Egypt ... the embrace of the three religions of heaven written by / Ashraf Fawzy: Al-hram El-masry News

 

 Written by / Ashraf Fawzy

 We are an atmosphere in celebrating the glorious Christmas. We must remember the history, as the city of Fustat, which was built by Amr bin Al-Aas after the conquest of Egypt in 21 AH / 641 AD, is the first capital of Egypt and it is the beginning of the ancient Egypt region, and it has historical and religious importance, which made it a destination for tourists from all countries of the world  ;

 Religions complex

  The Interfaith Complex is located in ancient Egypt, which includes the most important places of worship for the three monotheistic religions, Islam, Christianity and Judaism. Therefore, it has become one of the most important heritage and tourism areas in the world, and this complex is considered the best example of the religious tolerance that all the monotheistic religions have called for.  God is one, and the one who can legitimize the tolerant values ​​is one.

 Let us know the features of the complex of religions, which is worth a visit for every Egyptian to know the ancient history of Egypt

 Fortress of Babylon:

 It is located in the Complex of Religions and the Fortress of Babylon is considered the oldest monuments in ancient Egypt dating back to the Roman era, which dates back to the beginning of the Roman era in Egypt, and it was expanded by the Emperors Trajan (98-117 AD) and Arcadius (395-408 AD), and this fort has great importance;  Where it is considered one of the most preserved Roman war buildings in its condition, and its walls consist of alternating layers of stone and brick, at the rate of five layers of stone alternating with three layers of bricks, and this fort has five irregular doors supported by many semicircular wall towers, the remainder of this fort now remains  Two huge towers, between them the gate leading to the Coptic Museum:

 The beginning was in the year 1898 AD when the Committee for the Preservation of Arab Antiquities recommended the establishment of a museum of Coptic antiquities, and all donations and collecting rare Coptic artifacts were initiated with the blessing and effort of Pope Kyrollos V.

  The idea began with allocating halls inside the Hanging Church, to which Coptic possessions were transferred from the Bulaq Museum.

 In 1902, Mark Semeika Pasha was able to obtain approval from Patriarch Kyrollos V to allocate a plot of endowment land to build a museum in ancient Egypt next to the hanging church.

 In 1908, Marcus Semeika Pasha completed the collection and preparation of art pieces for display, as well as assembling the wooden ceilings of the ancient gems, which in themselves are a masterpiece.

 In 1910 AD, the official opening of the museum was in the midst of a huge celebration that increased interest in the Coptic period by the community and collected a number of donations from all Egyptian personalities.

  The ownership of the museum was transferred from the ownership of the church to the Egyptian government, specifically to the Egyptian Ministry of Education, in 1913, and as a result, a greater number of artifacts were transferred from the Egyptian Museum to the Coptic Museum.

 During the reign of King Farouk the First, a new wing was opened in the museum, which was designed by artist Ragheb Ayyad.

 Mosque of Amr bin Al-Aas:

  It is located north of the Babylon Fortress and is considered the first mosque in all of Africa and the fourth mosque built in Islam after the Quba Mosque and the Mosque of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, in Medina and the Grand Mosque in Makkah.  it's a

 It is called the Crown of the Great Mosque and the Old Mosque, which was the first mosque established in the homes of Egypt after the Islamic conquest of 21 AH / 641AD. Its location was chosen in the middle of the city of Fustat, and its layout was inspired by the traditional planning of the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina. Its layout was very simple, consisting of a flat rectangular room built with smooth rough stones and back  It was built more than once, and unfortunately, there is not now one foot left of the original building. The mosque is now the one that Abdullah bin Taher rebuilt in the year 212 AH / 827 CE and then repaired by Murad Bey in 1212 AH / 1792 AD in the Ottoman era, and its current layout is an open dish in the middle of the ablution and surrounded by four  Shadows, the largest of which is the Qibla canopy.

