Women are women are women…

The recent events in Egypt have given rise to many questions about the Middle East and the Arab world. My friend, Chris Medearis, has travelled extensively in the Middle East and lived in Lebanon for 12 years. I love this brief glimpse of her experiences with women in the Middle East.

Tahrir Square: The Many Little Revolutions

This afternoon I received this photo of Maggie, an Egyptian Christian friend who is a documentary filmmaker. When I asked her if I could post the photo on my blog, she sent me this email in return.

Maggie wrote:

The Arabic sign says “Ahmed (a Muslim name) and Mina (a Christian name) hand in hand.” The Arabic literally says “one hand.” The name of the young woman with whom I am standing is Nariman. Much to my shame, I had never talked to a woman with a niqab (total head cover) before.

Although I have been going to Tahrir regularly, last Sunday was different. And even though Tahrir is where the Egyptian revolution is taking place, I am convinced that there are personal revolutions happening there daily. A man with a beard [signifying a Muslim] stood next to me and told me, "This is the first time I have heard Christians pray." He offered me dates and sang “Bless our country” with us.

One of the Muslim Brotherhood members in Tahrir said, "I can honestly say that today is the first time that I've ever met a Christian brother. We hugged and kissed and I cried because I've never felt so close to another Egyptian who wants the same things that I do.” People may disagree on how representative these [relational transformations] are, but surely we agree on how wonderful and irreversible these personal revolutions are.

My friend has spoken with one member of the Muslim Brotherhood in Tahrir and the man was so apologetic of what he has always called Westernized [Christian] girls in jeans. He said that they were the first to rush to his aid when he was injured and to provide him with first aid and water. He too has had a personal revolution and promised never to misjudge these young people again. It was truly heartwarming to hear.

I am grateful for the many personal revolutions that we all experience there every day we go.

In Arabic the word “Tahrir” means liberation, but it is a present continuous verb. Tahrir—liberation— is the work of every day and it may never be over.

Sorry for the long email...but I just wanted to give context to the photo.
Much love, pray for Egypt.
Maggie

How to Prayer for Egypt - Part 3

The third update sent out by my friend Wafik on the situation in Egypt. For more information, please visit Part 1 and Part 2.

Egpyt is Free
by Wafik Wahba
Associate Professor of Global Christianity
Tyndale University & Seminary
Written on February 11, 2011

At 6:00PM Egypt time (11:00 AM EST), February 11, 2011 Egypt was freed from one of the most brutal and oppressive regimes in modern history. As the vice president made the announcement that Mubarak stepped down, the streets of Egypt erupted in euphoria shouting “Egypt is Free! Egypt is Free!”

The Pharaoh’s government has been turned down by the youthful Revolution

• The Youth Revolution that was made possible by social media was able to finally end the 30 year rule of Mubarak
• Once again Egyptians have shown the world that peaceful revolution can happen
• This revolution represented all spectrums of Egyptian society: rich and poor, women and men, Christians and Muslims
• Unity between Christians and Muslims was clearly expressed through the last week.
• This revolution will have significant impact on the whole region and the world.
• The grip of fear because of police brutality and the regime oppression has been defeated
• This afternoon, Egyptian media anchors apologized for being forced to broadcast lies for the last two weeks.
  

A Christian Perspective on the Situation in Egypt

• God is a just God who demands his people to do justice and to love mercy.
• The gap between the very poor and the very rich in Egypt increased drastically during the last 15 years. Extreme poverty where 20 million citizens (out of 80 million) lived on a less than $2 a day while others lived in mansions with several cottages and private jets. The significant disappearance of the middle class represented a formula for unrest
• The economical gains (Egypt GDP during the last five to ten years was 5-7% annual gain) benefited mainly the upper class. There were no serious programs to help the poor to move out the cycle of poverty or to improve their living conditions.
• Very high number of unemployment: 24% among newly graduates
• For decades Egyptians lived under oppression, corruption and police brutality. Elections were usually fabricated and freedom of speech suppressed. Voices of oppositions were completely silenced; currently there are more than 10,000 political prisoners
  

