Jerusalem
and the Middle East
Church Association

Bishop Mouneer and Bishop Derek lead the Palm Sunday procession in Cairo

Article

Obituaries

I thank you for your continuing support and prayers. Now I have many things to share with you.

On Christmas Day evening we welcomed the Revd Emad Azmy, the Principal of Alexandria School of Theology (AST) as one of the Diocesan Clergy. Revd Emad is a very capable teacher and preacher and he is a wonderful addition to the ministry team. Michelle Azmy, his wife, is also involved in AST and the churches.

We rejoice to welcome Bishop Derek and Alice Eaton, from New Zealand, back into the Diocese. They have willing agreed to work with me and take some of the burden from my shoulders.

Good news from Ethiopia

Ababa, and meeting the Revd Dr Michael and Margaret Starr. The Library is doing very well, with almost 200 students using it daily.

While there I met a small Amharic speaking group who come to our church and wanted to know more about the Anglican way and our position in regard to the current issues of the Anglican Communion. There are many Ethiopians who have became ‘unchurched’ so I feel that it is exciting that St Matthew’s is trying to help. We are committed to good ecumenical relations with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church but also to reaching the unreached.

We visited the Gambella region to sort out some previous divisions within the church, to deal with difficult cultural and tribal issues such as polygamy and immorality. We had very fruitful meetings with church leaders. It is not an easy area to work in, but the good news is that the Government has granted us 20,000 square metres to build a church, a library and a centre for peace building. While I was there I went with Canon Andrew Proud to give thanks to the Governor.

My sabbatical in the UK

Nancy and I spent ten weeks at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. I was working with Professor David Ford who mentored and helped me, and arranged that I would meet with him and others weekly and with a group of scholars every two weeks. The idea was to learn their wisdom through discussing different topics. I focused on modern theologians, the Anglican Communion, St Augustine of Hippo, First Corinthians and St Athanasius of Alexandria. I found this a very fruitful and refreshing time. I am very grateful to all those who helped and encouraged me.

Nancy had severe neck pain, but with pain killers she managed to attend classes in Pastoral Counselling and Spiritual Direction, which she very much enjoyed.

I was also able to meet church leaders who were generous in sharing their time and wisdom. These included Archbishop Rowan Williams, Lord Carey, Revd Dr John Stott, Bishop Geoffrey Rowell and Archbishop John Sentamu. I cannot tell you how much I learnt from them.

The Grand Mufti of Egypt visited Cambridge while I was there and I accompanied him in most of the meetings. This was a wonderful opportunity to develop our personal friendship.

One thing I could not do in Cambridge was cycling! Everyone cycles in this beautiful city. While there Nancy and I visited a variety of churches with different styles of worship.

I thank all those who supported my Sabbatical, especially Bishop Maurice Sinclair and Gill, who covering for me in the Diocese, and Canon Godfrey Taylor and all the clergy for keeping the Diocese running. I also thank the Diocese of Sydney, St. Augustine's Trust UK, Lord Carey and Archbishop Rowan Williams for their financial support.

Encouraging visits to Algiers and Libya

The service at Holy Trinity, Algiers was very encouraging. The Revd Rulinda Augustin is encouraging the African community, many of them are students, and they led with vibrant music.

I had an excellent meeting with the Church Council and also with the Minister of Religious Affairs. Rulinda is now one of three Christian Church leaders who meet with the President once a year.

I was delighted to see the growth of the church in Tripoli, where I confirmed twelve candidates from Africa and Asia, and I baptised four members of a Hindu family. I met for the first time Deacon Ketola, responsible for the English speaking congregation, ordained by Bishop Maurice Sinclair last October. The ministerial team, the Revd Robbie Parkasam, the Revd Samuel Henri and the Revd Kosti Ketola work very well with each other.

Ghanaians in Tunis

The Ghanaian members of St George’s, Tunis, celebrated the 50th anniversary of the independence of their nation with a service on Sunday 11th March. I am most appreciative of the hard work of the Revd Gerald Brulotte, the Revd Emil and Pastor Kwami. in building up the church and keeping unity among the wonderful congregation from different ethnic backgrounds. There is an excellent Sunday school and youth work. They are also starting Alpha courses in two languages.

Pray for me

I request your prayers for the extra responsibility God has laid on my shoulders as President Bishop of the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. I feel very inadequate and will need special grace to be able to fulfil this role from the beginning of May when Bishop Clive our President Bishop retires. I do appreciate and thank him for his leadership of the Province. He will hand over the Primacy to me on the 18th April at a service in All Saint’s Cathedral, Cairo.

We rejoice that the Provincial Synod has agreed to start a new Episcopal Area in the Horn of Africa and will consecrate Canon Andrew Proud, Rector of St. Matthew’s, Addis Ababa, on 12th April.

I pray that the Pentecost season will be full of blessing for you. On behalf of all my colleagues here I thank you for your continuing support and prayers.

Mouneer

Information on the Diocese of Egypt with North Africa