Father Seraphim

Trying to dig up some accurate information on Father Seraphim, also know as Atef Meshreky and Atef Aziz.  This is what I have found so far:

Fr. Seraphim’s own site and books:

Reports on Atef Aziz’s excommunication:

There is a claim that Fr. Seraphim is a monk in the Eastern Orthodox Church, can anyone verify that? In which jurisdiction and at what monastery is he a monk?

 

Update 1/19 from one of our readers:

I called this afternoon and got in touch with Fr. Alexis at the Monastery of St. John of San Francisco. He confirmed that Fr. Seraphim stayed with them a year or two ago, but he stayed as a guest and not as a brother within the monastery. The duration of his stay was unclear. Fr. Alexis assumed that Fr. Seraphim was an OCA monk or priest, but he didn’t sound like he really knew. He said that Fr. Seraphim left and went to a monastery in southern California. When I asked which monastery, he said he thought it was St. Antony. The only St. Antony monastery I can find in SoCal is Coptic. I have yet to call the Coptic monastery to confirm or deny whether he ever stayed with them.

I also called the office of Archbishop Benjamin, Archbishop of San Francisco and the West of the Orthodox Church of America (OCA). I spoke with Fr. Andrew Smith and he checked the database to see if a background check had been run on a Atef Aziz or Atef Meshreky in the last five years (this would have happened had Fr. Seraphim tried to join St. John’s monastery). He did not locate him in the database, but said he would check his hard copy files and get back to me on Monday.

What I can gather thus far is that Atef Aziz/Meshreky/Fr. Seraphim does not appear to be part of the OCA church.

49 comments

  1. Tony Rezk

    I’ve checked with three different Eastern Orthodox priests. One of them who checked his OCA database, as this gentlemen was said to be connected with the OCA, and nothing turned up for a “father seraphim”. The other priests said they don’t recognize him at all. There is a good chance that this individual is posing as a canonical orthodox priest. There is no mention of the church he belongs to, his jurisdiction, his monastery, or anything else that can tie him to being an orthodox priest. It looks like he’s out there doing things on his own.

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    • Mariam

      I called this afternoon and got in touch with Fr. Alexis at the Monastery of St. John of San Francisco. He confirmed that Fr. Seraphim stayed with them a year or two ago, but he stayed as a guest and not as a brother within the monastery. The duration of his stay was unclear. Fr. Alexis assumed that Fr. Seraphim was an OCA monk or priest, but he didn’t sound like he really knew. He said that Fr. Seraphim left and went to a monastery in southern California. When I asked which monastery, he said he thought it was St. Antony. The only St. Antony monastery I can find in SoCal is Coptic. I have yet to call the Coptic monastery to confirm or deny whether he ever stayed with them.

      I also called the office of Archbishop Benjamin, Archbishop of San Francisco and the West of the Orthodox Church of America (OCA). I spoke with Fr. Andrew Smith and he checked the database to see if a background check had been run on a Atef Aziz or Atef Meshreky in the last five years (this would have happened had Fr. Seraphim tried to join St. John’s monastery). He did not locate him in the database, but said he would check his hard copy files and get back to me on Monday.

      What I can gather thus far is that Atef Aziz/Meshreky/Fr. Seraphim does not appear to be part of the OCA church. Stay tuned.

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      • Anonymous

        I am not sure if you could draw such conclusions like this from these phone calls and the worst is that you post them on such website!!! Fr Seraphim is an honourable monk of OCA. it is stated clearly in abouna Bishoy’s letter so why do we need to find out if he is a monk or if he is part of OCA or not!!
        There are people who know Fr Seraphim very well but they prefer to stay silent in such circumstances because what is happening at the moment does not need defending him but prayers for all those that are suffering such circumstances…

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      • tcopt

        Hello, I think we are beyond taking things at face value (from either side of the situation). If you know Fr. Seraphim or know people who do, please reach out to him and find out what jurisdiction (OCA, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, etc) he is and which monastery he belongs to. That information will help put this question to rest very quickly. Thank you.

