Tomorrow, Egypt’s Copts are celebrating the anniversary of the departure of a contemporary saint who was known and loved by all Egyptians, as he was the father to all; Saint Pope Kyrillos VI (the 116th patriarch of Alexandria), who was canonized by the Coptic Church in 2013.
Pope Kyrillos VI was born on August 8, 1902, named Azer. Despite his success, as witnessed by everyone, especially his subordinates at work, his heart and mind were preoccupied with heaven, desiring to present them to God through a continuous life of prayer and worship, and love that rose above all what is worldly. So, Azer joined the Monastery of Saint Virgin Mary in Wadi El Natrun (Al-Baramous) on 7/27/1927, and was soon ordained a monk on 2/25/1928 under the name of monk Mina Al-Baramousy, then a priest on 7/18/1931.
Archpriest Abdel Massih Al-Massoudi, one of the monastery’s old monks, bore witness to the monastic life of Father Mina, saying: “he ploughed and waited for the rain”, i.e. “he prepared himself to accept the rains of God’s grace”. On the day of his ordination as a monk, the silent monk Archpriest Yackob Al Baramousi finally broke his silence and said, “O son, may God bless you, prepare you for grace and make your ways prosper successfully”.
Father Mina Al-Baramousy lusted for the life of solitude in the desert, so he first resided solely in a cave at Wadi El Natrun, and despite such harsh life, peace and cheerfulness never departed from Father Mina. One day in 1933, he met Dr. Hassan Fouad, the director of Arab monuments, accompanied by the director of the Theological College in New York, who came seeking the origin and history of monasticism, after the meeting, Dr. Hassan told Father Mina, “O Father, you have held the monks’ heads high and honored the Egyptian man. My warm greetings to you, I wish I can prove my deep appreciation towards you one day!”
In 1936, Father Mina the Recluse moved to a windmill in Al-Mukattam; having the scent of his sacred hagiography spread among people, particularly after building a church in Ancient Cairo on the name of his beloved Saint Martyr Mina the Wonder-worker. Father Mina the Recluse stayed in Ancient Cairo until he became the head of the Monastery of Saint Samuel the Confessor in Qalamun; he cared for the monastery’s headquarter in Al-Zoura village, Al-Minya, as well as the monastery itself, making it prosper and restored its monks.
The divine care chose him to shoulder the responsibility of tending the Coptic Orthodox Church in an accurate hard time; he was ordained a patriarch named Kyrillos VI on 10/5/1959. During his papacy, he was a tender father and pastor, seeking the salvation of his sons. One of his disciples, Archpriest Monk Raphael Ava Mina, mentioned: “I bear witness before God, throughout my service to the pope, I have never seen him lurking anyone or bearing hatred for anyone or fighting those who fought against him. Contrarily, I have seen his love towards all, even his enemies, he embraced them and entrusted them to important tasks!”
Deep love and mutual respect took place between the greats late President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Pope Kyrillos VI, both were admired by all, that “the Voice of America” radio described Pope Kyrillos upon his departure as “the loyal friend of Abdel Nasser”. Such deep love was full of appreciation, understanding and ongoing work for the interest of the country. History can not overlook the stances taken by Pope Kyrillos VI during the crises of the country, as 1967 war and the war of attrition, his patriotic stances regarding Egypt and the Middle East, especially the Egyptian’s stance regarding the case of Jerusalem. He issued a historic statement- together with His Eminence Hassan Maamoun, Sheikh of Al-Azhar then, in which they asserted on the unity of all the Egyptians towards all the cases related to Egypt.
Pope Kyrillos VI departed from the world on Tuesday morning 9/3/1971, in a farewell scene described by the late Bishop Ghorighorios (The general bishop of theological and Coptic culture post graduate studies and scientific research then) as follows, “God has honored your death by this rare farewell, in which loyalty and love were declared, as well as the deep respect of your scented hagiography and pure life”. The pleasant smell of his life spread and he was worthy to be canonized and… stories about beautiful Egypt never end!
The General Bishop
Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
العربية
