This morning, 24 April, opened the second day of the five-day visit by Pope Tawadros II to Kuwait. He is scheduled to visit the Kuwaiti parliament, and the Islamic Antiquities House in East Kuwait. The Pope met Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad and they both visited the Kuwaiti Opera House where they had lunch together.
Pope Tawadros II arrived at Kuwait on Sunday 23 April. It is the first visit for the Pope to Kuwait, and comes in response to an official invitation by the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah.
Accompanying the Pope on his visit is Anba Pachomius, Metropolitan of Beheira and Pentapolis; Anba Marcos, Bishop of Shubral-Kheima; and Anba Yusab, Bishop-General of Luxor; as well as the papal secretaries Fr Ammonius Adel and Fr Angaelos Ishaq.
The Pope was received upon his arrival at the airport by the head of the Amiri staff, Sheikh Ali Gharah; Kuwait’s ambassador to Cairo, Muhammad al-Zuwaikh; Egypt’s ambassador to Kuwait, Yasser Atef; Anba Antonius, Metropolitan of Jerusalem, the Near East, and Kuwait; as well as the clergy of St Mark’s in Kuwait and a number of State officials.
Shortly after he arrived, Pope Tawadros was received by Amir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad. It was a courteous visit, with the Pope expressing his happiness for meeting the Amir and for visiting Kuwait which, he said, was famous for the tolerance and kindness of its people.
According to Fr Bigoul al-Anba Bishoi, pastor of St Mark’s church in Kuwait, the Coptic congregation was overjoyed at the Pope’s visit. That afternoon, his first in Kuwait, Pope Tawadros held Vespers service at St Mark’s. He was received with resounding enthusiasm by the congregation, many of whom took the day off from their work in order to meet him. He promised he would meet the Coptic families after the service.
“So happy to visit such a beautiful country and such kind people,” Pope Tawadros said at St Mark’s. “I first knew Kuwait through the Kuwaiti al-Arabi magazine, which was the gift offered by Kuwait for all intellectuals in the Arab World, since it speaks to the mind about human knowledge,” he said.
The Pope’s sermon during the service focused on ‘Love’, urging all to spread love in words and deeds.