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      • Mariam

        Dear Anonymous,

        Thank you for your comment. I’m only trying to find more information to better understand the situation. Fr. Bishoy states that “Fr. Seraphim is currently a respected monk in the Eastern Orthodox Church”. He does not explicitly mention that he is affiliated with OCA. If you have further information about when/where he was ordained as a monk within OCA, please share. If you or others know him well, please help us shed more light on him. For those of us who do not know him/never heard of him before this incident occurred, we are simply trying to get more information.

        All the confirmed information that we have thus far is that he was excommunicated by the Coptic Church and was affiliated with YWAM in 2005/2006. On his own website (http://www.shineinternational.org/Founder), he does not describe himself as part of OCA or any Orthodox church. And as recently as January 5, 2016, he publishes his books under the name Atef Meshreky (not Fr. Seraphim), and only mentions “he became a consecrated celibate brother of the Coptic Church” in the biography (http://www.amazon.com/Prayers-Prophesying-Build-Your-Inner-ebook/dp/B01A9DH11I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1453387602&sr=8-1&keywords=atef+meshreky).

        Thanks for any information you can provide.

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      • Tony Rezk

        We are 99% sure that this man doesn’t belong to the OCA. He is not in their database. I’ve personally asked an OCA priest and he checked for me.

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      • Mariam Kaldas

        Update from OCA:

        Fr. Andrew Smith from the office of Archbishop Benjamin, Archbishop of San Francisco and the West of the Orthodox Church of America (OCA) called me after checking the hard copy files.

        He confirmed that Atef Aziz/Meshreky/Fr. Seraphim entered the Monastery of St. John of San Francisco in 2014 as a lay person, and was tonsured a rassophore monk (see more information about this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Degrees_of_Eastern_Orthodox_monasticism#Rassophore)

        Thus I stand corrected, Fr. Seraphim is a monk in OCA. According to Fr. Andrew he is now located in the greater Phoenix, AZ area and sometimes attends the OCA church of St. John the Evangelist Mission in Tempe, AZ with Rev. Andre Paez (Rector).

        Please note that as a monk in orthodoxy he does not have apostolic succession/authority.

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      • Tony Rezk

        Just because he’s a monk in the OCA, doesn’t necessarily mean he’s not prone to error, nor does this add up with Abouna Bishoy’s story of having met “Father Seraphim” in 2011. Unless he was just a “consecrated servant” at the time. Perhaps the OCA is unaware of his past.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. Anonymous

    Hello, we are praying for all the church during this tough time. I would like to add what I heard as well about Fr. Seraphim but I want to remain anonymous so I thought to tell you what my priest father of confession told me. He heard a rumor as well and was not able to confirm it however it may be worth you looking into. That Atef Aziz went to the Russian Orthodox Church to become a priest but they rejected him as well. He teaches heresies that the Holy Spirit left the church in the Council of Chalcedon and something related to the new Zion to bring Holy Spirit back? So he went to a church called the Genuine Orthodox Church of America or something like that and it is a sect that has broken away from the Eastern church and is not recognized or in communion with them. So not a genuine church after all and I don’t see how he is respected member of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

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  6. Emmanuel Gergis

    My humble opinion is, at this sensitive junction, rumors as such should not be published on the internet unless they are genuinely confirmed. I see more chaos coming out of such unconfirmed rumors than peace to a community that needs therapeutic care more than fireworks.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Anonymous

      Emmanuel and readers of blog, I apologize for posting something that was not confirmed. It is not my intention to spread rumors – I didn’t have a way to confirm information like this so I was hoping someone else would investigate further the “lead” I had received from a trusted person. That is why I said it was not confirmed. However, thank you for clarifying the information.

      This is a global problem that is affecting the entire Coptic church not only St. marks. and we are praying earnestly for Abouna, Tasoni and the entire Church!

