Monastery of Abu Fanah

The Monastery of Abu Fanah in Egypt was named after the Christian saint Abu Fanah, alternately Abu Fana or Apa Bane (c. 354-395), an Egyptian Christian hermit. The monastery is sometimes called the monastery of Saint Fanah and is also known as the Monastery of the Cross, due to the presence of many beautifully decorated crosses inside its church.

Location

The Monastery is situated in the Western or Libyan desert, not far from the cultivated land of the Nile valley, a round 300 km south of Cairo, northwest of al-Ashmunayn, around 2 km from the village of Qasr Hur and east of the village of Beni Khaled.

Foundation and history

The monastery was most likely built around the burial site of Abu Fanah. His tomb was found during excavations of an international team representing seven European academic institutions and led by Austrian scholar Prof. Dr. Helmut Buschhausen in 1992 [Buschhausen, H. et all, Die Ausgrabungen von Abu Fanah in Oberägypten im Jahre 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 ] .

The 12th century historian Abu al-Makarim mentions the church of Abu Fanah, which was restored by al-Rashid Abu Fadl [Dr. Otto Meinardus mentions him in “Two thousand years of Coptic Christianity," American University in Cairo Press, 1999, p. 215 but does not explain who he is. He was probably a local Egyptian notable.] . Egyptian historian of the 14th-15th century al-Maqrizi wrote about the monastery's fine architecture. [Otto F.A. Meinardus, " Two thousand years of Coptic Christianity", American University in Cairo Press, 1999, p. 215 ] The History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria mentions the monastery of Abu Fanah twice, first in relation to the election of Patriarch Theodosius II, Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church, 1294 -1300 and second to the childhood of Patriarch Matthew I, 1378-1408.In pre-Islamic times the monastery reportedly numbered some 1000 monks. The monastery's numbers had drastically dwindled before the arrival of Islam in the seventh century. Al-Maqrizi reports that during his day, the monastery held only two monks.The French Jesuit priest Father Michel Marie Jullien (1827-1911) reported that the priest of the neighboring village Qasr Hur had cleared the church of debris and used the church for the Divine Liturgy [Otto F.A. Meinardus, Christian Egypt, Ancient and Modern, American University in Cairo Press, 1977, p. 365-366] .When German scholar Dr. O.F.A. Meinardus visited Abu Fanah in the 1960s the monastery was in ruins with remains stretching over a wide area. Only the historical church survived. Pieces of gray granite were also found, suggesting that the monastery may have been built on the location where an ancient temple once stood. On a small hill stand the ruins of a qasr, or tower, which ancient monasteries had. Approximately 80 meters from the ruined monastery one finds the cave of Abu Fanahh, the location where he reportedly lived. Meinardus does not report on the monastery being inhabited. [Otto F.A. Meinardus, Christian Egypt, Ancient and Modern, American University in Cairo Press, 1977, p. 365-366 and 'Two thousand years of Coptic Christianity', American University in Cairo Press, 1999, p. 215] The surviving old monastic building consists of an ancient basilica, deeply sunk into the sand in the center of a vast mound that, according to the Coptic Encyclopedia, “no doubt” conceals the ruins of the Monastery. The neighboring mounds perhaps conceal isolated cells or hermitages. [Rene-Georges Coquin and Maurice Martin in the Coptic Encyclopedia, Macmillan Publishing Company, 1991, Vol. 3, p.698-700 ]

Modern history

The modern history of the monastery starts with a renewed interest shown by the Coptic Orthodox Church in this monastery after the excavations of the team of Dr. Helmut Buschhausen in 1987-1993 [H. Buschhausen, “Die Ausgrabungen in Abu Fano und die Identifizierung des Apa Bane,” in Acta XIII Congressus Internationalis Archeologiae Christianae, 1998, p. 159] . Following these excavations, the Egyptian Ministry of Culture decided in the year 2002 to declare an area of 1 km by 2 km as the archaeological periphery of the monastery. The Department of Antiquities suspects that this land may hold buried historical remains [Arab-West Report, 2008, week 15, art. 3 Egyptian Villagers Resist Monastery's Growth] . _{[http://www.arabwestreport.info/map.html see map]}

After the Department of Antiquities decision, the Coptic Orthodox Church built new cells, a new entrance, a reception and a large cathedral just outside the boundaries of the archaeological periphery _{[http://www.arabwestreport.info/awr_images/Photo_AbuFana/14%20deir.jpgsee photo] –(monastic buildings built from the year 2000 onwards)}. Prior to 1999, no monks resided permanently in the monastery. Five monks came to the monastery in 1999, and in 2003, Pope Shenouda, head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, consecrated an additional 12 monks, followed later by one more monk. From 2003 onwards there have been repeatedly conflicts over land with neighbors of the monastery. In July 2008 there are a total of 18 monks and 9 novices residing in the monastery, who are assisted by tens of laymen [Muslims, Christians clash over desert, faith, and politics in Upper Egypt, in Christianity Today, July 23, 2008, Figures according to the Deputy Head of the Monastery of Abu Fanah, Father Antonius, 27 July, 2008] .

