Al-Jazeera Media Network
Cairo, Egypt
Abdul Sami was one of 581 men crushed
by military forces during a Muslim Brotherhood sit-in
Thursday. His wife, Najma Bano, is now a widow. To most Egyptians,
Najma is a statistic, another woman widowed by the sectarian violence
that has plagued Egypt. But Najma knows that she is more than a
statistic to someone. And that someone is not who she expected.
“A woman came and introduced herself
as Mariam George from St. Mina's Church,” Najma shared. “She
told me that the church had heard of our loss and wanted to reach
out. She told me that her own son had been killed two years ago.
She was also distraught after losing her only child. But she wanted
to use her experience to comfort me. I couldn't believe that she
would care about me in this time. It has made all the difference in
the world.”
Ms. George declined to be interviewed,
but gave a short statement to our reporter. “Our Lord
Jesus Christ tells us, 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall
be comforted.' Ever since I realized that He had comforted me, I
have been able to comfort others who were suffering the same
loss.”
Mohammed Saad shared a similar experience. “When
the government killed my son, two men came from St. Mary's Church to
offer condolences. They told me that they did not agree with the
violent actions of the government and that they would help me seek
redress if I wished. They also told me that St. Mary's would be
there for me if we needed any assistance with the burial. We are a
poor family. We could not have laid our son to rest properly without
their help.”
What Mo. Saad saw later that day
shocked him even more.
“When I bought the newspaper and saw
the headline about the churches that had been destroyed, it made me
sick. These people have been so compassionate to us. Everyone in
the neighborhood has known their care at one time or another. Then I
read the article and saw that St. Mary's was one of the churches that
had been destroyed! And yet the very next day these Christians from
that church were with me, offering me help!”
At that, Mo. Saad's eyes welled up and
he was unable to continue.
A large contingency of Muslims is
planning a counter-protest today to oppose the actions against the
churches. Mohammed Salman of the Muslim Federation for Christian
Rights explained, “We understand [the Muslim Brotherhood's]
distress regarding the government's actions. It is a complex
political situation, and will take some time to resolve.
But by attacking the Christians, they have completely marginalized
themselves. Who has ever heard of a Christian hurting anyone? Who
has ever heard anything but kind words from these people? The extreme elements of the Muslim Brotherhood have now lost all support. They will not be relevant again in Egyptian
politics for a long time.”
Pope Tawadros gave a public address
this morning at St. Mina's Cathedral. He spoke about Jesus's parable of
the Samaritan's love for the Jew, and related it to the need for
Muslims and Christians to care for one another in times of crisis.
The Pope was unavailable for comment afterwards.
A church
representative was asked for the Coptic Church's response to the
Muslim reaction to the church attacks. “We deeply appreciate the
love and solidarity we have received from the Muslim community,”
said Bishop Youssef. “Unfortunately, our servants and members are
greatly burdened right now in taking care of the victims and families
hurt by the government actions against the Muslim Brotherhood, as
well as those affected by the attacks on our own churches. In the
future when their needs have been met, we hope to meet with these
Egyptian brothers and thank them.”
Bishop Youssef then left in a church
vehicle. He was reportedly attending an emergency council of bishops
to determine the strategy for providing a protective ring of Coptic
volunteers to stand against military forces during future Muslim
Brotherhood sit-ins.
This is a fictional article.
