Egypt Celebrating the “Season of Creation” 2022
An Environmental Christian Celebration in "Anaphora" Glorifies the Creator
On the occasion of the ongoing “Season of Creation” 2022, the “Anaphora” Center, the Eco Friendly House of the Coptic Church, in Wadi El Natroun, Egypt, held a Christian environmental celebration, on Sunday 11 September 2022. It was under the auspices and supervision of Anba Thomas, founder of the Anaphora Center, and Bishop of Al-Qusiya and Mir, Assiut. The event was part of the series of celebrations organized by the Middle East Council of Churches, in partnership with “Danmission” organization, in various countries of the region.
Priests, believers, and interested people in the Church environmental issue, participated in the celebration. As well as, participants were the Egypt Council of Churches, Dr. Gerges Saleh, Honorary Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches, and Rev. Rifaat Fikry, MECC Associate Secretary General, President of the Evangelical Conference of Cairo, and Head of the Council for Dialogue and Ecumenical Relations in the Evangelical Church in Egypt.
The celebration was held in the heart of the “Anaphora” nature, the center which is distinguished by its simple design and sustainable lifestyle, and started with some melodies. Then Anba Thomas addressed a welcome message in which he stressed our common concern in nature and God’s creation, especially that God speaks to us through creation. He also highlighted the slogan of the “Season of Creation” 2022 which is the “Burning Bush”, and said that God spoke to Moses through the bush.
The celebration’s program was in Arabic, English, French and Dutch, and included prayers from the “Season of Creation” booklet 2022, which MECC translated into Arabic for the second consecutive year. In addition to hymns and songs, glorifying the Creator and praising His Holy Name, thanking God for all His creation and blessings. Many messages were also delivered, stressing the importance of the care for God’s creation, and the need to listen to His voice through creation. It also invited people to actively work and contribute to the care and preservation of the creation. Moreover, the Charter of the “Anaphora” center was read, as well as its measures to live sustainably in order to protect all the creation.
In his message, Dr. Gerges Saleh presented an historical overview of the “Season of Creation” and how MECC launched it in the region, and mentioned that it is the first time that Egypt celebrates the season. He also tackled the importance of prayer, and said that it is “a powerful experience and a tool for awareness and a way for exchanging relationships and services. God has placed man and life together under one dome in one house. We are all in the house of God.”
He added, "Every creature belongs to the earth, and the whole community belongs to the Creator. The Greek word for the earth family is Oikos, which means Oikoumene or Ecumenical, and describes our common home, the land belonging to God, to Whom every creature also belongs… Our mission is to protect the world. God called us to care for creation…”
He continued, "It is a commandment for everyone to protect this universe. God has given humanity a special mission, which is the care for creation and the earth. The earth was given to us and we are called to protect it…”
Saleh also talked about the theme of the “Season of Creation” 2022 which is “Listen to the Voice of Creation,” and said, “All Christians are called to listen to the voice of Creation. The ecumenical family around the world unites to pray for creation. During this season, our common prayers and actions help us to listen to the voices of those who have been silenced...”
From his end, Rev. Rifaat Fikry also delivered a message and said, “The creation is beautiful and vibrant, it is bright in colors, rich in shapes, and is an endless source and an oasis of happiness. We must learn how to enjoy the creation and acknowledge everything it includes.”
He mentioned, "When God created the world, with its sky, sun, stars, sea, plants and animals, He saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good… We live in God's beautiful world... God created it, to embodies the beauty of His creation..."
He continued, "A person is deprived from happiness when he loses consistency between his selfishness and hatred, and the goodness of nature around him... But people must seek to restore their internal harmony, so that it can also responds to the harmony of nature."
Fikry added, "Contemplate God's creation around you, and find the sources of happiness... In all directions, in every bird, flower, or leaf of a tree... you can see the beauty of God's creation, and thus happiness… Practice to be fascinated by God's creation around you, so you can find eternal happiness..."
It is worth mentioning that the “Anaphora” Center is an oasis for prayer and retreat. It introduces the world to the Coptic Orthodox Church, in the heart of the nature and in an ecological center, including green spaces of diverse trees… It is also based on handicrafts clothes, food, drinks, and lifestyle, in a sustainable and eco-friendly context…