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  7. Fr. Michael Sorial

    Emmanuel, thank you for your most recent comment. I agree with your sentiments completely. The faithful ought to pray for healing for a community that is experiencing deep hurt and seeking to remain connected to Christ during a turbulent time. May God grant grace.

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  8. tcopt

    Emmanuel, thank you. The intent is only to share what is genuinely confirmed. Can you provide any details on the inquiry that shows Atef Meshreky is not park of the church? The problem is that when there is a lack of information rumors will take precedence.

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  9. Emmanuel Gergis

    Dear tcopt,

    I am not sure exactly what you mean by your question: “Can you provide any details on the inquiry that shows Atef Meshreky is not park of the church?”, not part of which church?

    Just to clarify, upon direct inquiry, I am only stating that Atef Meshreky is NOT a member of the Genuine Orthodox Church (GOCA) – as alluded to in the comment made by Anonymous – which is its own self-ruled denomination. This group (GOCA) is not in communion with Oriental Orthodox or Eastern Orthodox families, and is not to be confused with any other Orthodox denomination. More information on GOCA can be found at http://orthodoxwiki.org/Genuine_Orthodox_Church_of_America.

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  11. Peter Guirgis

    Thank you for posting those links. They were very interesting to read. I had no idea that any of this existed. Here is another very good one on the ‘New Testament Group’. I’m not sure who is giving the answers but I’m assuming it’s the Pope or someone who speaks on behalf of our church.

    http://www.arabwestreport.info/en/year-2002/week-30/16-pope-shenouda-al-musawwar-doors-genuine-repentance-are-still-open-new-testament

    from the above link:

    Q: What are the consequences of this punishment (excommunication) when it is applied?

    A: They will not be able to go to any church. This means that they will not be able to preach or take part in prayers in any church. People will be wary of them because they are detached from the church.

    This answer seems to say a lot to me. We should all be wary of Fr. Dr. Atef Meshreky Seraphim regardless of what monastery/church he is now associated with which seems sort of irrelevant to me.

    here is another excerpt from your links:

    They believe that they are God’s agents on earth and that they receive messages from heaven.

    They say that they speak a language that nobody except them can understand and this language is the language of the messages they receive from heaven.

    In one of the audiotapes we obtained Dr. Atif Aziz mentions that the body of the present Church is sick from the head to the toe and all the body’s organs are sick.

    Anybody buying this. Really?

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      • Peter Guirgis

        Dear Mr. Tony,

        That was meant as a rhetorical question.

        If you haven’t already, I would encourage you to read the arabwestreport links that the author of this blog posted, including the one I posted above, for the church’s position on the teachings of Fr. Dr. Atef Meshreky Seraphim and the New Testament Group. I think they speak for themselves.

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  12. Coptsandrobbers

    does anyone have first hand evidence that he said he was God’s agent on earth? I don’t seem to see anything other than secondhand accounts.

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    • Peter Guirgis

      So like ‘first-hand evidence’ means that I was actually there when he said that which I was not. A second-hand account would be that I talked to someone who was there when he said that, and so on… This article was based on audiotapes from this group’s meetings. Regardless, I think you are missing the point here. Our Coptic Church has weighed all the evidence and decided that this guy is a heretic and excommunicated him. IOW, he is a bad dude. Don’t listen to him.

