Photo: Flickr / Mark Fischer (cc)
Since 2016, the government of Egypt has been slowly approving the registration of more than 3,700 church buildings that were operating without the required licencing. These buildings were established before 2016, during a time when permits were virtually impossible to get. Although the licencing process now being administered has been long and tedious, thankfully progress is eventually taking place.
For a Coptic community in the village of Al-Azeeb, the process of attaining a safe place to worship has become even more difficult due to the opposition of hostile neighbours. After obtaining the necessary permits from the government to construct a church building, this congregation began excavating the property in preparation for the laying of the foundation. On the evening of December 18th, however, militant members of the Muslim community in their village, as well as those from the surrounding area, converged on the building site. Along with physically attacking the workers who were present, the mob threw stones and Molotov cocktails at the Christians' homes and livestock – all the while, clashing with police officers who were working to mitigate the attacks.
While local police and security forces are continuing in their search for culprits of the attack, followers of Jesus in the community are fearful of further violence. For more information on the challenges experienced by Egyptian Christians, go to our country report.
In the aftermath of this recently occurring incident of persecution, ask God to mightily intervene on behalf of the Christians in Al-Azeeb by ministering His peace, protection, comfort and encouragement. Pray that those responsible for the attack will not only be held accountable for their destructive actions, but that they would also experience the Holy Spirit's conviction for their volatile hostility towards fellow members of the community – in hopes of them turning to Christ with sincere repentance. Finally, pray that relational reconciliation and harmony would become more evident among the diverse peoples of this community and those in other areas of Egypt.
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