The Power of Prayer

• One of the largest churches in Egypt is located in Tahrir Square (behind the large governmental building in the picture at the top of this message). In fact that building was built to cover the church from being at the center of the square in the 1950s. For the last six years, prayer meetings focused on God’s intervention to change the current situation in Egypt. God answered the prayer from the same square!
• Video of Christian Worship and Prayer in Tahrir Square
  
• For the last two weeks the church has been very active in providing services for the wounded, they have supported the poor and those who have been inflicted by the unrest. It also mobilized teams of people to clean the streets from debris.
• Last Sunday, February 6, 2011, something very unusual took place in Tahrir Square; a group of Christians conducted an open worship service in the square (such activity is absolutely prohibited in Egypt). Christian songs about God blessing the country were sung by Christians and Muslims. Christian pastors and Muslim clerks were shown standing hand in hand in Tahrir Square.
  

Please Pray

• For God’s leading during this critical transitional period in the life of Egypt
• For the next steps as the country moves to choose the next government
• For a democratic process that truly represents the many voices and the diversity of the Egyptian people.
• For the moderate voices to be heard in that process
• For true social, political and economical changes
• For the Christians and church leaders in this time of change who have extended love and care to all Egyptians during the time of crisis, to the extent that the Imam of the main mosque in Tahrir Square called the Muslim prayers to follow the peaceful example of Isa (Jesus)!
  

Multi-Faith Friendship

I just read this statement from a highly respected Christian leader in Cairo:

"Christians and Muslims have been united as never before defending their homes on overnight shifts (due to the lack of police security). This is resulting for many to make friends with neighbors they never knew and there is a real sense of camaraderie which we never had before."

Seems like we Christians and Muslims in the US could learn some lessons from our Egyptian brothers and sisters. For another story of multi-faith friendship, see my recent article, Cooking up Peace.

Egypt: Celebration Update!

I just received this email from my friend, Fady Eldeiry. Fady grew up in Alexandria, Egypt, but now lives in Chicago and attends my church. I've taken two ministry trips to Egypt with Fady, most recently in December, 2010. Fady's love for his country is contagious. Read his email and join him (and me) in celebration. And keep praying!


From Fady:
I almost think I’m not actually typing this. It is so unbelievable, only God could make any of this happen!

So, January 25 some youth took the streets, and for 12 days so far, they’ve been making history faster than anything I’ve ever seen. It’s like a movie.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, when the pro-Mubarak people came out, most of them were thought to be agents from the police. But thankfully that died down, which in turn brought the protests back to peaceful.

On Friday, miracles started happening! While the Muslims were praying in the main Tahrir square, the Christians made a human chain shield around them to protect them! It was an amazing scene of protection and love between people who all of a sudden discovered love, discovered patriotism, discovered each other! (see picture above)

Then on Sunday, it was the other way around! Christians held an event with a couple worship songs that talk about blessing our nation and God hearing our prayers. It was an amazing miraculous event that I never ever thought I’d see in a Middle Eastern country! People were singing, chanting together as one, in the public square! Here’s a video of the event on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Af5E6fTdlw

Sunday afternoon, we watched the live Kasr El Dobarah Church’s service online, which was held at a different location, due to their close location to the square. It was an amazing picture of a church in a country that broke the chains of fear! Pastor Sameh Maurice, who is my all-time hero!, talked about:

1. Spirit of Courage: The people discovered that they don’t have fear to speak up anymore! The people are not afraid of the authorities abusing them.
2. Spirit of Patriotism: Flags everywhere, people rich and poor, Christian and Muslim, old and young. Neighbors met each other for the first time, made friends. People broke the barriers and started hugging each other, and making community.
3. Spirit of cleanliness: People went out on the streets and cleaned their own neighborhoods. That led them to be respectful of their city and its cleanliness. He was talking about Tahrir Square being clean in spite of all the people in it. Then he talked about the cleanliness from corruption. That is something that started with this revolution and needs to continue and get rooted in society.

He talked about the poor in Egypt (over 40% of Egyptians live under $2 per day). He talked about taking care of them.