Tensions

On May 31, 2008, monks and/or Christians close to the Monastery of Abu Fanah reported that monks' cells and a church belonging to the monastery had been attacked by a group of roughly sixty armed Arabs [This number is mentioned in the joint press release by Coptic organizations on the monastery of Abu Fanah attacks, June 7, 2008 [http://freecopts.net/english/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=912&Itemid=9 Free Copts] . The same number is mentioned by Father Dumadios of the Monastery of Abu Fanah, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 4] .] , a name commonly used in Egypt for Bedouins who have settled in villages bordering the desert [Katia Saqqa, a Syrian writer and translator living in Egypt, writes that the term “Arabs” is used in Egypt to refer to tribal communities in the desert, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 7] . The head of the Beni Khaled village, neighbors of the monastery of Abu Fanah, explained the importance of reclaiming desert land in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 5] ] The location they show is an outpost of the monastery with monastic cells and a chapel dedicated to St. Cyrill _{[http://arabwestreport.info/awr_images/Photo_AbuFana/21Happend%20building.jpgsee photo] –(extension of the monastery that was attacked)}. The attacks resulted in damage to this section of the monastery and its surrounding property.

An ensuing fight left one Muslim killed, four Christians wounded, and three monks being briefly kidnapped, requiring hospital treatment upon their return [ Al-Misri al-Yawm of 1, 2, 3 and 8 July, 2008 , al-Usbua of June 7, 2008, al-Dustur of July 2, 2008 (Egyptian newspapers ) ] . The clashes were followed one day later by a demonstration of around 300 Coptic youth in Mallawi who blamed the government for "inaction in the face of repeated attacks by Muslims against their community." [ [http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=world_news&month=june2008&file=world_news2008060241212.xml The Peninsula Times] , June 2, 2008 published an AFP report mentioning that "a security official confirmed that three monks had been kidnapped by Muslims during the clashes and were released on Sunday morning and taken to hospital for treatment." The publication also reported about the demonstration that followed the day following the clashes. ] 13 Muslims and two Christians who were allegedly involved were arrested and brought before the prosecutor-general [The governor in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 3] ] .Governor Ahmed Dia el-Din found a number of police reports documenting disputes over land that span several years [According to the head of the Arab Beni Khaled village, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 5] ] . Villagers living on the edge of the desert have been reclaiming desert land for at least 20 years [One can directly go to google earth or search through Arab-West Report where [http://www.arabwestreport.info the disputed area is marked] ] , which can also be witnessing using google earth [Egyptian Villagers Resist Monastery's Growth, Muslims, Christians clash over desert, faith, and politics in Upper Egypt, in [http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2008/07/egyptian_villag_1.html Christianity Today] , July 23, 2008] .Disputes over land in Egypt are impacted by overpopulation, with a population of roughly 80 million living on an area that is roughly twice the size of New Jersey. Water is a common catalyst for disputes over land [An example of such an article is Rose al-Yūsuf, April 18, 2008, “Warnings against the overuse of Nile water and Muslim scholars considered it a denial of the favour of God.” (Egyptian newspaper)] The remaining area, around 96% of the total land surface of Egypt, is desert. Egyptian media frequently report about conflicts over land and water [ Egyptian Gazette, July 7, 2008, p.1 (Egyptian newspaper)] . In a land conflict between two families near Banha, 23 people were killed and 44 were wounded. [The governor in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 3] ]
Desert land belongs to the state. Consequently, when someone wishes to purchase this land, government permission is required [The governor in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 3] , Rose al-Yūsuf of June 7-13, 2008, Egyptian Villagers Resist Monastery's Growth, Muslims, Christians clash over desert, faith, and politics in Upper Egypt, in [http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2008/07/egyptian_villag_1.html Christianity Today] , July 23, 2008 ] “Urfi” contracts, are agreements between two parties that lack the proper registration with the government, contracts that are drafted without first obtaining the required governmental permits. Abu Fanah Monastery obtained a portion of their land by employing “urfi” contracts, resulting in the governor's rejection of the monastery's claim to posses valid land titles [Al-Misrî al-Yawm, June 23, 2008. See also several Coptic websites . Al-Maydan published an article on June 18, 2008 (p. 6) on clashes between Coptic activists and al-Jama'ah al-Islamiyah on the issue of Abu Fanah. ] .Monks in Abu Fanah criticized local police, stationed approximately 6 km from the monastery, for arriving at the monastery several hours after having been informed of the attack [Father Dumadios of the Monastery of Abu Fanah, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 4.] ] . Coptic activists abroad, both during and following the attack, were contacted by monks and laymen in and close to the monastery [Several Coptic websites make it obvious that there was contact between monks and Coptic activists in the West. The [http://freecopts.net Free Copts] website wrote on June 7, “According to one of the monks on the scene, the Egyptian police did not respond to the attacks until three hours after the call for help was made.” Most references appear to be to Father Mina, see for example [http://www.copticassembly.org/showart.php?main_id=1135 Coptic Assembly] .] . They responded by posting angry responses on the Internet and holding several demonstrations in North America and Europe [Reported on several Coptic websites and blogs such as [http://blogspot.com Blog Spot] , [http://www.copticassembly.org/showart.php?main_id=1135 Coptic Assembly] ] .

