Egyptians of All Faiths were United in Expelling the Muslim Brotherhood

A local Catholic nun insisted that the Egyptian people were united over the expulsion from power of the Muslim Brothers: "not only the Christians, but also the Muslims came out to defend and campaign for something that was just," she said.

In an interview with Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), a Spanish Comboni missionary, Sister Expedita Pérez,  discussed how the Christian minority in Egypt is already well accustomed to living under discrimination and with little freedom, but in recent weeks they have had to bear the additional burden of being unfairly blamed for the fall of the Mursi government of the Muslim Brothers.

"We are being accused by the brotherhood of having overthrown President Mursi, but we are merely a minority of 12%, and in the demonstrations there were over 33 million people," insisted Sister Expedita, who works in a school in Cairo.

As a result of this accusation, the smouldering fuse of violence flared up and began to engulf churches, parish centers, communities and even schools. The fundamentalists and extremists felt they had the perfect excuse to attempt once again to destroy the unwelcome Christian presence in the country.

Sister Expedita daily hears the shouts of protest, often very violent, and, like all  Christians in Egypt, she feels fear and uncertainty for the future of the country.

"The Christian community is frightened,” said Sister Expedita, “but has finally woken up, has opened its eyes and begun to emerge from the sacristy and be aware of the situation, and now the Christians want to stand their ground and defend themselves from the terrorists.”

“It is true that many churches have been burnt out, but at the same time many Christians have begun to mobilize and defend their churches. They are taking shifts, day and night; above all they are young people who have stationed themselves outside their churches to prevent attacks."

As Sister Expedita explained to ACN, these young Christians "are surrounding the churches together with their other brothers in faith, both Orthodox and Protestant. All united."

As far as the future of the government is concerned, Sister Expedita is confident that it will not be an exclusively military government and that it will be possible for all Egyptians to be integrated within it.

"So far it seems to be respecting and defending the minorities; we shall see, given that the attacks by the terrorists are very fierce and insistent. Egypt is very big, and we have to all build it together," she emphasized.

Originally published by Aid to the Church in Need on 26 August 2013.