Then he talked about the role of the church. He said the church is not a political institution, rather they teach people Biblical values, and the people make up their own minds. He said that during the day of protests held by both, opposition and pro, there were church members on both camps. And he’s proud of that. He said the church is about God’s Agenda, not man’s agenda.

Then he started a time of prayer, saying that a birth of a nation is happening. There’s always pain in birth, and continued prayer is essential. He mentioned the prayers the church has been having for the nation, and he said that they’ll keep praying until God fulfills His promises.

1. They prayed for God to visit the homes of the poor and from the flooded Nile, fill the thirsty people. To bless His people, Egypt.
2. They prayed a blessing on the birth of the new nation. The hands of God are in it, and no human can do that! They asked God to complete the birth process, to bring people out in each city to continue prayers, until we see His name honored throughout the land.
3. They prayed about God opening the strength of heaven, and when He does, nobody can shut it! His Kingdom come on earth…
4. They prayed for unity in the Church in the land.
5. They prayed for blessing on the families with loved ones who died in the protests.

Thank you for your continued prayers for these historic events. This is truly history, that’s brand new (not repeated history) for Egypt. One of the young protesters had a sign for Mubarak to “step down already, because the history book is getting larger by the minute, and he’s worried about how much he’ll have to memorize in school!”

God is in control, please keep praying for safety and security for the people of Egypt. Pray it ends in peace. Pray for a new government that will be righteous and just. Pray the country rebuilds fast, and so that the economic situation doesn’t hurt the poor even more or increase poverty. God bless you all!

Fady Eldeiry
fady@wepartner.org
www.wepartner.org

How to Pray for Egypt, Part 2

A new update from my friend, Wafik Wahba, Associate Professor of Global Christianity Tyndale University and Seminary. Again, for security reasons I have left out some specific names of churches and individuals.

Update on the Situation in Egypt
February 3rd, 2011

(Please note that the situation is changing by the hour.
This update is posted on February 3rd, 2011 at 1:00 PM EST)

• On Tuesday, February 1st, 2011 an estimate of over 2 million people gathered in different places across Egypt waiting for a real change to take place. Egyptians from all walks of life: young and old, women, men, even children, rich and poor, Christians and Muslims were anticipating Mubarak to step down. However, their hopes were dashed when Mubarak declared that he will be staying till September. A few hours later the situation turned extremely dangerous.
• On Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011, the world watched in dismay what Mubarak regime is doing to its own people who have been protesting peacefully for the last week. We moved from amazing scenes of Egyptians from all walks of life demonstrating peacefully in demand for a better future to scenes from the Middle Ages where Mubarak’s thugs ridding over horses and camels carrying swards and clubs beating and injuring hundreds of people.
• Furthermore, Mubarak’s mob threw Molotov cocktails from rooftops for more than 12 hours all through the night over peaceful demonstrators being trapped in the Liberation square. Very frighting scenes that we haven’t seen in the modern history, as if we were watching a movie or reliving scenes from barbaric wars.
• US and most EU government’s called on the Egyptian government to stop using violence to intimidate the Egyptian people.
• Journalists were attacked and their cameras were confiscated. Some journalists were even beaten by the regimes thugs. As Ben Wedeman, the CNN reporter put it, “The Egyptian government has a history of hiring criminals and thugs to terrorize people and disperse any peaceful gathering demanding democracy and calling for better living conditions.”
• Snipers are shooting on peaceful demonstrators causing significant numbers of injuries. So far several deaths are reported and over 2000 people have been injured some of them with life threatening injuries as of the last few hours.
• US and other countries issued urgent and immediate evacuation to their citizens
• The situation is extremely dangerous and further demonstrations expected in the next few hours will result in an accelerated number of casualties.
• This morning, Thursday, February 03rd, 2011 Egyptian Prime Minister apologizes for the violence that took place yesterday realizing that “such violence attacks created a deep wound in the Egyptian fabric of society”
• These violence confirmed anew the Egyptians mistrust of their current government
  