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  13. Oldchurchgoerand observer

    All my respect and prayers to Fr. Bishoy and his family during this difficult period,
    For more than 15 years I can witness that he was an honest and respectable priest, actually one of the very few priests that touched my life and I am 62 years old! I enjoyed his inspiring and low-voiced sermons, his bible studies and for the first time in my life his detailed explanation of the liturgies. As a human, he reached my heart with his comforting smile and humble demeanor even when you can see his pains!
    I can not belong to St. Mark Church without him. When he was healing in his sabbatical, the church was already changing and separating from my family and other sinners like us. For instance, we heard the “new rules”, you can not just go to Church as we always do, you have to get registered and sign a paper contract! You have to get a Church ID card with your picture taken! Sinners like us can not go to the Church that NOW belongs to the only Saintly believers! Wow! This is no longer a Church for worshipers whoever they are, it is exclusively a church for members with ID’s
    Though Jesus came to earth for the sake of saving “SINNERS”, but our Coptic church now seems to allow only members who have preregistered with Church Photo IDs, and signed the documents.
    How different are we from fanatic Islamists! They claim the righteousness and kill others who are different.
    Now are we doing the same to Fr. Bishoy!
    Where is the Teaching of Christ; Forgiveness and Love!
    If Fr. Bishoy is your enemy then at least love him!
    Shame on you!

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    • The Truth Always Prevails

      Is this a joke? There are no church ID cards or contracts – it’s a membership drive!! God forbid the Church tries to get an understanding of their actual members in the area. Why don’t you take a minute and read before making ridiculous statements like this. Here’s the link: http://www.stmarkdc.org/become-a-committed-member-of-st-mark-dc-by-registering-with-the-pastoral-care-office

      If you’re too lazy to click on the link, here is the actual text (please tell us where it says you’re signing a contract or need and ID card:
      Become a committed member of St. Mark DC by registering with the Pastoral Care Office!
      Who: YOU!
      What: Register as a member or visitor of St. Mark’s
      When: During church hours
      Where: Front desk.

      A follow-up three-week campaign of the membership initiative will be help from December 27, 2015 till January 17, 2016 for those who were unable to register during the the previous seven-week campaign. In those three weeks, members and visitors will be able to contact the front desk, during church hours and on a walk-in basis, to update their membership information and address. St Mark’s remains committed to our vision. As we have communicated throughout the last several years, we want to remind you of the core values of our church which are to be committed to a life of Orthodox Worship, maturing in Christ through Discipleship, and spreading the gospel through Mission.
      This year, the Lord has blessed the Washington Metropolitan Area with many new churches to serve His people in a deeper way. A few weeks ago, we were blessed by the visit of HG Bishop Karas, the General Bishop of the Archdiocese of North America, to the area. As he gathered the priests of the area, he assisted us in designing a plan to ensure that every parish is serving its own geographical zone of 5 cities and serving its own committed members.
      The five cities of St Mark’s geographical region of outreach are: Fairfax, Centreville, Clifton, Burke and Fairfax Station. Please note: Anyone outside of these 5 cities is welcome to be a full member of St Mark’s and any family among these cities have the freedom to become members of any other church in the area. Due to the rapid growth of our church, we believed it to be necessary to figure out how many members we serve. In order to do that, we will have a seven-week campaign of updating our church membership database. It is of great importance that each person in the Northern Virginia Washington DC Metropolitan area register their name and membership in one of the local churches.Every person has the freedom and is encouraged to join the parish of their preference to be your home church while you are still welcome to enjoy the services of any other parish as a visitor. All visitors to St Mark’s are welcome to participate in all of our ministries, but due to the limited resources of space and servants, priority will be given to the members of St. Mark’s. Membership will be for one year and must be renewed annually from September to the following year. In order to apply for membership at St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Church, DC, you have to be Christian, Coptic, Orthodox, obedient to the rules of the Coptic Orthodox Church, regular attendant of liturgies and church occasions, participate in communion and confession periodically. You also have to be committed to the following in your relationship with God and with the other members of the church.

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  16. The Truth Always Prevails

    These are ridiculous statements. It’s comments like these that do nothing but destroy the Church’s unity. If you’re saying these things to defend Fr. Bishoy, then you’re saying the years of corruption happened under his leadership. You should either be specific, with proof, or stop posting!

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    • The truth shall set you free!

