prisons. I want to clarify that these reports are based on data presented by suspicious Egyptian organizations and funded by Qatar or some terrorist organizations. I think that there are human rights activists in the National Council for Human Rights that defend rights of the terrorists to kill and preach extremism. The report of the UN committee is full of lies supported by suspicious human rights organizations. The Egyptian Union for Human Rights visited Tora Prison, a short time ago, and found the complaint of the Brotherhood leaders concerning the short period of exercise, bad televisions and the delay of news papers. There was no claims about medical negligence. The death of Mohamed Morsi in the courtroom showed that the death was a result of blood circulation has been witnessed by the lawyers of the former Brotherhood Freedom and Justice Party and there is no slight criminal or medical failure of the state in the case of death. As for the death of the son of Morsi Abdullah, I believe that the prosecution s investigations and the anatomical character confirm that the death as a result of something else completely should not go into it in order to preserve the sanctity of the dead.

The reactions to the family of Majdi McCain, who was killed by the police officer Karim Magdy because of torture inside the police department varied. Magdi s family had to change their testimony, and torturiang them is a kind of continuing injustice. They decided to be realistic knowing they are poor and weak. They are not trying to be ideal like those on Facebook and human rights activists. They lost a poor father from a low class who was killed by an officer of the elite. They are simply embracing fire. I hope we don t describe them as deceitful and don t destroy the rest of their dignity. They realize we live in a forest where the survival is for the strongest. They only demand to live in peace in such forest. If we want to do justice to Majdi McCain, we all have to change ourselves and abandon our class classifications and racist views of each other. In our community, we always create pharos and follow the rules of forests and like to classify people as masters and slaves

It is written in the Bible ‘Now therefore, amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the Lord your God; then the Lord will relent concerning the doom that He has pronounced against you. ‘ and ‘by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.’. This is how the holy bible demands corrections whenever it is necessary to return to the root of things and their correctness. However, each time the term ‘reform’ is used concerning the church or any religious institution, anger is raised and rejection is declared. They may link it to changing the constants of faith and religious principles without trying to understand the discourse of this desired reform and the reasons that prompted those who called for it. This way, the road is closed before discussion before it even begins. In the Coptic Church, the calls for reform are equal to attacking the faith, even if they target reforms in management. The late Pope Shenouda, unfortunately, said once that those who call for reform don’t understand its meaning. This is very strange for me since the Pope himself started his work as bishop of reform and trying to take the Coptic church to the international level, but he didn’t see a potential for further reform! I say that reform in the Coptic church will stop publishing photos of its priests in newspapers to invite the people not to deal with. Those priests who love making press statements and the church says later they were not assigned to do so. The Holy Mass will be more understandable with easier language for the simple people. There won’t be a place for business inside the church as civil society organizations will lead such work. Divorce and changing sects for separation purposes will also disappear with stronger relations between the congregation and the church. Electing the pope and the work of the general congregation council will develop and be more efficient. Reform means more freedom as father Matta the poor said ‘The Church should let the Christian citizen move freely in all directions as he pleases. And as dictated by his upbringing and culture, and bears the consequences of his acts.’

After the TV presenter Asma Sherif Mounir apologized for criticizing the late Sheikh Mohamed Metwaly Shaarawy and describing his views as extreme, the famous presenter Amr Adib hosted Sheikh Habib Jafry and praised her apology as if Arabs don’t have the right to cretisize and they only have to blindly obey without thinking, though it was OK to criticize even Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. Sheikh Jafry considered her views an attack against Islam though he was the one to call for the establishment of the warring Islamic caliphate and called for jihad against non-Muslims. This means that Shaarawy is the founder of the Islamic State and I believe that those who defend him are offending Islam. They don’t really understand what they are doing, and they are supporting terrorism. Those people are the reason of retardation in our country as long as they advocate things against true religion like Jihad with weapons and killing apostate and killing those who leave prayer and the sanctity of the transfer of organs and call for the Islamic Caliphate to fight infidels and that befriending a Christian is equal to infidelity. They prohibit congratulating Christians on their holidays and prohibit the benefits of banks and advocate stoning as an Islamic law. These are small part of the views of Shaarawy, which is sanctified and followed by Jafari. They, we should not be amazed when our children die in terrorist attacks every now and then! I believe that media personnel and the government are responsible for terrorist by advocating such extreme ideas. I have declared these ideas before Sheikh Sharawy when I was a student of the Faculty of Sharia and Law and he was very angry at me.

