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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis’ forthcoming  visit to Cairo can be “a very powerful effort in reaching out” to Muslim leaders there.

That’s the view of a former student at Egypt’s al-Azhar university, currently serving as co-chair of Britain's Christian Muslim Forum.

Sheikh Ibrahim Mogra was born in Malawi to a family of Indian origin but currently lives and works in Leicester where he has been at the forefront of deepening interfaith relations.

He talked to Philippa Hitchen about the Pope’s planned visit to the Egyptian capital on April 28th and 29th, where he will meet with both Islamic leaders at al-Azhar and the head of the Coptic community, Pope Tawadros II….

Listen: 

Sheikh Ibrahim Mogra says that depending on which Muslim historian you read, al-Azhar is “either the first or second oldest university in the Muslim world”. He adds that it’s “much more than that” as an institute with global influence within many Muslim communities in both Arabic and non-Arabic nations. For the vast majority of the world’s Muslims, he says “it's the go-to place” for guidance and rulings.

Mogra says he believes that al-Azhar has been “exemplary” and “at the forefront of ensuring that any violence perpetrated against the Christian communities in Egypt is condemned”.

Political conflict "cloaked" with religion

He notes that historically the Muslim and Coptic Christian communities “have lived together very well indeed”. He recalls during his own time at al-Azhar that Egyptian Muslims “were extremely proud” that they were a nation where Coptic communities thrived over the centuries since the earliest agreements between Muslim and Coptic leaders. He says the current conflict is “a real tragedy” which is “not about religion” but rather about politics that is “cloaked with religion by those with political agendas”.  

Papal visit can influence politicians

He praises Pope Francis’ forthcoming visit as “a very powerful effort in reaching out to this centre of Islam”. Since Egypt is regarded as “a very powerful nation with close ties to the west and in many ways a bridge builder” between Israel and the Arab world, he says this encounter between religious leaders of the highest level “can have a very strong influence on politicians on all sides of the table".

Sheikh Ibrahim Mogra  concludes by saying he wishes the Pope well and hopes the leaders at al-Azhar, as well as Egyptian politicians, will “pay heed to his words, will honour his advice and will put it into practice”. 

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A draft private member’s Bill headed for debate in Zambia’s parliament and aimed at repealing the Law Association of Zambia Act has been described as politically motivated.

In a statement of 10 April, made available to Vatican Radio, Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops’(ZCCB) Secretary General, Fr. Cleophas Lungu who is also Oasis Forum Chairperson said the privately sponsored bill of the governing Patriotic Front (PF) party is not only politically motivated but is ultimately intended at disbanding and silencing the Law Association of Zambia. 

“Whilst the Oasis Forum is not entirely surprised with the misguided and politically motivated agitations against prophetic voices such as the LAZ and some private media houses, we are extremely concerned and worried by the issuance of a draft Private Member’s Bill by a PF Member of Parliament, which is clearly bent on replacing the current piece of legislation upon which the establishment of the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) is anchored,” said Fr. Lungu in the statement. 

Condemning the bill, the Oasis Forum said, what was happening in Zambia was an attempt by the governing political party to “demonise, destabilise and silence the critical voice from LAZ that has rightly and consistently exposed the illegality of certain decisions and actions taken by the powers that be, throughout the history of our beloved country.”

The Oasis Forum sees a much broader agenda to what is happening. 

These actions are “symptomatic signs of a dictatorial agenda aimed at silencing the critical media and the opposition political parties as well as any other prophetic voice in the nation,” said Fr. Lungu.

 The Oasis Forum ha also expressed support for Law Association of Zambia President, Linda Kasonde.

“The Oasis Forum is deeply concerned and saddened at the continued spate of verbal and political attacks against the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ), most of which have been directed towards its legitimately elected President, Ms Linda Kasonde,” Fr. Lungu said. 

Zambia’s Oasis Forum is a platform of Church and civic organisations. These comprise Church bodies such as the Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB); Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) and the Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ). Others are the women’s umbrella movement, the Non-Governmental Organisations Coordinating Council (NGOCC). The Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) is also a member of the Oasis Forum. 

The Law Association of Zambia is a professional corporate body established in 1973 by the Law Association of Zambia Act. According to the “Zambia Weekly” Online, LAZ has a membership of over 1,000 legal practitioners qualified to practice law in Zambia or elsewhere. If the proposed “Law of Societies” Bill is passed by parliament, it will allow for the establishment of various law associations in Zambia.

(Email: engafrica@vatiradio.va)

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Vatican City, Apr 10, 2017 / 09:50 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican confirmed Monday that Pope Francis' trip to Egypt at the end of the month will go on as planned, despite terrorist attacks which killed more than 43 people during Palm Sunday celebrations in the country.

The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Greg Burke, told journalists April 10 that “the Pope's trip to Egypt proceeds as scheduled.” The Pope himself also confirmed that the trip will take place, according to Franciscan Fr. Marco Tasca.

During a meeting April 10 with General Ministers of the Franciscan Order, Francis “very firmly confirmed his trip to Egypt,” Fr. Tasca said, adding that he is “very informed.”