• There are voices calling for holding Mubarak accountable for these crimes against his own people. Ironically, a day earlier Mubarak declared that his main reason to stay is to protect the Egyptian people!
• The army is being launched to control this escalating situation.
• Tomorrow, Friday, February 4th there will be more demonstration demanding the immediate removal of Mubarak
• On a positive note, my friend (...), is gaining strength after being treated for heart problems three days ago.
• The Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo was not harmed but those who live on campus are very concerned about their safety.
• (...) Church, one of the largest Evangelical Church in Egypt, which is located one block from Liberation Square was not harmed in spite of serious damages to other buildings around the church
  

Please pray:

• For immediate end to this madness that is escalating by the hour, Egypt is at the verge of a major civil war
• For peaceful outcome of demonstrations planned to take place tomorrow
• For the safety of Christian leaders and churches across the country
• For the millions of Egyptians who are enduring one of the most difficult times in their history.
• For wisdom to Christian leaders on how to navigate the terrain of this very difficult time
  
• For wisdom to world leaders on how to handle this dramatic situation
  

How to Pray for Egypt

Below is some very helpful information from an Egyptian friend, Wafik Wahba, Associate Professor of Global Christianity Tyndale University and Seminary on how we can all be in prayer for Egypt. For security reasons I have left out some specific names of churches and individuals.

February 1, 2011

The crisis in Egypt is widening with potential impact on world peace and economical stability. Two months ago, after I gave two TV interviews that were broadcasted across the Middle East and North Africa, my observation was “the situation in the Middle East is deteriorating by the hour.” I did not expect, however, that the situation will take such an unprecedented and dangerous turn as we have been watching during the last week.

I would like to share my thoughts on the current crisis in order for us to pray for this volatile situation.

The current situation:

• Egypt, the most populace country in the Middle East, with 80 million people, has been in a state of turmoil due to significant demonstrations asking President Mubarak to step down. Mubarak has been in power for 30 years. His regime is characterized with significant human rights abuses, corruption and police brutality.
• Last Tuesday, January 25, thousands of people took to the streets of Cairo and Alexandria demanding an end to the dictatorship regime. They were faced with police brutality that resulted in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries. By Friday, January 28 the protesters took over police stations and government buildings in retaliation.
• The police forces were then replaced with the army who took control over the country.
• However, the absence of security forces resulted in a state of chaos and by Saturday it was clear that the social and security order was collapsing. Now there are reports that the police forces that were dismantled were responsible for or organized the looting of shops and businesses as well as terrorizing ordinary citizens.
• By Saturday night, ordinary citizens organized themselves to protect their families and properties against such violent acts.
• Demonstrations continue despite a countrywide curfew, with the largest demonstration taking place today, Tuesday, February 1st, with over two million participants.
• Food staples and medical supplies start to run low in Egypt.
• All financial sectors including banks and Egypt stock exchange are closed to prevent a total financial collapse.
• Social media: the internet and cell phones were completely shut down (first ever in the history of social media) to prevent communication among demonstrators, however, such a move resulted in shutting down most communication systems in the country which added to the current chaos.
• All domestic transportation systems are shut down.
• Evacuation of American, Canadian and other nationalities started yesterday.
  

The Direct Economical Impact

• Impact on the financial stability: The Dow Jones lost 166 points last Friday. Most Middle Eastern stock exchanges lost between 5 and 7%
• The more serious impact which was immediately felt as of yesterday is the increase in oil prices worldwide. Today the price of oil is at $90 a barrel due to the fact that 4.5% of the world oil goes through Egypt, (1.8 million barrels go through Suez Canal a day &1.1 million barrels go through Summed pipelines from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean a day)
• Suez Canal is a vital artery in world trade with hundreds of commercial ships passing through the Canal on a daily basis connecting Asia to Europe.
  

The Political Impact

• The situation in Egypt is creating a diplomatic dilemma for US foreign policy. This political dilemma is due to the fact that Egypt is the strongest ally of the US in the Arab World with the largest military power (Egypt is the 10th largest military power in the world).
• Egyptian military is funded by US aids, second only to Israel, with 1.3 billion a year since 1975.
• Mubarak’s regime has been supported by US and western powers for its significant role in the peace process, creating stability in the region and friendly relations with Israel.
  
