GUIZEH, Egypt, JULY 7, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Under normal circumstances, it can take as many as 30 years and a signature from the president to get a new church built in Egypt.
That’s why Coptic Catholics are happy to be benefiting from a unique opportunity that will bring them a new church in no time.
Bishop Antonios Aziz Mina of Guizeh explained to Aid to the Church in Need that his diocese is getting a new place of worship because it will be the first such locale in a new, quickly growing urban area south of Cairo.
The bishop explained that the plans are still being solidified, but a 300-square-meter (0.07-acre) plot of land has been allocated for the church and a school.
«Our people are very strong in their faith and they keep saying they want a church,» Bishop Mina said.
«It will be very easy for this church to be built,» he added. «It is because the government follows the line that in every new urban area there should be a church.»
Aid to the Church in Need is helping the bishop with the project, which is estimated to cost €300,000 ($377,775).
Coptic Catholics are a small minority in Egypt with about 250,000 faithful; the Christian majority are Coptic Orthodox, with between 8 million and 10 million faithful.
The Diocese of Guizeh has five men studying in major seminary, though it has only about 6,000 Catholics and was just created as a diocese in 2003.