Many Copts, both those living in the diocese of Mallawi, the diocese the Monastery belongs to, and Coptic activists in the West, alleged that Muslims attempted to force the three kidnapped monks to convert to Islam by declaring the Shahada, the Islamic creed [Reported on several Coptic websites but also in several Egyptian media such as al-Dustūr of June 13, 2008 (p. 1) and al-Fajr, June 16, 2008 (p. 27). ] . Many YouTube productions followed, statements were made, press releases were published, all placing the conflict in a sectarian context, rarely making references to conflicting land claims and if this is done, it is often done to explicitly deny that a land conflict played a role [Reported on several Coptic websites, see for example [http://www.copts-united.com Copts United] , which published the statement of a group of Coptic organizations on June 6, 2008, see also [http://coptic-news.net Coptic News] ] .

The responses from monks, Christian workers in the monastery, and Coptic activists in the West encouraged hundreds of Christians to demonstrate in Mallawi, a Middle Egyptian town which is the seat of the Bishop of Mallawi who is also the abbot of the Monastery of Abu Fanah. Demonstrations of Christians in Egypt is a relatively new phenomenon [The subject index of Arab-West Report, covering Muslim-Christian relations in Egypt starting in 1997 until today shows no Christian demonstrations in Egypt between 1997 and 2001, and has recorded several demonstrations since. These were the result of an outburst of Coptic anger against al-Nabā’, an Egyptian publication, which in 2001 alleged sexual practices of a monk in the Monastery of Dayr al-Muharraq. The allegations later proved to be false, the newspaper was suspended for some time. [http://www.arabwestreport.info/awr_search/search.php search in this subject index for Developments in Muslim-Christian Relations in the Arab world] , then [http://www.arabwestreport.info/awr_search/search.php search in the subcategory for Christian demonstrations] . [http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2001/539/eg6.htm Al-Ahram provides an overview of a Coptic demonstration] ,] . Christian protesters in Mallawi chanted "With our blood and soul, we will defend the cross.” [ Reported on several Coptic websites, the [http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=world_news&month=june2008&file=world_news2008060241212.xml The Peninsula Times] , June 2, 2008. Nahdat Misr of June 3, 2008 headlined: "Copts of Mallawī demonstrated screaming the Muslims Brother's slogans". The author of the article Ayman Riyād mentioned that the Coptic demonstrators used a slogan that had been used earlier by Muslim Brothers: "I will pray, I will pray, no matter what may happen to me." The demonstrators also shouted: "Pope Shenouda take care of the issue, we are behind you and we defend you with our blood." It is noteworthy that the same article stated that it was proved that the abduction of the monks was a mere rumor.] .

The attack on the monastery and the ensuing Coptic response in and outside Egypt was prominently reported in Egypt. Heated discussions following the attack were published in the Egyptian media for many weeks following the attack [In the first days following the attack, June 1-8, 15 different Egyptian print publications published 43 articles, many of them lengthy. In the weeks that followed, June 9 – July 6, another 54 articles were published. For one month of reviews of Egyptian media following the attack see the English press reviews of Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestrport.info 2008, week 15, art. 7,8,9 and 10] and Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestrport.info 2008, week 16, art. 11] ] .