King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Center for Dialogue between Religions and Cultures succeeded to convey its strong message to the world and to reveal its goals before the international community. Its hard working and distinguished team led by His Excellency Mr. Faisal bin Muammar, who is a great Arab intellectual and visionary contributed to its success. The KAICIID international conference this week brought together 190 prominent religious leaders to discuss the challenges of combating hate speech. The issue is very vital and comes at a critical moment as the international community in many parts of the country is going through conflicts of a religious nature, divisions and even religious wars. The two-day discussions, which I had the honor to participate in, revealed to me personally the magnitude of the humanitarian and enlightening role played by the Center, which requires extensive international support, the first of which is the Government of Austria that should support the Center against some racist parties that try to shut it down for its successful role and mediation, which it carried out in a number of conflicts, especially in Africa. The choice of the subject of hate speech is a very successful one because this issue is the starting point for many conflicts and wars that are based on ethnic and religious foundations. The ability to bring so many religious leaders to one table is undoubtedly an achievement. A very lofty message about coexistence, acceptance of the other and diversity, which has been a role model to follow in the region and the world. I had a first hand experience of the sincerity of those in charge of the conference under the chairmanship of the Secretary-General who have a desire for the success of the Center that is located in Austria, which is a symbol of freedom and religious tolerance. The announcement that the center will allocate 1.5 million euros next year to fight hate speech is a courageous step in which money is being used for high humanitarian and social purposes. I am confident that this huge funding will succeed in achieving the noble goals and objectives, among which is the graduation of many Peace advocates from dozens of countries to prepare young clergy, intellectuals and civil society activists involved in the dialogue. I hope it will withstand and triumph over the wars of hatred and enemies of success.

Sin of doubt is one of the sins that may face all people, as a result of the work of the devil. Such doubt may be accepted by some people who live in anxiety and turmoil, and may be refused by others, who overcome it. The late Pope Shenouda III in his article ‘doubt’ talked about the sin of doubt, its kinds, reasons, and how to face it. People may doubt faith related to God, doubt the truth, principles, others and even doubt related to oneself. There are many reasons of doubt including fear like St. Peter who saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!’ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ Man may lack faith and forget about God’s grease that saved him in the past. Second, having friends who doubt may affect one’s faith. Third, the rumors that may affect one’s faith. Fourth, the narrow mind that considers one reason and can’t think of others. Fifth: The person may be skeptical of nature like Thomas. Sixth, the work of Satan since the beginning when it said to Eve Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’? He also said to Christ: If You are theSon of God, command that these stones become bread. Later it said: If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross. Seventh: There is doubt concerning God, His protection, love and support. Uncertainty and doubt are very damaging and causes anxiety and turmoil. It is easy to embrace and very hard to get rid of. Faith and trust in the almighty Lord are the solution. Don’t believe everything since the devil is multi-talented and can lead people easily to doubt, grumbling and despair.

There is no doubt that what is happening in Lebanon and Egypt from demonstration and strikes express the frustrations that the ruler of these countries put their people at this position. It s impossible and not logic that all Egyptian just got paid to strike or to express their opinion. Its very shameful that people live and suffer and can t express their suffering because the dictatorship can t let them express their opinion.

The agreed title of a production of a biography TV series about the life of the late Pope Shenouda III is Pope of the Arabs. I want to say that the title ‘Pope of the Arabs’ is not worthy of the prestige and majesty of the great Holy See. The Arabs have never had a Pope! I wonder if the name came from inside the church or from outside just to prove some proposal by political party or another organization. I am sure that such TV series would stress the importance of the national role of the Pope as head of the Coptic Orthodox Church. The title may have come from inside the church as a pure flirtation and appeasement and to give better situation for the suffering Copts facing extremism of the Salafist current. Do they think that such title will find acceptance for example in Morocco or just in the Gulf countries! The title also points out to how the script will process the ideas in a political context away from Pope’s pastoral care and spiritual part. Pope’s life has been full of incidents, but I hope they will be honest in telling the story. I still see that the title of Pope of the Arabs doesn’t represent St. Mark’s See as it doesn’t bring pride or joy for the Arabs.

I was very happy to know about the production of a biography TV series about the life of the late Pope Shenouda III to be a lasting memory not only for the present generation but for the new generations to come like all other biographies. His life indeed is full of unique experiences not only in Egypt but around the world. His Holiness Pope Shenouda is one of the universal spiritual stature witnessed by kings, princes, and presidents, in addition to all ecclesiastical leaders in all denominations. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts of History from King Fouad University with excellent grades. He studied at the theological seminary and was one of its teachers. He was a writer and poet and an officer in the Egyptian Army. He was a monk, a bishop for education, Pope and Patriarch of the Coptic Church. Caring for the poor, he founded the Committee to take care of the needy and the poor. Everyone knows what his Holiness Pope Shenouda presented to his sons and his country, especially with the disagreement with President Sadat. He always resorted to God by prayers to solve many including hundreds of sectarian strife, which claimed many wounded and martyrs, the most recent of which was the massacre of the Maspero massacre. Many countries, universities, human rights organizations and parliaments have honored His Holiness Pope Shenouda and he was awarded medals, awards, certificates, honorary doctorates, etc. His name was called on a street in the United States of America and the Coptic Center for Youth in Sydney, Australia. However, the name of the biography made many people feel uncomfortable with many other titles that could be used. He was an international figure with a Coptic roots, so why just limit his effect with the Arabs? I googled the title, and was surprised to know that he was first called this title during his visit to Lebanon in 1995. Thank God they didn’t choose the title Pope of the Resistance! I think it is still possible to choose an alternative to the name of this TV series, which will remain stuck in the minds of this generation and could be called on a church one day!