Pope Francis plans to visit the Egyptian capital of Cairo April 28-29, in what is largely a bid to foster greater Catholic-Muslim dialogue, particularly on the point of ending extremist violence.  

The first of Sunday’s attacks, a bomb at the Coptic Christian church of Mar Gerges in the northern city of Tanta, Egypt killed 27 people and wounded at least 71 more, according to BBC News.

A second blast took place shortly after outside of a Christian church in Alexandria, killing 17 and injuring another 35. The man, a suicide bomber, had tried to storm the entrance to the church before being stopped by police, three of whom died in the blast. ISIS has claimed responsibility for both attacks.

The attack in Alexandria narrowly missed harming the Coptic Patriarch Pope Tawadros II, who was participating in Mass inside the church.

After celebrating Palm Sunday Mass April 9, Pope Francis prayed for victims of “the attack that unfortunately took place today near Cairo,” voicing his closeness to Coptic Patriarch Pope Tawadros II, to and to the entire Coptic nation.

“I express my heartfelt sorrow,” he said, praying that the Lord would “convert the hearts of those who sow fear, violence and death, and those who make and traffic arms.”

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II is one of the religious leaders Pope Francis plans to meet with while in Cairo at the end of April. His schedule will also include a meeting with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayyeb.

The Pope will leave Rome at 10:45 am, April 28, arriving in Cairo around 2:00 pm.

After a brief welcoming ceremony and visit with Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Pope Francis and the Grand Imam will each give a speech at an international conference on peace.

Francis will then meet with state authorities and with the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, Pope Tawadros II.

On Saturday, April 29, Pope Francis will celebrate Mass in the morning, followed by a meeting with Egypt’s bishops over lunch. Pope Francis was invited to visit Egypt by Coptic Catholic bishops during their ad limina visit at the Vatican Feb. 6, during which they also gave a report on the state of the Church in their country.

In the afternoon Francis will meet with priests, religious and seminarians followed by a farewell ceremony before boarding the papal plane, which is scheduled to leave Cairo at 5:00 pm, arriving in Rome at 8:30 pm.

For a community already suffering from an attack which killed 30 at a church connected to the main Coptic Christian cathedral in Cairo in December 2016, Sunday’s attacks have given rise to even greater concern over the security in Egypt.

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By Cindy Wooden

ROME (CNS) -- On the eve of Palm Sunday, Pope Francis gave young people several missions: to ask their grandparents what their dreams were; to work to make those dreams reality; and to let their bishops and the pope himself know what they need from the church.

Officially launching the youths' preparation for the 2018 Synod of Bishops and for World Youth Day 2019 in Panama, Pope Francis gathered with youths and young adults for an evening prayer vigil April 8 at Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major.

The 80-year-old pope surprised some people with two references to his own age, first pointing out that while they are preparing for the future, "at my age we are preparing to go." The young people present objected loudly. "No?" the pope responded, "Who can guarantee life? No one."

Later, returning to his appeal that they speak to their grandparents, the pope said, "I don't know if it will be me, but the pope will be in Panama and he will ask you, 'Did you speak with your elders?'"

Pope Francis arrived at the basilica with a prepared text, but as a Franciscan sister and a young man who survived a terrible accident shared their stories, the pope took notes, eventually setting aside the text.

The theme of the world Synod of Bishops, which will meet in October 2018, is: "Young people, faith and vocational discernment."

"But let's just call it, 'the synod of young people,'" the pope said. It should be "a synod from which no young person feels excluded."

The church could hold a synod involving Catholic youths active in parish life or Catholic organizations and lay movements. But Pope Francis said that is not what the church or young people need.

"This is the synod of young people and we all want to hear them," including young people who have moved away from the church or are questioning the existence of God, he said. "Every young person has something to say to others, something to say to the adults, to the priests, sisters, bishops and the pope. We all need to hear you."

Young people must harness their energy and ideals and set out, "one alongside another, but looking to the future," he said. "The world today needs young people who go in haste," like Mary went to her pregnant cousin Elizabeth.

Franciscan Sister Marialisa, 30, who shared her vocation story, is an example, the pope said. Not every path she took was the right one, but eventually she discovered God's purpose for her life and the way she was called to serve others.

The Italian nun told the young people she decided church wasn't for her after she was confirmed at the age of 13. A couple of years later, a friend asked her to join a project the parish youth group was doing, "and I accepted only because there were a bunch of boys who went, too."

Sister Marialisa said her involvement grew and she discovered a group of people who didn't care what she looked like or what she wore, but cared about her. They helped her discover Jesus and his love.

Convinced she wanted to be an actress, she went to school in Rome, but she still had a nagging feeling something was missing from her life. She met the Franciscans and decided she needed to find out if being a consecrated woman was the way she was to live "the vocation to love." Now she works with children in an area of southern Italy where the Mafia is strong. She said she tries to help them discover they are loved and have a right "to dream and dream big."

Pope Francis said too often the world treats young people as "disposable" by not providing an adequate education or job opportunities. And, he said, "many young people must flee, immigrate to other lands. It's harsh to say, but often young people are disposable material and we cannot tolerate this."

