Faithfully Present: An Anglican Witness in Egypt
ARDF Global Leaders at our 2018 Global Council Meeting in Cairo, Egypt.
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.
- Hosea 11:1
Egypt
Did you know that ARDF has sister National Organizations? ARDF in the United States was founded in 2004 with the support of then Bishop Robert Duncan. Since then we have been joined by ARDF-Canada, ARDF-Australia, ARDF-Egypt, and ARDF-Kenya. Each National Organization is doing amazing work in relief and development in their own ways.
Currently, our prayers are with our partners in Egypt as they work to provide relief for survivors of the tragic flooding in Libya. Meanwhile, the church in Egypt is also busy supporting refugees from Sudan and is expanding a school that will serve children with special needs. All of this is an incredible witness to the Kingdom of Christ, and continues in a long tradition of Anglican service and sacrificial presence in Egypt. It’s encouraging to take a peek at the history of Anglicanism in Egypt to see some of the deep roots that have provided nourishment for their continuing ministry.
Anglicanism in Egypt: A (very!) Brief Overview
On the Feast of St. Mark, 25 April 1988, the third and present All Saints Cathedral in Cairo, whose shape can be described as either a Bedouin tent (because Christianity is mobile) or a lotus flower (because Christians are to offer the sweet fragrance of Christ) was consecrated Bishop Ghais Abdel Malek. (From the Diocese of Egypt’s webpage.)
In 1819, the first Christian Missionary Society missionary arrived in Egypt after correspondence with the Coptic Orthodox church. The missionaries aimed to visit the Orthodox monks and distribute copies of the four gospels in Arabic, with the eventual establishment of a CMS office in 1825. This office was closed only 40 years later due to a perceived lack of activity. By the time the CMS office opened again, the Anglican church had grown. Constance Padwick, an English missionary in the early 1900s, described the Anglican church’s efforts thus:
There was a small hospital here, a school for girls there, for boys in another place, a meeting for boatmen at one end of the city, an open-air meeting for anyone who would come into a courtyard elsewhere, a book depot with a room for conversation at yet another point - good work all of it, and started for good reasons by good men and women, but disconnected, fragmentary.
Although seemingly scattered, the relational character of the work was typical of Anglican methods of evangelism. All over the Global South, Anglican missionaries have historically focused on evangelism through socially oriented work, investing in hospitals, schools, and community structures. At ARDF, we are privileged to see this work firsthand through our development projects! Many of them focus on the same things mentioned above: schools, community centers, and healthcare.
Offering the love of Christ as demonstrated in a tangible hope to communities in need has been an effective way of spreading the Gospel to all corners of the earth. This particular method of evangelization was instrumental for Egypt. According to the Oxford History of Anglicanism, "Whether in Old Cairo and Jalouan, or some thirty miles north west of Cairo in Menouf, schools for both genders, and both day and boarding, enrolled Christian and Muslim students during the period before the First World War." Egyptian Christians today relate that when the Anglican church first came to Egypt, they were not interested in building up their own denomination - instead they worked quietly in hospitals and schools. In a Muslim majority context, Anglicans chose to serve rather than declare superiority, modeling Christ's incarnation.
From this incredible start we see how the Anglican church in Egypt is poised to serve those around them today. Below are some current examples of their work.
Serving Refugees
Christ, as a child with Joseph and Mary, stayed in Egypt as a refugee. The Egyptian Anglican Church now honors this memory with their extensive work among refugees, primarily from Sudan.
Nearly 2 million Sudanese have now fled their homes for safer regions since April 2023, when fighting arose between factions of the military government. Because of a free movement agreement between Egypt and Sudan (allowing people to travel in both directions to live and work), many refugees are fleeing to Egypt. The Anglican Church has been involved in humanitarian aid and refugee outreach for over 35 years through Refuge Egypt. Based out of the Anglican Cathedral in Cairo, Refuge Egypt is supporting these new refugees with food, clothes, and household items. They also provide medical care and assistance in finding housing and employment.
Libya Flood Relief
The Anglican Church in Egypt faithfully ministers even in some difficult areas. Their presence means that ARDF-US is able to get relief funding to some places where we would otherwise have no partners.
On September 11, 2023, residents of the coastal city Derna in Libya awoke to the explosive sounds of two dams breaking, releasing a wall of water that instantly destroyed sections of the city and killed thousands. ARDF’s relief model is to find partners on the ground who can receive funding and help survivors, but Libya can be a difficult country in which to find partners. However, the Anglican church (Province of Alexandria) is present there! They are currently working to connect relief aid to local volunteers and NGO partners to help provide aid for survivors.
Ministry Through Education
In September 2022, ARDF approved a grant of $180,000 to expand the the Episcopal Private School in Menouf and Menara Special Needs School. While Egypt is home to the Middle East’s largest school system, the quality of education in Egypt’s schools remains a major challenge. The government is encouraging opportunities to improve accessible, high-quality education, however, this comes at a cost that many families cannot afford - particularly families with children who have special needs. The Anglican Church in Egypt is passionate about bringing education to all children, regardless of need or income level, and is expanding a school with improved facilities for special needs students. According to our independent researcher who visited in August 2023, construction is underway and going quickly, and the facilities look very nice. They are wisely utilizing the space they have, and are lined up to receive disabled students this month! In addition to all of this, the Anglican Church continues their rich history of reaching out to their neighbors as at least 90% of their total students are Muslim.
ARDF is so thankful for our sister National Organization, ARDF-Egypt, and the incredible example of the Anglican Church in Egypt!
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