Egyptian Politician Denounces Plans for Anti-Corruption March in Cairo

Prominent Coptic Orthodox businessman and politician Naguib Sawiris has denounced plans for a million-strong march in Cairo to demand the trial of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and other prominent Egyptians for corruption. More here.

Mubarak Resigns as President of Egypt

President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt has stepped down and retired to his estates near Sharm el Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula. The Egyptian Armed Forces now control the government and have publicly committed themselves to overseeing a transition to democracy, though what that means remains to be seen. More here.

Pray for Egypt

Please keep Egypt and its peoples, especially our popes and the hierarchs, clergy, and faithful of the Church of Alexandria in Egypt, in your prayers! When I listened to President Mubarak's speech earlier I was sure I was witnessing his resignation and the beginning of a new era, but he did not resign and now I fear that I did indeed witness the beginning of a new era - one fraught with the potential for great suffering and violence.

"Let us give thanks to the beneficent and merciful God, the Father of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ, for He has defended us, helped us, guarded us, accepted us to Him, spared us, supported us, and brought us to this hour. Let us also ask Him, the Lord our God, the Almighty, to guard us in all peace this holy day and all the days of our life." Amen.

Egyptian Opposition Divided by Government Concessions?

Opposition leaders are close to an agreement with Vice-President Omar Suleiman that would end the fortnight of protests that have rocked Cairo and the government of President Hosni Mubarak. Acceptance of the concessions offered by Suleiman by the protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square has not been received yet as the concessions do not include the opposition's main demand that Mubarak resign as president immediately. More here.

Muslim Brotherhood Angers Cairene Protesters

During a press conference yesterday three senior members of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood stated that they had dropped their demand that President Hosni Mubarak resign. The statement prompted a divide amongst Cairo's anti-government protesters, most of whom have been demanding President Mubarak's immediate resignation.

President Mubarak has already stated that he will not run in the September presidential elections, but many fear that the Egyptian Armed Forces would leverage the remaining months of his presidency to ensure a transition to a new establishment-backed president should Mubarak not resign immediately. More here.

Copts Pray in Tahrir Square under Muslim Protection

As massive protests continue in Cairo, Egypt, against the regime of President Hosni Mubarak remarkably Muslim-Orthodox Christian solidarity has been demonstrated as Copts celebrating a memorial Sunday Liturgy in Tahrir Square for those who have been killed during the protests were surrounded by a ring of Muslims committed to ensuring their safety as they prayed. More here.

I remain both deeply concerned and pessimistic about the possible outcomes of the protests, but things like this give me hope that Egypt will not be another Russia or Iran. Please continue to pray for peace and good government in Egypt as our brothers and sisters there are already doing.

Coptic Orthodox Church Against Protests

The Coptic Orthodox Church has advised its faithful in Egypt not to join the protests sweeping the nation, but also recognizes that it can't stop its members from joining the protests if they choose to do so. Copts living freely abroad have criticized the Church's statements, encouraging their compatriots in Egypt to join the protests against President Hosni Mubarak's government. More here.

Mubarak Reacts to New Year Bombing

President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt has vowed retribution against those who spilled the blood of the nation's children this past Saturday in an attack on a Coptic Orthodox church, which was the deadliest violence against Egypt's Copts in a decade. More here.

Mubarak Calls for Toning Down of Religious Rhetoric

According to sources inside the Church of Egypt at a recent meeting with Pope Shenouda III (al-Suriani) President Hosni Mubarak asked him to tone down religious rhetoric due to the current tensions within Egyptian society. He has reportedly asked the Minister of Religious Endowments and the head of al-Azhar University to do the same. More here.

Pope Shenouda Meets with Mubarak

Pope Shenouda III (al-Suriani) of the Coptic Orthodox Church met today with President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt over the recent actions of the Egyptian government against the country's native Coptic minority. More here.