      Yes it is ridiculous that these things went on–and the truth will prevail and show that these things and much more actually happened and were hidden from the congregation. These things sound absurd and are in fact hard to believe, especially when done by a church. All the evidence and documentation in the world could be provided, but if someone has already made up their mind one way or the other it won’t make any difference. People from the church’s Finance Committees which have previously been convened for short periods of time then disbanded, or the church’s board during these times all have knowledge. They will likely not give straight answers as they all helped put these things in motion then hid them one way or another, but they might be a good starting point if someone cares enough to ask them as opposed to believing what is written on some blog on the internet. Alternatively, you can ask Fr. Bishoy–if you can find him.

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  17. Tony Rezk

    We were able to find a translated version of the Holy Synod’s decisions against Atef Aziz and his followers. It reads as follows:

    Resolutions of the Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church During the Era of Pope Shenouda III (117)

    Page 194
    Atef Aziz
    Session dated on 01 June 1996,

    The Holy Synod demanded precautions to be taken against Atef Aziz and his group, and for the group not to be permitted to teach.

    Session dated 22 June 2002,
    Faults of Atef Aziz and his group were read, as follows:

    First, this is a private anti-church group falls under a single leader; Dr. Atef Aziz Mikhail, who gets offered the full loyalty and submission, after God, from the rest of the group members.

    Second, this group works in complete secrecy following the style of cluster cells; as Dr. Atef trains a group of leaders, and then each leader would train a private group of disciples.

    Third, this group plans to spread all over and within the Coptic Orthodox Church in the shape of groups, such as the groups of Al Faggalah, Al Zamalek, Masr Al Gadeedah, Ezbat Al Nakhl, and Shobra, and they consider their main territory to be

    Page 195

    In Asyout. The group conducts activities in Manfalot, Al Minya as well other area and they allocate provinces of Egypt to group leaders.

    Fourth, Dr. Atef believes that he is tasked with a very special call from God for renewing the Church. Some members of the group agree and they consider themselves to be the true church of Jesus and the church of the New Testament which shall replace the current ruined, dead, desolating Church along with its corrupt shepherds. Therefore, they shall link the current generation with the age of our Christian Fathers of the fourth century, because the current church had stepped away from the ideological and spiritual path of the early fathers.

    Fifth, According to their records and books, a clear spirit of pride can be observed which had struck the group, as shown in their messages where the group alleged that it was sent to them from the Holy Spirit via visions, speaking in different tongues (languages) or through direct speeches.

    Sixth, the group’s approach is characterized by passion and emotions as they repeat certain slogans many times and very passionately; such as “The power of the blood of Jesus sets us free”.

    Seventh, the group focuses on the presence of Satan and its control over vacant places, and they believe that the Holy Spirit had given them special formula of prayers to be recited on water and sprayed at their gathering sites. In addition, the group also believes that the Satan goes out of their chests while coughing during prayers.

    Eighth, an unreal language was indicated in their audio recordings as they alleged to be an evidence of speaking in tongues and it was also indicated in handwritten notes. Group members had implemented such practices alleging that they were granted special talents and heavenly messages. Dr. Atef believes that the talent of speaking in tongues cannot discontinue in the church.

    Page 196

    Ninth, Dr. Atef alleged in audio recordings that the Holy Spirit spoke to him.

    Tenth, Dr. Atef Aziz and his group apply deception methods, as upon their arrival from Asyout, they have not abided by the written pledges they submit to the committee of the Holy Synod formed according to the request of Pope Shenouda III, during which Atef Aziz and his group pledged to abide by the teaching of the church, and refrain from the Pentecostal doctrine. Nonetheless, they show certain behavior and act defiantly, then lie to cover for their undisclosed activities or their improper purposes.

    Eleventh, the group has not benefited from the given chances, warnings, or disciplinary actions issued by the church, however they remained on their path and started to disseminate their publications to the congregation for the purpose of toppling the official Church and establishing their private church.

