The LOGOS Coptic Youth Forum has become an honoured tradition of the Coptic Orthodox Church. Known in brief as LYF, it is a periodic gathering of Coptic young people from inside or outside Egypt, hosted by Pope Tawadros II. If the youth come from outside Egypt, the Forum runs under the general theme “Back to Roots”; if from inside Egypt, the theme is “Relishing the Roots”. Additionally, each forum has its own specific theme. The first LYF was held in 2018.
Seeing that young people are the future of the Church, LOGOS Youth Forums aim to instil in them the spirit of joy and to train them to come into contact with the love of Christ amid the pressures and preoccupations of daily life. This is in addition to cherishing their Egyptian and Coptic roots.
LYFs are held at LOGOS Centre in the Western Desert’s 4th-century monastery of Anba Bishoy in Wadi al-Natroun some 120km northwest Cairo. LOGOS Centre, the brainchild of Pope Tawadros, was built in 2016 to be a state-of-the-art modern home for dialogue, culture, and education, spreading knowledge and preserving Coptic heritage and history.
It hosts forums for local, international, and ecumenical bodies to foster dialogue and communication. It features the Transfiguration Church, study centres, conference halls, guesthouses, a spacious garden, a clinic, restaurant, and amenities needed for a comfortable, beneficial, spiritually uplifting stay. The location of the centre in the grounds of the 4th-century desert monastery and adjacent to the majestic Coptic Orthodox Church’s Central Papal Library which opened in 2019 and is home to the world’s biggest collection of Coptic manuscripts and an extensive array of titles in various fields, stresses the centre’s character as symbolising the continuity of Coptic heritage and culture over the centuries.
Point of start: Mass
This year’s LYF was held from 24 – 30 August at LOGOS Centre, under the specific theme “Take a step” as in first, towards God; second, towards yourself; third, towards your community; and fourth, towards your Coptic identity.
The Forum was opened on the evening of Saturday 24 August by Pope Tawadros who was joined by a number of metropolitans, bishops and priests.
At dawn on the following day, Sunday, the Pope presided over Mass which the Forum participants attended.
Following a hearty breakfast, the young people gathered for two lectures. The first was by Anba Mikhail, Bishop of Helwan and Maasara, who talked of God’s work in humans through the capacities of men and women, no matter how meagre theses capacities. The second was a talk by renowned businessman Karim Sami Saad who focused on entrepreneurship and setting up and developing one’s own business.
The evening saw the participants being divided into five groups that would engage in various workshops in rotation. The workshops focused on handcrafts, artificial intelligence (AI), Bible study that centred on the Forum’s theme “Take a step”, and a group that meets with Pope Tawadros. Discussions with the Pope tackled a variety of topics introduced by the young people, and the Pope also spoke to them about the Coptic Church in Egypt and its current spread outside it. He would meet the other groups in succession.
The evening also featured a meeting with the Panorama al-Barsha Ensemble, formed of young Coptic actors, singers, and dancers who made the film The Brink of Dreams which won the Golden Eye Award for Best Documentary Film at the Cannes International Film Festival 2024.
Film produced by Egyptian villagers wins the L’Œil d’Or at Cannes
The day concluded with Midnight Praise sung by the youth in a truly joyful spirit.
Visits galore
The following days of the Forum were full of meaningful, exciting activities.
Apart from the spiritual core activities which included visits by the Pope to the various work groups to reply to their questions and discuss with them topics of interest, the young people visited a number of landmarks in Alexandria. They toured the naval base in Ras al-Tin west of Alexandria, an area which houses the royal Ras al-Tin Palace which was built in 1847 as the summer seat of Egypt’s kings; and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the modern-day revival of the Library of Alexandria, the ancient world’s centre of learning and enlightenment.
They also visited the newly renovated Greco Roman Museum in Downtown Alexandria, and Montazah Palace. The palace was built at the end of the 19th century to be the summer residence of Egypt’s royal family—Egypt’s royalty began with Muhammad Ali Pasha who ruled the country starting 1805, and is credited with being the founder of modern Egypt; the monarchy ended in 1953 when Egypt became a republic.
Finally, there was a visit to St Mark’s Cathedral in Alexandria, the original seat of the Coptic patriarchs till that seat was moved to Cairo in 1047.
Capacity building
The LYF were treated to Logos Fair on Wednesday 28 August, which featured 26 civic and Church organisations and institutions that introduced themselves and their activities to the young people. Pope Tawadros was present all throughout the Fair, listening to the participant institutions and asking for information. Among the participants were: the governmental mega-initiative of Hayah Kareema (Decent Life) which aims at improving the lives of the most needy rural communities not only through charity but through holistic development.
Others included the Egyptian Red Crescent; Top Business; Fahim Foundation for Psychological Support; Maadi Counselling Institute; Christian Life Coaching; the Coptic Orthodox Bishopric for Public, Ecumenical and Social Services BLESS; Heart of David Choir; the Deacons School of the church of the Holy Virgin, Doqqi; Bible4you; Information Technology Institute (ITI); Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Naval Transport; Egypt’s Ministry of Youth and Sports; the Papal Office for Projects; and the Coptic Orthodox Church website.
That day saw a number of seminars that focused on capacity building and skills needed to confront challenges.
The talks broached topics such as “As a Christian, how can I be an influencer on social media?” by Fr Boulos Halim, head of the training sector at the Coptic Church’s Media Centre, and Fr Marcos Samuel who is in charge of the youth ministry in Beni Sweif Diocese; the success journey of young persons who made it in politics, leadership, and private business by Abanoub Gamal and Nevine Iskandar; Personal Branding by Walaa’ Murad; and Public Speaking by Fady Amir.
Relish your roots
At the papal headquarters in St Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo, the young participants in LYF had the opportunity to meet public figures who had been invited for that purpose by Pope Tawadros.
Present were Cairo Governor Ibrahim Saber; Port Said Governor Moheb Habashy; Beheira Governor Jacqueline Azer; also MPs Mahmoud Hussein; Emad Khalil; Martha Mahrous; Dina Abdel Karim; Waguih Toma; Marianne Azer; and Albert Gamil.The Pope and his guests headed to St Athanasius the Apostolic Hall in the Cathedral grounds, where they listened to the young people. A report was presented by the youth on the fourth LYF, the experience they acquired, and the meanings instilled in them. The result: pride in their country and Church.
Fr Danial William, general coordinator of the fourth Forum gave a word. Pope Tawadros gave a word which he started by thanking the organisers of the Forum and applauding the great effort done to prepare and organise it, an effort which, he said, started a full year early, in order for the Forum to be a treasure trove for the young people to serve them through a lifetime. He called upon the youth to transfer the experience they gained to their communities, churches and dioceses.
“Our Church,” the Pope said, “is a national entity that carries the responsibility of preparing good citizens not only for the kingdom of Heaven, but also for the homeland.”
He thanked all who had come, saying that “young people are entitled to get all possible care from us; to get from their Church a full cultural, religious, national, artistic, and monastic dose. The young are precious to their country and Church, they are fully entitled to relish their national and Church roots.” He looked at the youth and said: “Relish your life in your homeland.”
Watani International
4 September 2024
