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The vast majority of Egyptian Christians are Copts who belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, an Oriental Orthodox Church. [2] [3] As of 2019, Copts in Egypt make up approximately 10 percent of the nation's population, [4] with an estimated population of 9.5 million (figure cited in the Wall Street Journal, 2017) [5] or 10 million (figure cited in the Associated Press, 2019). [6]
Christmas has been a national holiday in Egypt since 2003. It is the only Christian holiday in Egypt. [81] Coptic Christmas, which usually falls on January 6 or 7 is a major feast. Other major feasts are Epiphany, Palm Sunday, Easter, Pentecost, Ascension, and Annunciation. These are known in the Coptic world as the Seven Major Feasts.
The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the official name for the largest Christian church in Egypt. The Church belongs to the Oriental Orthodox family of churches, since the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451. This church was established by Saint Mark the apostle and evangelist in the 1st century.
In January 2017, following twin terrorist attacks that killed at least 27 Coptic Egyptians at St. Peter and St. Paul's Church in Cairo in December 2016, the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah el-Sisi commissioned the construction of the country's largest mosque and church in the new administrative capital to become symbols of coexistence and national unity. [7]
The Hanging Church is the most famous Coptic Christian church in Cairo, as well as possibly the first built in basilican style. [4] The church is the site of several reported Marian apparitions. [8] She is said to have appeared in a dream to Pope Abraham in the 970s in the story of how the Mokattam Mountain was moved by the faith of Simon the ...
The library was originally intended to be a church by Pope Cyril IV, but because of its deviation from the eastern direction it was never consecrated and thus became the library. [25] It contains a rich collection of printed books and the largest collection of Coptic manuscripts in Egypt, which amount to some 1,863 volumes. [23]
The Coptic Christian population in Egypt is the largest Christian community in the Middle East. [7] Christians represent around 15% to 20% of a population of over 115 million Egyptians, though estimates vary (see Religion in Egypt).
This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 3 March 2025. Second-largest Christian church This article is about the Eastern Orthodox Church as an institution. For its religion, doctrine and tradition, see Eastern Orthodoxy. For other uses of "Orthodox Church", see Orthodox Church (disambiguation). For other uses of "Greek Orthodox", see Greek ...