On May 2nd, 2011, Western and international media reported that Osama bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda, was killed by US forces. President Barack Obama restored his popularity after he was close to losing the elections in his second round and the killing of the founder of Al-Qaeda was a kiss of life to him. In 2019, Democrats rallied against US President Donald Trump and despite his unprecedented economic reforms to the United States, the Democrats succeeded in confusing him by threatening to remove him after his calls wtih the Ukrainian President and his request to investigate the son of Joe Biden, a possible presidential candidate for 2020 against Trump. Soon, Western newspapers announced in August 2019 that Osama bin Laden s son Hamza had been killed in an air strike, which is similar to what Obama did before his second round election by announcing the killing of bin Laden.

Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. Love is the base of Christianity and we believe that God is love. Thus, the believers have to witness to this love. Dr. Rasmi Abdel Malek, Head of the Department of Humanities in the seminary in his article Education for the Testimony of Christian Love assured us that true love is the love of the Lord with all the heart, and this is what we really need today. He cited a saying by the late Father Bishoy Kamel saying: The church today needs martyrs of love more than of blood. To love your enemies is better than to offer your blood. We need today those who love the Lord from all their hearts. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind ; and, Love your neighbor as yourself. Our fathers loved God above all, and therefore, they were powerful in facing tribulations and persecution. St. Paul the Apostle stood before kings and testified about Christ. St. Anthony left all his riches and chose the path of spiritual suffering. Thus, he despised lusts of the world and became as martyr of love. Give your heart to the Lord and make it immersed in His love to find comfort and joy.

Recently Egypt was facing a lot of rain and that causes the country to be flooded with water and that cause a mess as the country doesn t have the proper sewer system that could contain all this water. Unfortunately, there is misadministration in Egypt most probably cause this problem to happen and repeated every year. Egypt now suffers from lack of water because of “Renaissance Dam” that Ethiopia is building, however, we can t see an y strategic plan to use this free water coming from heaven.

The Ethiopian PM Abi Ahmed, man of peace, is now waving the bloody shirt before his country s parliament. This comes after he prevented the Ethiopian-Eritrean border war, which is no different from the common border in the waters between the Nile Basin countries. He should realizes that sovereignty over the waters of the Nile is restricted by the non-emergence of armed conflict. Certainly, he should have learned this when he got the Nobel Peace Prize the other day. There is no need for antisemitism and arrogance in front of your people, especially when it comes to war. Even if you have a legal right to build the dam, the nature of water issues is both legal and political. Negotiations to avoid damage and armed conflict are the best solution. It was better for you to try to lower the tension than to increase it by threatening war. "Some say things about the use of force (by Egypt). It must be emphasized that there is no force that can prevent Ethiopia from building this dam," Ethiopia s prime minister told parliament. "If there is a need to go to war, we can mobilize millions, and if some can fire a missile, others can use bombs, which is not in our interests." Abi Ahmed said: Some say things about the use of force by Egypt, I must emphasize that no force can prevent Ethiopia from building the dam, and if there is a need to go to war, we can mobilize millions of soldiers. If a party can fire a missile, the other can use bombs.

The Egyptians praise the honorable and dedicated role played by the police for protecting the country against all dangers, and they express their sincere appreciation for the security vigilance being made to prevent crime, as well as their gratitude for all the sacrifices of the security men and the price they pay and the martyrs and injured people they offer. This kind of appreciation is kind of offering a shield of heroism, dignity, and pride to every individual and rank in the security apparatus. The good relationship between citizens and police derived not only from their vital role in keeping the streets safe, but also for showing mutual respect and reverence for the law. Any violations to the rights of the people by policemen may affect that relationship and image. Thus, it is the duty of security chiefs to investigate the violations and take all necessary measures to assure the public about their freedom and dignity. During the last few weeks, there have been repeated complaints of incidents of police violations after many people have been stopped to be asked to check their IDs, and surprisingly, their smart phones, which was denounced later by the National Council of Human Rights. The law says that any search of personal belongings or property, apart from identity documents, can only be conducted upon a warrant issued by the public prosecution or the legal investigation authorities. Such warrants are never general in nature; they do not apply collectively but individually, to serve specific legal purposes. On the other side, the Ministry of Interior said on its official page that the information included in the statement by the National Council of Human Rights was based on unreliable sources that attempt to sow confusion and tension on the Egyptian street, and that all the cases searched or caught had been according to full legal proceedings, but this was not the information I got from several eye witnesses. The confusion and tension on the Egyptian street was caused by the police’s unwarranted search of individuals’ mobile phones, which was not carried out according to the law. These incidents have raised fears of renewed police tyranny and may destroy the good relationship between police and citizens.

