Egypt #8: Heroes
by Brian Stewart
Months ago when I first saw the itinerary for our trip, the name jumped out at me: Nag Hammadi. Just about everyone who has studied early Christian history knows this is the site of the 1945 discovery of a collection of 3rd and 4th century Coptic manuscripts called the “Nag Hammadi Library.” These documents reflect a system of thought called “Gnosticism” which draws a hard distinction between the spirit and the body. I chuckled to myself and thought, “I wonder if I’ll see any Presbyterian Gnostics when I visit Nag Hammadi?” Instead, what I found were a bunch of heroes who are deeply committed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
One of these heroes is the pastor of the church, Rev. Magdy Fouad Abdel-nour. When Rev. Magdy came to the Nag Hammadi Church in 2000 they had not had a pastor in 6 years, nor did they have a session or any records for the congregation. Internal migration in Egypt had led many of the congregants to move to Cairo, Alexandria and beyond in search of economic opportunities, and the 100 sq.m building itself, built in 1935, was in shambles.
In 2006, once the congregation was on sure footing, Pastor Magdy and the church began to pray that God would expand their building so that they would have room for all the others who will be brought to Christ. And so began a series of miracles that culminated with the gift of a building adjacent to the church – a property for which they had been praying for 30 years. Now with an overall building footprint of some 800 sq.m, the congregation is slowly converting, remodeling and preparing the church for the next phases of its ministry that include outreach to the poorest members of its community. This outreach includes a clinic, a preschool and a home for the elderly.
Another great hero of the church is Elder Magged – one of four Presbyterians in the Egyptian parliament. Elder Magged shared that in 2010 an extremist attacked the Coptic Orthodox Church in Nag Hammadi on Christmas Eve killing seven people and injuring many more. This was an unusual event, he said, because relations with Muslims tend to be generally peaceful. Still, he added, tensions do exist, and he is thankful for the increased police protection at the church. There are some businesses that will not hire Christians because they are considered “unclean,” and even some other Christian denominations give them a hard time because of their sole commitment to the Word of God. Elder Magged has been a key leader in the revitalization of the church and is truly one of the heroes of this congregation.
Elder Ayyad, a physician who has administrative oversight over four area hospitals, proudly led us through the area of the church that is being converted into a clinic. He and five other physicians in the church will volunteer their time to run the clinic. He proudly stated the church follows the pattern of ministry taught by Jesus: preaching, teaching, healing and evangelizing. No Gnostics here.
Challenges for the Presbyterian Church of Nag Hammadi remain - like the desire to now fill the church with worshippers of Jesus and the need to raise the financial resources required to complete the preschool, clinic, youth space and the sanctuary sound system, and pews – but this congregation of heroes believes that as they trust in God, he will provide for their future just as he has in the past.
Evidently, a few Americans over the years have come to see the archeological sites, but no group of American Christians until ours has ever traveled to be with the church. Near the end of my conversation with Rev. Magdy, he said, “I have taken several Americans to see the exact spot beyond the mountain range to the West to see where they discovered the library. If you come back, I can show you.” “La shukran” (no thank you), I responded. “If I come back, I want to worship with all the new people the Presbyterian Church of Nag Hammadi has led to Christ.”