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

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A TIME TO VISIT NEW PLACES 193that Word became man, mere men could only account it aword which deeded over your second-best gift and the bittersweetsign of your Providence: the Land of Israel.Moses must have learned that the human heart itself isthe very best repository of your word and promise; that theheart in dialogue with you is the holy ground, the mostPromised Land, and the most solemn place of your rest. Mosesnever entered Israel; his body and his burial place are hidden.He, like Elijah, was taken up into the mystery of your dialoguewith him. Moses and Elijah both came to “this mountain,”the mount of intimacy with you.They both came to Jesus on Tabor before he carried thewhole weight of our tragic race into a sacred discourse withyou on Calvary. The dialogue of the Father and the Son:therein is the cloud which came down on Sinai; therein is thelight reflected on the face of Moses. Please accept my prayershere as a willing, silent attention to their heavenly conversewhich I cannot hear in so many words, but which I may atlength repeat to others in holy, human commerce if I lovethem.
JULYA TIME FOR FAREWELLSThe Crucible of Upper EgyptJULY 1–3, WEDNESDAY–FRIDAYThe last several days have been spent taking a train tour ofEgypt, south of Cairo, traveling from one village to the next intoareas of Egypt that are more and more Coptic. As we pass throughtowns that are increasingly Christian, there is a noticeable change inthe landscape. The number of church steeples with crosses atopthem begins to show as high a frequency as the number of minaretswith crescent moons on top. The skyline is sometimes dramatic becauseof this—and strangely beautiful. If only the faithful of bothreligions could so beautifully coexist as their towers on the horizon!The tensions between the Christians and the Moslems in thisarea are greater than in the north. Perhaps it is because the Christianshave a higher profile here; perhaps they are more outspokenhere. Perhaps just the very sign of them atop the churches, as wellas their greater numbers, confirms the success they enjoy. Thismakes the lack of unanimity, the fact that the nation is not entirelyIslamic, more difficult for the Egyptian majority to endure. A numberof Moslems have recently told me how painful it is for them toacknowledge that, after so many centuries, there are still people inEgypt who are not Muslim. They say that since it is obvious toanyone with an open mind that Mohammed is God’s prophet, it isdifficult, even agonizing, from their perspective, to imagine that somany cannot grasp this “truth.” They wonder if it is, indeed, hardheadedness,hard-heartedness, contempt, or arrogance, by whichthe Copts refuse the “obvious truth” of the Islamic religion.194
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Copyright © 2002 by Mark Gruber, O
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JOURNEY BACK TO EDENMy Life and Tim
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In gratitude to Abuna Elia,the sain
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CONTENTSPreface ...................
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PREFACEWhile in Egypt, I did not in
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PREFACExiElia, to whom this journal
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ABOUT THE COPTS AND THEIR DESERT MO
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2 INTRODUCTIONI will be traveling i
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4 INTRODUCTIONmy novitiate and had
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6 SEPTEMBERlarge high-rises. Appare
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8 SEPTEMBERprior to their trip so t
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10 SEPTEMBERyour hands—as much or
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12 SEPTEMBERA Beggar among BeggarsT
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14 SEPTEMBERlabored without rest or
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FATHER JOHN WATSONHis Holiness Pope
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18 SEPTEMBERHe drew a cross on top
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20 SEPTEMBERBlessed Lord,You brough
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22 SEPTEMBERtude, and silence, appr
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OCTOBERA TIME OF NEW BEGINNINGSThe
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26 OCTOBERcontradictions they fear
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28 OCTOBERdramatic effect of my hea
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30 OCTOBERWill my heart remain here
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NOVEMBERA TIME TO VISIT ABRAHAMGues
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34 NOVEMBERThe guest master, it tur
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Abuna Elia
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38 NOVEMBERBut in their case, he as
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40 NOVEMBERafter the death of Sarah
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42 NOVEMBERto take his son. All the
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44 NOVEMBERhe sojourned in Egypt in
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46 NOVEMBERthe monastic ideal to a
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48 NOVEMBERArabic LessonsNOVEMBER 2
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50 NOVEMBEROf course, it is not tru
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52 NOVEMBERthe Ark of Noah looked l