 And this mosque is still visited by the people of Cairo to hold the last Friday prayers of the month of Ramadan and they believed that God Almighty accepts the prayers and supplications of those who pray in this ancient mosque, as well as if the flood of the Nile is delayed and the people fear the fall of its water and the ensuing drought and scarcity of strength, the orders were issued to senior sheikhs and imams  And the pious people of the Muslims were to go to the Mosque of Amr and pray the rain prayer in order to increase the water of the Nile, as well as the priests of the various Christian churches held meetings for this purpose, and the Jews would participate with them in that, and this is how the Amr Mosque was the place that Muslims, Christians and Jews alike revered, in search of rain.

 the hanging Church::

 It is considered one of the most important Coptic churches inside the Babylon Fortress, and the hanging church was built after the Virgin Mary and was known as the Muallaqa because it was built on the ruins of the walls of two towers of the ancient towers of the ancient fortress of Babylon, and that is why it is the highest building in the region and dates back to its establishment date back 5 AD, and it was originally a Pharaonic temple then  The Roman Emperor “Trajan” established a fortress of Babylon in the year 8 miles on parts of the Pharaonic temple, and when Christianity spread and the Romans converted to Christianity, the pagan temple turned into the oldest surviving church in Egypt, and in this way it is considered a symbol of Christianity's victory over the tyranny of the Romans, and it is in the basilica style like other churches in Egypt  Old.  .

 This church is noteworthy and raises attention for several reasons, because it is the oldest churches in ancient Egypt at all, and this church has other advantages, including the shape of its ambonha, i.e. its pulpit, which is beautifully inscribed on fifteen columns in the Islamic style.

 Saints Sergius Church:

 Wachus (Abu Sarjah Church)

  It is one of the most famous churches in Fort Babylon

  It is considered one of the churches that have a special place in the hearts of the Egyptians, especially the Copts, and it is the one that people frequent the most, as it has become a very famous place of pilgrimage for its blessing, because it has been affected that the Holy Family rested in a cave below it when it came to suck, during the journey of the Holy Family  And her escape from Palestine from the oppression of Herod, the king of the Roman Jews, and her move to Egypt, so that story was one of the essential factors that bestowed on this church a sacred character, which made it a great fame that might surpass the suspended church.

 This cave is a small underground church, its dimensions are 6 m long, 5 m wide and 3.5 m high, and it has a domed roof, a nave and two northern and southern wings, and the wings are separated by nine minute columns, and this cave is located under the altar of the church, and the Abi Sarja church celebrates on the 24th of the month of Bashans (  One of the Coptic months) corresponding to the first of June commemorating the coming of the Holy Family to Egypt by holding a mass in the church of this cave.

 Ben Ezra Jewish Temple:

  The synagogue of religions is completed by the existence of the Jewish Temple of Ibn Athra, which is one of the largest and most important Jewish temples, known as Synagogue, which is a term used today for synagogues in Egypt, and in the British Encyclopedia it means prayer in a specific place for the Jews, and this gathering is always to introduce the Jewish law,  It is customary to build a temple in a place where there are ten Jews, and the word Sinaguj means in the Hellenistic language grouping and interdependence, and the origin of this temple was a church for the Christians located in the Qasr al-Shama line from ancient Egypt, and it was known as the Church of the Levantines and was sold to the Jews during the reign of Ahmed Ibn Tulun, this church was known  Later in the Temple of Ibn Azra, it is located to the east of the Church of Abu Sarjah, inside the Fortress of Babylon. This church was demolished and rebuilt at the end of the nineteenth century, and during the demolition process, it was revealed inside the collection of funeral papers.

 This temple has a special importance that it acquired after the discovery of the Geniza papers in it and because its library contains the most precious books and Jewish periodicals that chronicle the existence of the Jewish community in Egypt. The temple was named with that name in reference to “Ezra the writer,” one of the evacuated rabbis.

 The temple consists of two floors;  The first is used for male worshipers and the second for ladies' prayer, and is a basilica-style plan

 Most of these installations combined Islamic artistic and architectural influences, as Christian churches were filled with many architectural details and Islamic writings.

 This is how the Egyptians, Muslims, Christians and Jews lived in one community in the area of ​​ancient Egypt, which is considered a synthesis of the three monotheistic religions, as the oldest Islamic, Christian and Jewish monuments gathered in one place to create a natural complex of religions that only a few meters separate between them, and the visitor feels about his visit to this complex with rare pleasure  For the high spirituality of the place and it is an honor that he witnessed two of the first moments, namely our master Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them both, for the complex represents an image that confirms a true dialogue between the three religions dominated by tolerance, coexistence, acceptance of others, tolerance of religions and peace.  The Jewish "shofar" trumpet marked the launch of the three daily prayers, in harmony, calling for national unity and compassion, declaring that religion is for God and the homeland for all.