The members of Copts 38 Union which was established last year to campaign for changes to the Coptic Church’s strict divorce laws waged a fierce attack against both the Coptic Church and the State. They claimed the courts were refusing to grant them civil divorce, despite the fact that they already had remarriage permits from the Church
The members of Copts 38 Union which was established last year to campaign for changes to the Coptic Church’s strict divorce laws waged a fierce attack against both the Coptic Church and the State. They claimed the courts were refusing to grant them civil divorce, despite the fact that they already had remarriage permits from the Church.
In a conference held at the Journalists’ Syndicate in Cairo, the members of Copts 38 criticised the 2008 move which annulled the 1938 bylaws that had permitted civil courts to rule for divorce in case of Copts basing on nine ‘lenient’ conditions.
Pre-required, but not binding
Ever since these bylaws were drafted by the Coptic laity Melli council in 1938, they had come under fire from the Coptic Church for “violating the teachings of the Bible”. Their implementation, moreover, resulted in contradictory rulings: the court would issue divorce rulings which the Church frequently refused to recognise since they went against the teachings of the Bible. The Church insisted that the Bible explicitly cited only adultery as cause for divorce; marriages may be annulled, however, if it is proved they were based upon deceitful allegations or practices, or if one of the parties converts to another religion, meaning it is no longer a “Christian” marriage.
Once the Church issues a divorce ruling or annuls a marriage, it grants the wronged party a remarriage permit. Legally, though, a remarriage permit by the Church cannot be put into effect except after a civil divorce ruling. Meaning that even though civil divorce and Church divorce are entirely independent of each other, civil divorce is pre-required for the Church to grant an effective remarriage permit, but affords no guarantee that such a permit should be granted in the first place. A civil divorce is in no way binding to the Church and does not compel it to issue a remarriage permit if it sees the case at stake warrants no divorce.
No discrepancy
Finally, in 2008, an agreement was concluded between the Coptic Church and the State to replace Code 38 by new bylaws that allow only adultery, death, or religious conversion as basis for divorce. The move was expected to put an end, once and for all, to discrepancies between court and Church rulings on divorce.
No one expected, however, that the tables would be turned and that remarriage permits granted by the Church would have to await civil divorce rulings that have become too difficult to come by.
“Members of the union obtained remarriage permits that were granted to them by the Coptic Orthodox Clerical Council,” said Nader al-Sirafi, the union’s official spokesperson, “notwithstanding, they are unable to complete the divorce procedures in front of the Egyptian Judiciary.” He explained that the members of Copts 38 have sent letters to the acting patriarch Anba Pachomeus, calling upon him to investigate their cases and put an end their suffering.
Copts 38 called for the reimplementation of the 1938 bylaws, and criticised the Church for its insistence on the “literal interpretation of the Bible”.
Defamation
For his part, Anba Bola, Bishop of Tanta and head of the Personal Affairs Department of the Clerical Council—the council in charge of divorce cases in the Coptic Orthodox Church explained that following undisclosed investigations, the Clerical Council granted several remarriage permits. The problem, he said, is that since 2008 the court only grants divorce on evidence of adultery, which is very hard to prove without defaming one or another of the parties.
Under the 1938 bylaws divorce was allowed for, among other reasons, attempted murder, a prison sentence of seven years, abandonment for five years, sexual aversion for three years, chronic illness, insanity for three years, sexual dysfunction, and irreconcilable differences.
“We expected the amendments to the 1938 code to achieve an equilibrium between the Church and the State, but unfortunately, the Copts became the victim,” Sirafi lamented.
He said that the steadfast opposition of the Coptic Church to divorce for reasons other than adultery has led [according to lawyer Peter al-Naggar, some 10,000] Copts to convert to Islam in order to end unhappy marriages. In case the plaintiffs embrace different religions or sects, Egyptian courts rule according to Islamic sharia.
Supremacy
Egyptian family law is based on the religious principles of various groups. Civil marriage is only allowed in case one or another of the parties is non-Egyptian.
For its part the Church more than once stressed its supremacy in what concerns divorce and remarriage. Pope Shenouda III said that no power on earth can force the church to go contrary to the teachings of the Bible, and these clearly state that there can be no divorce except in case of adultery.
Watani International
24 April 2012
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