Coptic monks and Egyptian Christians close to the Monastery of Abu Fanah placed the attack in a sectarian context which was echoed on several Coptic websites in the West [Father Dumadios of the Monastery of Abu Fanah, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestrport.info 2008, week 15, art. 4] , see also the reporting on several Coptic websites.] . Coptic leader Pope Shenouda stated that the assailants did not want the monks to cultivate the desert land they legally possess [The governor denied the legality of the ownership documents of the monastery and called them urfi, that is not properly registered with government authorities. Interviews with the governor can be seen in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestrport.info 2008, week 15, art. 3 and week 16, art. 4] .] . "These (assailants - referring to the Muslim Arab neighbors of the Monastery) do not have any one to rule them," Pope Shenouda said in a statement criticizing the Egyptian government for not being able to control the Monastery's Arab neighbors. Pope Shenouda's statement came very close to calling the conflict “sectarian” [Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 8] ] . The Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church called on Egyptian President Muhammad Husnī Mubārak to intervene to prevent a repetition of similar assaults [Al-Dustur, June 13, 2008, mentioned that the Holy Synod’s declaration is the first of its kind and that it was issued while the pope was on a medical trip to the United States. See also Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 8] ] . Egyptian media quoted Egyptian officials explicitly denying that this conflict was of a sectarian or religious nature [Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabreports.info 2008, week 15, art. 7] ] . Egyptian journalist Muhammad al-Baz reports in Al-Fajr that the attack against the Abu Fanah Monastery was not the first of its kind, and that attacks have been carried out since 2005, but denies that there was a sectarian element to the attacks. Instead, he believes that there were materialistic and financial motives (land ownership) involved. He criticized the monks’ allegations that they were targeted because they are Copts. Al-Baz claims that the monks pretended that the attacks were of a sectarian nature to obtain people’s compassion and prove that they are persecuted [Al-Fajr, June 16, 2008, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 8] . This argument is supported by Christian activist Raed al-Sharqawi, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 2] .] . Dr. Amr al-Shubaki stated on June 12 in al-Misri al-Yawm that the absence of a state of law hurts both Muslims and Christians alike, in the same way that other serious problems such as anarchy and unemployment do. Dr. al-Shubaki referred to the widespread use of urfi agreements and the system of Wad al-Yad – a common practice to obtain land. One does not own the land but nevertheless reclaims it and after doing so for several years the land becomes legally owned by the person cultivating the land [Dr. Amr al-Shubaki, ’Sectarianism and counter sectarianism,’in al-Misri al-Yawm, June 12, 2008, Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 8] . The methods of buying land through urfi agreements and Wad al-Yad are explained in Arab-West Report, [http://www.arabwestreport.info 2008, week 15, art. 2] . ] .

Coptic intellectual Dr. Samir Marqus believes this is a land-conflict with religious dimensions that were introduced to strengthen partisan positions. He worries about the effect that this dispute may potentially have on grassroots Muslim-Christian relations [Dr. Samir Marqus in al-Masry al-Yom, July 23, 2008] .

Few foreign media have reported the attack; "Egyptian Christians, Muslims clash, killing one (Reuters/may 31), "One killed, four injured in Egypt monastery clash," (AFP/May 31). The Los Angeles Times (June 11) placed the attack in the context of other violence directed against Copts. The Washington Post (July 7) reported that attacks such as this one make the Christian Copts of Egypt turn inwards, strengthening a ghetto mentality. [http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2008/07/egyptian_villag_1.html Christianity Today] (July 23) focused on the growing pressure on land and water.
Arab-West Report ( [http://arabwestreports.info English] - [http://arabwestreports-arabic.info Arabic] ) and the National Council for Human Rights each sent a delegation to the region to investigate the tensions [Al-Wafd newspaper, July 18, 2008, translation is to be found on Arab-West Report ] .

Current Abbot

The current abbot of the monastery is His Grace Bishop Dimitrius.

ee also

* Saint Abu Fanah
* History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria
* Coptic Orthodox Church
* Al-Maqrizi
* Theodosius II

References

External links

* [http://www.mallawi-demet.org/Arabic/abofana/menu.html Official Website of the Monastery of Saint Fana]
* [http://www.arabwestreport.info Reports about the Monastery of Abu Fana incidents]
* [http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/apabane.htm TourEgypt page on the monastery before the rebuilding]