Journey Back to Eden.pdf - St Mark Coptic Orthodox Church Chicago

A TIME TO GO ONPILGRIMAGE 147Shenouda more about this,” one monk opined. I cannot imaginethat Pope Shenouda is not already keenly aware of it.One monk asked me how I felt about the stigmatist, AnnaCatherine Emmerich. Another one told me that he has a picture ofPope Pius XII in his cell, for he considers him to be a great saint.He added that this Pope was so strong in his faith that on one ortwo occasions he actually raised the dead by prayer. I didn’t knowabout that, but a visiting abbot had heard about it as well.They wondered about the Oriental practices that have beenentering into Western Churches, such as meditation, breathing,and stretching exercises, which are designed to “center” a person.The Coptic Orthodox monks didn’t like the idea of being “centered”by techniques, and even if that were possible, they thoughtit couldn’t be as efficacious or important as being centered by faithin the Paschal Mysteries of Christ.We spoke, then, at length about those mysteries, and our greatgrace and joy to be invited therein, so the conversation went late. Itwas nearly midnight when I returned to my room, such as it is, butI wasn’t anxious to get back there since I knew it would be a nightmade fairly sleepless by mosquitoes.