Egypt' s Coptic Christians choose new pope

The Coptic Orthodox church has
chosen a new pope , Bishop
Tawadros, to lead the Middle East' s
biggest Christian community.
In a sumptuous ritual filled with
prayer , chants and incense on Sunday
at Abbasiya cathedral in Cairo , the 60-
year- old bishop 's name was picked by
a blindfolded child from a glass bowl
in which the names of two other
candidates had also been placed .
They were Bishop Rafael, 54, a
medical doctor and current assistant
bishop for central Cairo ; and Father
Rafael Ava Mina , the oldest of the five
original candidates at 70.
Tawadros, of the Nile Delta province of
Beheira, replaces Pope Shenouda III
who led the church for four decades
until he died in March aged 88.
Many Copts will look to the new pope
to ensure that the voice of Christians,
who have long complained of
discrimination in Egypt , are heard.
Acting Pope Pachomios laid on
Sunday the three names, already
selected in a limited vote in church last
week , in plastic balls inside the chalice
before starting Mass .
He selected on Saturday 12 altar boys
between the ages of five and eight ,
one of whom was ordered to pick the
name during Sunday' s ceremony.
Tawadros will be the 118 th pope in a
line dating back to the origins of
Christianity and to Saint Mark , the
apostle and author of one of the four
Gospels, who brought the new faith to
Egypt .
Nearly 2, 500 Coptic public officials,
MPs, journalists and local councillors
took part in the vote.
Sectarian fears
Strict measures were taken to ensure
there was no foul play during the
entire process , before a large
congregation and televised . The three
pieces of paper were all the same size,
tied up the same way and placed in
the box.
Shenuda , known as a careful ,
pragmatic leader, died at a critical time
for the increasingly beleaguered
minority , which has faced a surge in
sectarian attacks after an uprising
overthrew Hosni Mubarak in February
2011 .
Al Jazeera ' s Mike Hanna , reporting
from Cairo on Sunday, said that
traditionally speaking, the Coptic pope
in Egypt have kept a low profile
" although Pope Shenuda III had been
accused of being close to the Mubarak
regime ".
" Many hope the new pope will
engage more on the political field
because now the new constitution is
being drafted , and they are hoping for
a secular constitution ," he said .
The Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch
of All Africa in the Holy See of St Mark
the Apostle serves as the spiritual
leader of Egypt 's Coptic Christians,
who make up between six and 10 per
cent of the country' s 83 million
population .
Amid increased fears about the
community's future after Mubarak 's
overthrow , Tawadros will be its main
contact with Egypt 's first Islamist
president, Mohamed Morsi.
The rise of Islamists after the
revolution has sparked fears among
Copts of further persecution at home,
despite Morsi' s repeated promises to
be a president " for all Egyptians" .
In the latest incident, five Copts were
injured in clashes with Muslims at a
church in a village south of Cairo on
October 28, security sources said.
The violence broke out when Muslim
villagers tried to block access to the
church as the Coptic faithful arrived
for Sunday mass .