President Sadat, had an old saying during the Middle East crisis and peace negotiations with Israel that ninety-nine percent of the cards were in the hands of the Americans. Sadat was right and, but the collapse of the Soviet Union led to confirm his saying and prove his wisdom. I wonder if he would remain in his vision today or would he change his mind? In the last five years, the Kremlin has been less interested in Russia s economic growth than in strengthening Russia s geopolitical influence. Back in 2014, following Russia s annexation of Crimea and its military intervention in eastern Ukraine, Moscow - imposed by economic sanctions - seemed isolated. Western leaders criticized President Putin believing that their criticism and the pressure of sanctions on the Kremlin would change the behavior of the Russian government, and even US President Barack Obama disregarded Russia as a regional power.

Another Arab country which Lebanon is going to turmoil again after economic and political difficulties the people face without any hope for near solution. The Lebanon government found the solution for these economic difficulties is to impose more taxes but this time on what? This time on whatsapp program that people use to talk to their lovely one.

President Sisi affirmed in a meeting with a group of Egyptian scientists that the system of values and ethics in the society is the first ruler of the behavior of citizens and plays an important role in development. Dr. Mohamed Ghoneim, a member of the Council of Egyptian Scholars, stated that the members of the Council offered President Abdel Fattah El Sisi the establishment of a committee for development of ethics and conscience, and to promote the values of work and belonging. They suggested that the commitee works under the auspices of the Presidency and supported by Al-Azhar, education and the media, and assuring the economic and social situation should be improved so that the moral content of individuals may improve.

I understand the anger of the people at the government during last few days, and I believe it is OK for two main reasons: the first is cumulative and the second is inadequate in the management of the crisis. We have not been accustomed to painful surgical treatment after we stayed for decades extending until the royal era dealing with painkillers, and perhaps re-read the speeches of the governments after July 52, and the promise of prosperity to come which were just a mirage. Even military adventures were justified tickling Nationalist sentiments and only drained our resources. Loans became a sustainable solution instead of exceptional. The use of ‘subsidies’ with indiscriminate economic policies was a rope to hang all development efforts. We destroyed manufacturing and agriculture as we moved towards revenue and speculative economy and lost our ability to export. The mechanisms of education and culture have retreated and the population bomb explodes in our face to devour the remaining resources. Corruption spreads to strike all walks of life. It is noteworthy that the population explosion and corruption were protected by religious cover that justifies and deepens the problem. Therefore, the correct remedies were painful and the feeling of pain increased. The biggest shock was the parliament, which did not approach its oversight functions and has been an executive office for the government. Therefore, cyberspace and the virtual world have become an alternative censor and an open opposition arena without objective rules or controls. The proper language of dialogue was absent and was replaced by security solutions. There are indications looming to revive the substantive dialogue and to build the wall of trust and raise the ceiling of the media freedom in order to build a healthy political life, which was one of the goals of July 1952 revolution. To come late is better than not to come.

During the football match between Algeria and Pyrmaids, Algerian fans called Egyptian president enemy of God, “and Tunisians did the same after the wining of Qais Said the presidential elections. In the Sudan, the demonstrators said they have either victory or being like Egypt. In Gaza, they insult the Egyptian army during their celebrations. Most of them have a strong hatred and even envy against Egypt, so we reaffirm that Egypt belongs to the Egyptians. The Egyptian people are of the sons of Ham, while the Arabs are of Semitic origin (Jewish cousins). Thus, we have to reconsider our relations based on personal benefits and national security. We need to differentiate between those who target our country or make ally with its enemies, and those who represent source of threat. We need to get rid of the illusions of the inherited ties after they proved to be catastrophic since 1948, and built our foreign policies on the basis of Egypt s interests and national security. The overwhelming majority of Egyptians (about 98%) are from the sons of Ham, and they are unrelated to Arabism. I say we must base our policies on our national interests and the requirements of our national security. It is not a matter of hostility, but a call for realism and objectivity and building our policies based on our national interests and respect for my country and its institutions and symbols.