    It became dangerous to ignore such group while they deceive young men and women, and consecrate some of them without asking for the permission of the church, as a preliminary step to form a defected sect while utilizing Priest Safnia as a church cover for their subversive activity which deviates from the true Orthodox dogma.

    The Holy Synod accepted the recommendations of the Committee of Faith, Education, and Legislation and issued a verdict, was published in Al Kirazah magazine, to prohibit this group and all their followers from serving, teaching, and partaking in the Church Communion and all Holy Sacraments, and for Father Safnia to be stripped of his monasticism and priesthood, for his to return to using his original name of Medhat Kamel Fahmy and to be banned from the Priestly ministry and all types of service in Cairo, Alexandria, and all Dioceses which fall under the Episcopate of St. Mark. Furthermore, for all this

    Page 197

    To be published in a public newspaper. This verdict is also considered to be a decision to abstract Dr. Atef forms his diaconal rank of Agnestts in addition to the rest of his group to include diaconal and consecration ranks.

    Below are names of some activists within the gorup of Atef Aziz:
    1. Nabil Adly Kamel
    2. Engineer Salah Fayik Matta
    3. Miranda Kamel Fahmy (Formerly Tasoni Anastasia)
    4. Jalina Labib Ramzy (Formerly a Tasoni)
    5. Samia Sadek Abadeer (Formerly a Tasoni)
    6. Awatef Adeeb Elias (Formerly Tasoni Kristina)
    7. Ezis Refky
    8. Suzi Kamel Habeesh
    9. Sawsan Sad
    10. Manal William
    11. Hala William

    The Holy Synod also accepted the recommendations of the Committee of Faith, Education, and Legislation and issued a signed statement by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III to all Priests of Cairo, Alexandria, and all Dioses to warning against Atef Aziz and his group.
    The decision of the Holy Synod and the published statement of the Holy Synod at Al Kirazah magazine are going to be published on the issue which will be published right after the Pentecost Holiday. The statement comprises that the group of Atef Aziz alleges the possession of superior talents such as speaking in tongues, receiving visions, where they see themselves as Patriarchs as well as the priesthood of women in addition to the above summary of mistakes as indicated in the report of the Synodic Committee of Faith, Education, and Legislation.
    The Holy Synod had added to the verdict that the “Gates of repentance are open to those who depart this group and its beliefs.

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  18. So glad

    A quick word of appreciation to everyone here. First, thanks to tcopt for setting this up–I think.
    I want to thank everyone else for confirming that my decision to leave the church and remain Coptic in name only was by far one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I have seen the worst side of “Christians”: on one side a cult-like blind following of an arrogant cowardly priest who deserted his flock rather than be held accountable to them and the church he preached about for over 20 years; and on the other side, a hatred for the same arrogant coward so other clergy can be blindly followed in the same cult-like manner.
    The level of hate, anger, stupidity, and hypocrisy shown here are rivaled only by what I’ve encountered in person at the church (both St Mark’s and other Coptic churches around the country), and I’m sure are pleasing the devil more than any of us could ever imagine.
    I honestly don’t mean this in a smug sort of way–I am truly grateful that you’ve all helped me see that I made the right choice and there’s no need for me to look back. Good luck to you all with however this shakes out.

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    • Tony Rezk

      Dear So glad,

      Your statement is disheartening especially for a community that is currently in mourning. How dare you judge Abouna? Calling him a coward! Do you even know what he and tasoni been through? What a completely arrogant and thoughtless comment. It’s easy to judge from your couch, where you admit that you have quit the church. Does that mean you’re a coward? Of course not, it just means you’re hurt. Or are you here only to reconfirm your decision for being “Coptic in name only.” What does that even practically mean? No one can be “Coptic in name only.” You are an Orthodox Christian and as orthodox we come to church to partake of the body and blood of Christ, so that we may be united with God. Thus your statement makes no sense, you can’t give yourself the Eucharist. Furthermore, like anonymous173ate already said wonderfully, all communities have issues. I have never met a church, no matter how good, without issues. Even in the early church there were issues, church history is full of church issues, politics, heresies, etc. our focus should be on the holy trinity. Please take the time to say more constructive things and pray for Abouna and his family, who are clearly going through a very difficult time. Also wanted to add one last thing, this situation only proves that we as community need better theological education.

