December
13, 2016
The whole Christian community in Egypt is in shock after
Sunday’s bomb attack on St Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo and needs our prayers and
God’s peace, says our partner.
‘The
message is they are not afraid, but they are concerned, and they ask us to
pray.’
At
least 25 people, most of them women and children, were killed in the
explosion.
Concerns
have been expressed that there might be a return to the anti-Christian violence
of 2013, which followed the military’s overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi.
Some of Morsi’s supporters blamed Christians for his fall from power.
Please
pray that God will comfort all those affected by this attack, especially those
who have lost mothers, wives, sisters and children.
The
target of Sunday’s attack was a chapel adjoining St Mark’s Cathedral, the seat
of Egypt’s Orthodox Christian Church. Release contacts say it appears the bomber
targeted women by planting the bomb in their midst and detonating it during the
service. Dozens were injured.
Egyptian
President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has been quick to show solidarity with the
Christian community and specifically with Coptic leader Pope Tawadros II. He
declared three days of national mourning and attended a state funeral for
victims of the attack.
- Pray that our brothers and sisters in Egypt will know that God is faithful and He never changes. Pray that they will know that they are His ‘treasured possession’ (Deuteronomy 7:6).
- Pray that God’s people in Egypt will stand firm against the temptation to seek revenge or give in to fear. Pray that they will be able to forgive – and that their choice to forgive will be a powerful witness to their society.
- Pray that God will thwart the plans of Islamist militant groups so they come to nothing. Ask God to give President al-Sisi and his Government wisdom to tackle this threat.
(Sources:
BBC; Release partners; The
New York Times)