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54 NOVEMBERits life-giving water fr
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56 NOVEMBERCross more brightly: fal
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DECEMBERA TIME OF SIGNS: CAELUM ET
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60 DECEMBERfirst sold ourselves to
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62 DECEMBERis by fasting, most of a
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64 DECEMBERficient. If they can obt
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66 DECEMBERThe great apparitions of
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68 DECEMBERKing of the Jews, by the
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70 DECEMBEREveryone seeks the assis
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72 DECEMBERDECEMBER 15, MONDAYAlmos
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74 DECEMBERfor her. She is delighte
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76 DECEMBERtween Alexandria and Cai
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78 DECEMBERboth are real in the bod
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80 DECEMBERof faith which preserves
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82 DECEMBERI feel particularly sorr
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84 DECEMBERThe children—six, seve
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JANUARYA TIME OF CELEBRATIONJANUARY
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88 JANUARYEveryone, it seems, is mi
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90 JANUARYA Holiday VisitOn the eve
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92 JANUARYAlmost the whole orientat
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94 JANUARYI blessed water in their
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96 JANUARYI find myself in the unus
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98 JANUARYferent path, and every da
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100 JANUARYyour ageless love are cr
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102 JANUARYless because they’re a
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FATHER JOHN WATSONA Coptic Orthodox
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106 JANUARYheard a voice—perhaps
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108 JANUARYI reflected afterwards a
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110 JANUARYsolitude and in terms of
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112 FEBRUARYjust visiting the deser
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114 FEBRUARYJust then some of the p
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116 FEBRUARYThe children of the Pha
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118 FEBRUARYAbuna Elia said that th
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120 FEBRUARYGod. For all Christians
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122 FEBRUARYFEBRUARY 18, WEDNESDAYD
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124 FEBRUARYsources. I had some of
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126 FEBRUARYshall be a sign and a w
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128 FEBRUARYFEBRUARY 28, SATURDAYTh
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130 MARCHmerich, the German mystic
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132 MARCHThe wildflower meadows her
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134 MARCHbishop who resides near he
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136 MARCHOf Building Bonds and Brea
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138 MARCHSprings in the DesertMARCH
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140 MARCHwomen in the West experien
Page 157 and 158: 142 MARCHlunch somewhere, or they h
Page 159 and 160: 144 MARCHbe willing to move from my
Page 161 and 162: 146 MARCHA Fly on the WallMARCH 31,
Page 163 and 164: APRILA TIME OF CONSECRATIONOf Sands
Page 165 and 166: Grass mats cover the floor of a mon
Page 167 and 168: 152 APRILmony. Even recently, some
Page 169 and 170: 154 APRILwho are distributed everyw
Page 171 and 172: 156 APRILIn the papal compound I me
Page 173 and 174: 158 APRILin their own home parish.
Page 175 and 176: 160 APRILAfter greeting me he told
Page 177 and 178: 162 APRILI keep reminding myself th
Page 179 and 180: 164 APRILA Rare Spring HolidayAPRIL
Page 181 and 182: 166 APRILthat the very same innocen
Page 183 and 184: MAYA TIME TO PRESS ONWARDOases and
Page 185 and 186: 170 MAYthe commotion associated wit
Page 187 and 188: 172 MAYeven saw monks trying to get
Page 189 and 190: 174 MAYNevertheless, I ask you to a
Page 191 and 192: 176 MAYof grace that people can enf
Page 193 and 194: 178 MAYI’m staying at the house o
Page 195 and 196: 180 JUNEThe Cave of a SaintJUNE 5,
Page 197 and 198: 182 JUNEThe abbot of the monastery
Page 199 and 200: The gate of St. Anthony Monastery.
Page 201 and 202: 186 JUNEno place to lay his head”
Page 203 and 204: 188 JUNE“Fountains and Springs, B
Page 205 and 206: 190 JUNEmonks here, I decided to dr
Page 207: 192 JUNEof his family—and broke e
Page 211 and 212: 196 JULYare known in Egypt, and the
Page 213 and 214: 198 JULYthat, the heat is now reall
Page 215 and 216: 200 JULYbering the slap I received
Page 217 and 218: 202 JULYyou for our founder who cam
Page 219 and 220: 204 JULYJULY 23, THURSDAYI returned
Page 221 and 222: 206 JULYprize that Eve forfeited wh
Page 223: AFTERWORDFifteen years have passed
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