Egypt Closes St. Catherine’s Monastery: Confiscates Its Property and Evicts the Monks

Egypt is closing St. Catherine’s Monastery, confiscating its property, and evicting its monks.

According to orthodoxia.info, the oldest functioning Christian monastery successful the world, St. Catherine’s Monastery successful Sinai, on with each its properties successful Egypt, is being transferred to the Egyptian state.

Nearly 15 centuries aft its founding by Byzantine Emperor Justinian, and having survived singular humanities challenges, the world-renowned and respected St. Catherine’s Monastery is connected the verge of being converted into a museum.

Despite promises made by Egyptian President Sisi to Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis, Egypt is confiscating the monastery’s spot and efficaciously evicting the monks, with the purpose of transforming the now-vacant buildings into a tourer attraction akin to the Pyramids.

Suspicious Court Ruling

A determination issued yesterday by an Egyptian tribunal has enactment an end, successful the worst imaginable way, to the years-long ineligible battle faced by the monks of St. Catherine’s from the Egyptian state. This assault, which began during the epoch of the Muslim Brotherhood, has been carried retired done judicial pressures and attacks aimed astatine closing the world’s oldest monastery.

As a result, ownership of the monastery and each its assets is present transferred to the Egyptian state. The monks are required to vacate circumstantial properties, wherever they are nary longer permitted access, and are allowed to stay successful the monastery to fulfill their spiritual duties lone for arsenic agelong arsenic the caller owner—the Egyptian state—permits.

The Greek authorities has provided important enactment to the monks’ struggle, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis raising the contented astatine the highest level, repeatedly urging President Sisi to intervene connected behalf of the monks.

During the Egyptian President’s authoritative sojourn to Athens successful aboriginal May, the contented was discussed by the 2 delegations, resulting successful an statement to halt the unjust judicial attacks connected the monastery to guarantee its continued cognition without interference. In their associated statements, Mitsotakis and Sisi explicitly emphasized the request to sphere the monastery’s character.

However, contempt indications that Egypt, a affable and allied nation, would rectify the injustice—as publically pledged by its president—the caller tribunal ruling has upended these expectations, raising morganatic questions astir the existent intentions of the Egyptian authorities, which look to travel successful the footsteps of the extremist Muslim Brotherhood.

False Claims

As fearfulness grips the monastery regarding what lies ahead, Egyptian archaeologists, specified arsenic Dr. Abdel Rahim Rihan, an archaeology adept and subordinate of the Supreme Council of Culture’s History and Antiquities Committee, person claimed that the properties confiscated by the Egyptian authorities autumn nether antiquity laws. He insisted that the determination benefits the monastery.

“We see this determination historic, successful favour of planetary practice and the monks of St. Catherine’s Monastery, arsenic it secures their close to payment from the monastery and the spiritual and archaeological sites successful the area,” helium stated to a section outlet.

However, the monks, who bash not spot this arsenic beneficial successful immoderate mode and presumption the decision’s humanities value arsenic an onslaught connected their rights, are already preparing a planetary mobilization. They program to pass each Christian churches and different monotheistic religions, arsenic they judge this enactment by the Egyptian authorities is the worst lawsuit successful the monastery’s 15 centuries of existence, efficaciously abolishing it.

So far, the Greek authorities has not issued an authoritative response.