Today (Wednesday), H.H. Pope Tawadros II received at the Papal Residence in Cairo, the President of the Republic of Estonia, Mr. Alar Karis, and the delegation accompanying him.

His Holiness the Pope expressed his happiness at the visit of the Estonian President and the accompanying delegation to Egypt and the Coptic Church. He highlighted that Egypt is a country with unique significance in terms of both history and geography. Pope Tawadros explained that Egyptians live around the Nile River and are deeply connected to their homeland, viewing the river as their father and the land as their mother. Pope Tawadros also pointed out that Egypt is a nation with a long history and a rich civilization, resulting from the accumulation of various civilizations, such as the Pharaonic, Christian, Islamic, Mediterranean, Arab, and others.

His Holiness noted that the unity of the Egyptian people is a natural unity resulting from life around the Nile River, to the extent that one cannot distinguish between Christian Egyptians and Muslim Egyptians; they are all simply Egyptians. Pope Tawadros explained that the Holy Family visited Egypt and traveled throughout the country from north to south and from east to west, blessing the land of Egypt with their visit.

Speaking about the Coptic Orthodox Church, His Holiness explained: “The Church began in Alexandria at the hands of Saint Mark the Apostle, who was also martyred in Alexandria,” and that the word “Coptic” means Egyptian. He added that the Church of Alexandria is characterized by faith, martyrdom, and monasticism, which began with the monk Anthony, who has a monastery near the Red Sea in eastern Egypt.

Regarding the relationship of the Coptic Church with all pillars of the state, His Holiness emphasized that the Church maintains good relations with President Sisi, the government, parliament, the official Islamic institution (Al-Azhar), as well as with various Churches in Egypt and around the world. Pope Tawadros mentioned the Council of Churches of Egypt, which encompasses all Churches present on Egyptian land. His Holiness also highlighted the spiritual role of the Church and its social role, through which the Church seeks to give practical expression of Christian love by establishing schools and hospitals that are open to all Egyptians without discrimination. He stressed the Church’s commitment to fostering peace and love everywhere.

Pope Tawadros praised the Church Building Law passed by the Egyptian state under President Sisi, describing it as a significant achievement following the 30th June 2013 revolution. He explained that this law has allowed Christians to practice their worship without obstacles. His Holiness also highlighted the Sunday School service, where the Church’s children are brought up from a young age. The visiting president asked about the type of education children receive in Sunday School. Pope Tawadros described that they teach the children the Holy Bible, Christian doctrine, ecclesiastical rituals, the Coptic language, and other ecclesiastical subjects.

His Holiness concluded by saying, “We pray for peace to prevail among all nations of the world and for wars to come to an end.”

President Karis expressed his gratitude to His Holiness the Pope for the warm welcome, noting his keenness to visit the Coptic Orthodox Church as part of his itinerary in Egypt. He mentioned that his country also enjoys a rich accumulation of cultural influences from various groups such as the Russians, Poles, Danes, and others, and is home to many churches. He emphasized his happiness at visiting Egypt, which he had previously visited twice, and expressed his hope for increased cooperation between the two countries, especially between universities in Egypt and Estonia. The president highlighted the special importance Estonia places on education and noted that all operations in Estonia are conducted digitally. He also mentioned that his meeting with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi earlier today was particularly wonderful. He repeated his gratitude to Pope Tawadros for the warm welcome and nice meeting.

At the end of the session, the Estonian president wrote in the V.I.P visitors’ book and toured the exterior of the St. Mark’s Cathedral building, where he listened to an explanation by His Holiness.

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