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Published by
Macomb Daily, August
19, 2003
Coptic
Christian pope to visit church in Troy
By Robert Selwa,
Religion Editor
Drawing in particular from Troy,
Sterling Heights, Warren and Madison Heights, St.
Mark Coptic Orthodox Church of Troy will host the
world spiritual leader.
The events will include Shenouda
III's blessing at 9 a.m. Thursday of a $7 million
complex being built to house a new sanctuary of
Byzantine architectural style, plus a future
school and social hall.
The complex is partially completed
in the back portion of the church property, which
houses the current sanctuary with its icongraphy
and traditional worship. St. Mark Coptic Orthodox
Church is at 3601 Livernois, north of Big Beaver
in Troy.
The St. Mark Coptic community is
thrilled that the same pope who dedicated their
church when it began in 1979 is returning to bless
the major expansion.
The Rev. Mina Essak, archpriest of
the St. Mark Coptic community, said, "We are
greatly honored to be chosen for his visit and to
be celebrating his 80th birthday with him.
Essak, an engineer with the U.S.
Army Automotive Tank Command in Warren before his
call to the Coptic priesthood, announced the
following schedule for the pope:
A visit in the sanctuary with the
congregation Wednesday evening. The regular
Wednesday evening worship will be canceled for the
special papal visit.
Blessing at 9 a.m. of the future
new sanctuary and its auxiliary facilities.
A luncheon with 10:30 a.m. social
and 11:30 a.m. food service at the Troy Marriott
Hotel, 200 W. Big Beaver at Livernois, Troy. The
event will include metropolitan Detroit religious
leaders.
When St. Mark Coptic church began,
it served about 50 families. Today the
congregation has 450 families and continues
growing.
The Coptic Orthodox church is based
in Alexandria, Egypt, where it was established by
St. Mark the Evangelist on a missionary journey in
48 AD. The church adheres to the Nicene Creed
created at the Council of Nicea in 325 AD
Coptic Christians have been coming
to the United States in substantial numbers since
open immigration was established in 1965.
While most Coptic Christians are
Egyptian in heritage, other ethnic groups are also
involved in the faith. Worship services at St.
Mark are in Arabic and English. The church also
uses the Coptic language.
Shenouda III has served since 1971
as the 117th Coptic successor of St. Mark. He was
born Aug. 3, 1923, in Egypt. He worked as a
teacher of social sciences at the English mission
school in Cairo from 1945 to 1954. He became a
monk and joined a desert monastery in Egypt in
1954. He was ordained a bishop in 1962, at which
time he was given the name of a Coptic saint who
was a monk of 5th century Egypt.
Shenouda III has
distinguished himself as editor of the weekly
magazine Al-Kiraza, the official newspaper of the
Coptic Church. He is also noted for poetry. His
sermons in the cathedrals of Alexandria and Cairo
have typically drawn 5,000 to 10,000 people.
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