Life will be challenging and involve taking risks, the pope told the young people, but they must have the courage to change the world and to start over when they fail.

"And try to find the beauty in little things," the pope said, pointing as an example to Pompeo Barbieri, who also shared his story with the young people.

The 23-year-old Barbieri recounted how, at the age of 8, firefighters pulled him from the rubble of his school in San Giuliano di Puglia after an earthquake in 2002. His teacher and all 27 of his classmates died when the school collapsed.

Injured and needing a wheelchair, Barbieri's parents were told swimming would help and now he's a top Paralympian, he said. "That suffering, this wheelchair, have taught me the beauty of little things and remind me each day of how fortunate I am."

"I wouldn't change almost anything about my life or that tragedy except I wish my friends were still here. Just that," he said.

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Follow Wooden on Twitter: @Cindy_Wooden.

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By Carol Glatz

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Despite recent and repeated terrorist attacks against Egypt's minority Christian communities, Pope Francis will not cancel his visit to Egypt.

"The pope's trip to Egypt proceeds as scheduled," Greg Burke, Vatican spokesman, told Catholic News Service by email April 10. The pope is scheduled to meet governmental and interfaith leaders during an April 28-29 visit to Cairo.

"Egyptians are looking forward to Pope Francis' visit, although the atmosphere at present is heavy," Father Rafic Grieche, spokesman for the Egyptian bishops, told CNS April 10, the day after the attacks.

"The pope's mission is to be beside his brothers at the time of difficulty. Now is the real time that he can bring peace and hope to the Egyptian people as a whole and to the Christians of the East, in particular," Father Grieche added.

He said people were uneasy entering churches with metal detectors and other security measures.

"It's not like going to a normal church. But we need these measures to keep people safe," he said.

He said after the attack, he celebrated a Mass with 2,000 people.

"The people knew already about the attack in Tanta, but they did not want to be afraid. In the evening, they also came for the prayers of the Holy Week," Father Grieche said.

Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II was in the Cathedral of St. Mark in Alexandria April 9 for the Palm Sunday service, when an explosion went off outside the church. Security footage appeared to show a security officer direct a man who was seeking entry into the cathedral to go through a metal detector. The man took a step under the detector then backed up a step, followed by a huge explosion that cut off the camera feed.

Earlier, a bomb exploded 70 miles away inside the Church of St. George in Tanta, 50 miles north of Cairo, during its Palm Sunday service. Estimates say at least 44 people were killed and more than 100 injured in the two attacks, making it one of the deadliest against the nation's Christians in decades.

It was the single deadliest day for Christians in decades and the worst since a bombing at a Cairo church in December killed 30 people.

Pope Tawadros told the Italian national network Rai News April 9 the attacks would "not damage the unity and cohesiveness" of the Egyptian people.

"Egyptians are united before this terrorism," he said, adding that "these vile attacks that hit people of peace in places of prayer demonstrate that terrorism lacks any religion."

Sheik Ahmad el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar University, also condemned the attacks, calling them a "despicable terrorist bombing that targeted the lives of innocents."

Retired Coptic Catholic Bishop Antonios Mina of Giza, Egypt, said the incidents were an attack against the nation's unity, its Coptic Christians, "to remind them that they have no rights, and against all Christian minorities of the country that anxiously await Pope Francis."

"Despite it all, we will never lose hope. These atrocious gestures make us firmer in the faith and stronger," he said. "Egypt's Christians are warriors of hope."

One Catholic leader highlighted his country's failure to address the real causes behind the Palm Sunday massacres.

Speaking to "the officials and the wise of this country," Coptic Catholic Bishop Botros Fahim Awad Hanna of Minya said that "you don't fight terrorism with words or slogans, nor with security or armies alone."

"What have you done for social, economic, health, political and human justice? What have you done for the poor and downtrodden? What have you done to reform thought, expression and religious discourse?"

In a posting on his Facebook page, Bishop Fahim said that when Pope Francis goes to Cairo, he "will come to say no to terrorism and evil, and yes to goodness and fraternity. Love will never fail."

Around the world, religious leaders offered prayers.

Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the attacks on the churches were "unspeakable persecution."

"In the midst of what should be peace, horrible violence yet again," he said. On behalf of all U.S. bishops, the cardinal expressed "our deepest sadness" for all those killed and injured, and their loved ones.

"I also express our solidarity with the Coptic church in Egypt, an ancient Christian community that faces mounting persecution in its historic home from violent extremism. I also pray for the nation of Egypt, that it may seek justice, find healing, and strengthen protection for Coptic Christians and other religious minorities who wish only to live in peace."

Egypt is 90 percent Sunni Muslim; Christians make up the remaining 10 percent, with that majority being the Coptic Orthodox church. The Catholic community in Egypt numbers about 272,000, less than 0.5 percent of the population.

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Contributing to this story was Dale Gavlak in Amman, Jordan.

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Copyright © 2017 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. www.catholicnews.com. All rights reserved. Republishing or redistributing of CNS content, including by framing or similar means without prior permission, is prohibited. You may link to stories on our public site. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To request permission for republishing or redistributing of CNS content, please contact permissions at cns@catholicnews.com.

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