Egyptian Christians Stay Indoors, But Hope for More Freedom

Open Doors USA | Updated: Feb 02, 2011

Egyptian Christians Stay Indoors, But Hope for More Freedom


February 3, 2011

SANTA ANA, Calif. - Christians in Egypt hopeful that the protests in the country will lead to more freedom for them, according to George, a church pastor who partners with Open Doors in Egypt.

"The people are afraid for the future, since this is an extremely critical time. But we trust in God, and we hope and pray for a new Egypt, with democracy and freedom for Christians," George said.

Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church has called upon Coptic Christians to stay away from the demonstrations and to come together and pray for the country, but many Christians are still involved in the demonstrations.

Pastor George said, "I am in contact with members of my church who have gone into the streets to protest. As Christians we are also part of the Egyptian society and community and we cannot stay away from all of this. It matters to us, too. We are also in the middle of it."

When he talked to Open Doors, George had just returned home from a prayer meeting in the house of a believer. He says Christians are afraid to venture too far from their homes given the volatile conditions, but are earnestly praying for the country.

"We cannot go to the church. In every street is a mosque, where Muslims can go to, but there are fewer churches and most people feel unsafe," George said.

"It is very important that we pray at this moment," he continued. "We see that the uproar could lead to a better Egypt and that things could turn out for good, but we do not know yet. So prayer is important."

George said he and fellow Christians are praying for Egypt's President Hasni Mubarak to leave his post "at the right moment," although they are surprised he has not already stepped down. "We pray for him that he will do what is good for Egypt."

The situation has immediate implications as well. The protests and subsequent shtudown of public transportation and most businesses has isolated Egyptians and made it difficult to shop for and buy food. Banks have been closed since the protests began, and ATMs have run out of cash. Most of Egypt runs on cash instead of credit, compounding the problem. George said he wonders what will happen if people are out of cash for many more days.

"The situation on the streets is difficult. We hear gunshots and people are killed on the streets," George said. "The infrastructure in the country is under pressure. It is very scary not knowing how the situation will develop further. Tuesday was an important day as 1 million people were on the street to protest."

Pastor George said that the work of his church in Egypt, in partnership with Open Doors, has come to a standstill.

"Our co-workers and other volunteers cannot go to their ministries or work anymore," says George. "Road blocks, lack of public transportation and curfew are all hindering this. And even now we have no cash funds anymore to pay for projects or to provide our co-workers with enough money to do their work."

Dr. Carl Moeller, president/CEO of Open Doors USA, calls the current crisis in Egypt challenging for Christians and is urging the church in the West to unite in prayer for believers and the future of the country.

Egypt is ranked No. 19 on the Open Doors 2011 World Watch List of the 50 worst persecutors of Christians. Although Christians have not been targeted in the violence over the past week, there have been several attacks in January. On New Year's Day a suicide bomber killed 22 Christians in front of the Two Saints Church in Alexandria. Egypt has by far the largest Christian minority in the Middle East - an estimated 10 million. The population of Egypt is almost 80 million.

Egyptian Christians Stay Indoors, But Hope for More Freedom