Today, H.H. Pope Tawadros II visited the Residence of the Coptic Catholic Patriarchate in Kobri al-Qubba, accompanied by a church delegation, to congratulate His Beatitude Bishop Ibrahim Ishaq, Patriarch of the Coptic Catholics in Egypt, on the occasion of Christmas, which a number of Christian churches celebrate next Monday, December 25.
His Holiness the Pope, along with His Beatitude the Patriarch, was received by a number of bishops of the Council of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops in Egypt, priests, and nuns.

His Beatitude Patriarch Ibrahim Ishaq expressed his happiness at the visit of His Holiness the Pope, stressing that the birth of Jesus Christ calls us to peace, and when we celebrate the holiday, we celebrate peace amid the pain of wars taking place in the world.
For his part, His Holiness Pope Tawadros pointed out that Christmas is the feast of declaring God’s love, through His incarnation, through which He declared that He still loves us, and that God’s love is the energy that makes us serve.

His Holiness noted that the difference between the words love and war is one letter, which is the letter “R”, (in Arabic) which seems to separate the two letters of the word love, as if tearing it apart. Indeed, war destroys love between people.

H.H. added: “Man has replaced love with war and has become hungry for love and fierce. Therefore, we must adhere to love and pray for it in our education and all our work and service, so that Christmas becomes the holiday of renewal of love that man needs. Our role remains to contribute to establishing love in the human heart and to help “Everyone may be satisfied with God’s love.”

The delegation accompanying His Holiness the Pope consisted of H.E. Metropolitan Daniel, Metropolitan of Maadi and Secretary of the Holy Synod, H.G. Bishop Yolios, General Bishop of Old Cairo and Bishopric of Services, H.G. Bishop Angelos, General Bishop of the churches of the Northern Shoubra sector, Father Sergius Sergius, Patriarchal Vicar of Cairo, and Father Kyrillos St. Bishoy, Director of His Holiness the Pope’s Office, Father Moussa Ibrahim, the official spokesman for the church, Father Raphael Ramzi, Deacon Joseph Reda from the office of His Holiness the Pope, and Dr. Girgis Saleh, honorary secretary general of the Middle East Council of Churches.

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