• The current political dilemma for the US is summarized in keeping a balance between supporting a dictatorship regime that is faithful to US interests in the region or standing by the Egyptian masses in their demand for democracy, one of the greatest principles of American diplomacy. US, Israel and Europe are watching the situation with great nervousness and anticipation: what will happen to peace treaty with Israel and the stability of the region if this democratic process resulted in an Islamic state in Egypt that is now posses one of the most sophisticate military power in the world?
• Yesterday, the US Military Central Command announced plans to interfere if necessary.
• US Marines were dispatched in Cairo a few hours ago to protect the US embassy
  

The Church in Egypt

Egypt has the largest Christian presence in the Middle East, with over 12 million Christians. The history of the Egyptian church goes back to the first century of Christianity. Egyptian Christianity gave to the world its first organized theological school (in Alexandria), spirituality (the birthplace of the monastic movement) and was key in defending the Christian faith through the formation of Creeds and Ecumenical Councils. Egyptian Christians kept the lamp of faith burning for 20 centuries in spite of turmoil and persecution. Last Sunday, majority of Christians could not go to Churches to worship probably for the first time in history due to the current crisis in the county.

Please pray:

• Please join Egyptian Christians across the world in a three days of fasting and prayer for Egypt, Monday, January 31 to Wednesday, February 2nd
• For wisdom for the political leaders in Egypt, US, and the EU who are directly involved in the current crisis.
• For a peaceful transition of power and for the future of the country
• For The Middle East as its countries are going through a significant period of unrest (no functioning governments in Iraq or Lebanon, transition of power in Tunisia, potential unrest in Algeria, Jordan, Sudan and Syria)
• For the safety of the people in Egypt as they are going through a very difficult time that is unprecedented in the history of the country
• For Christians and Church leaders on how to navigate such difficult terrain
• Special prayer for my dear friend (....) who had a heart attack last Friday when the largest demonstrations broke in Cairo. He is doing better today but still in the Intensive Care Unite. He is one of my closest friends, whom I knew for over 35 years and one of the finest visionary Christian leaders I have ever known.
  

A Country at a Crossroads

Here is a recent update from two of our pastor friends in Cairo:

There are many many people walking towards the Tahrir Square for solidarity, including people we know personally.

• The military is on the streets keeping safety and security, and not harassing the people. THIS IS HUGE in a Middle Eastern country!

• The police came out yesterday and started keeping order again from looters, etc…

• The people are still taking care of their own neighborhoods, keeping security, cleaning the streets, hanging out together!

• People are meeting each other, rich and poor, Muslim and Christian, all for the security and benefit of their country. I’m getting goose bumps thinking about this!

• The government shut down the trains, to stop people from going to Cairo, but there’s already 18 million in Cairo!

• Several of the top leaders of the protest movement are Christians. Christians, in general, are very much involved in the peaceful side of the protests.

• Although some of the buildings around the church were damaged or burned, nothing happened to the church property. And now the military is securing that whole neighborhood. Also, it helps that the US and UK Embassies are a block away.

• The members of the church are meeting in small groups for bible study and prayer.

• Pastor (...) goes to the church every day to pray with the staff and with people showing up there.

• The church has organized the membership in groups for cleaning up the city, treat the sick and hurt, and care for the needs of people. Yesterday, two of the pastors were on duty in the streets, cleaning the mess with many members of the congregation.

• Pastor (...) is very optimistic about what is coming. The major persecutor of the church in Egypt, who was serving as interior minister, was deposed from his position today, and this is wonderful news for Christians.

• The army told the population they were there to defend Egypt, not a particular regime. That’s unprecedented.

• Pastor (...) thinks if Mubarak resigns, the situation will return to normality in very short notice.

• The Egyptian TV just announced that a previous US ambassador just arrived in Cairo to talk to Mubarak. We’re hoping he takes him with him! And give him guarantees for his safety.

Pastor (...) asks all of us to pray for Egypt, and for what is coming up in the near future. The country is at a crossroads. The next events will determine if all of this unrest will result in what Christians have been praying for for a long time: a more just, free and democratic country.