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    • Oldchurchgoerand observer

      Dear So Glad,
      You claimed that Abouna is coward by leaving the church which is totally incorrect looking at the circumstances he and his family were in. But wait a minute, what about you? You have also left the church for whatever reason instead of staying and working out the problems you are facing.
      If you quit your church, community or organization, work because you faced problems or issues then you better live alone isolated in the desert! Any community, church, organization or work has its good times and bad times and no place where other human beings live is ever immune! not even a monastery!
      Good luck with your life, young man/woman!

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  19. anonymous173ate

    Dear So glad,
    Im so sorry that you had such terrible experiences with the church and Coptic community. Every community, religious and nonreligious have issues and sometimes the structure collapses completely . Abouna Bishoy has done a lot of tremendous work for the community, yet he is human and as humans, we are prone to err. He did what he thought in his mind was the best. Who are we to judge and condemn him? We are hurt,but we just have faith that everything works out. We go to church because we are trying to be better in our faith, trying to correct our faults; we shouldn’t be judged because we fall in sin. Im sorry if people were unfair to you or just unfair in general. All I can say, is that Copts are human and make a lot of mistakes, just like every person. We suffer the same as anyone else, we may be different ethnically, but all cultures have more or less the same issues. The church will continue on as it has for thousands of years, it does not stop because an abouna leaves or people get upset about other issues.

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    • The Truth Always Prevails

      Ahh yes, more incendiary comments meant to destroy and cause suspicion and distrust. So please tell us the actual evidence and documentation you have. Have you actually seen anything? If so, let’s see it. Or do you simply throw comments like these out there as if you’re speaking from a position of authority and insight. You’ve provided nothing but a trite statement that the various committees and boards really know what is going on but wont give you straight answers. Who have you asked and what did they tell you? Have you ever actually submitted questions to the finance office or are you just caught up in a bad version of the “telephone game”? Here’s how to submit questions: http://www.stmarkdc.org/finance-office

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  21. Anonymous

    From Mr Aatef Mishriky’s webpage
    “I felt a great responsibility to share and commit what I received from the Lord to the body of Christ, as much as I can. The purpose of this is: to deepen the spiritual life enabling the Church to face the challenges of the end times; to reunite the mind of Christ in the Church east and west because these wells reflect the mind of the Church before the division; and to prepare the bride for the second coming of Christ and for the wedding of the Lamb!”

    The constant use of “I” is medically known as thoughts of grandiosity.

    The Early Church fathers taught humility and not “I”

    There is nothing Orthodox about this man.

    The riches of the Oriental and Eastern Orthodox families would never accept this thought process as Orthodox or according to The spirit of humility taught by Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Apostles or any of the Early Church fathers.

    Peter Mikhail

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  22. Hope in the future...

    In the midst of the current pain and uncertainty, we shouldn’t forget that we don’t know what the future holds. There have been many talented and energetic groups of people who had their differences and swore they would never even speak again, much less reunite for the people. However, time heals many wounds and allows people to move beyond the hurt. Some examples of people who worked out their differences, at times after many decades are: Fleetwood Mac, The Police, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, The Who, Spice Girls, and recently Guns n Roses. Meanwhile we pray for Simon and Garfunkel to make amends after more than 45 years.

    If these folks who are united for music and money can kiss and make up, surely Christians focused on the love and unity of Christ can overcome differences.

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    • Anonymous

      Forgot about Van Halen–original lineup with David Lee Roth, not Sammy Hagar on lead vocals. Please forgive the oversight.

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