Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria inaugurated the St. Mary’s Assumption Church in a Greek community cemetery in Alexandria on the National Greek Day, Spokesman for the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandxria Nicola Antonios said.
Antonios added that renovation work in the church concluded on Monday.
Greece Consul General in Egypt Athanasios Kotsioni expressed happiness at the church’s inauguration.
With the same perseverance, and the patience and blessing of Pope Theodore in addition to the support of the Greek community, “Egyptian Hellenism” can stand through the difficult conditions Egypt is going through, Kotsioni said.
“The Greek community in Alexandria has completed the restoration work of the 108-year-old church from its budget, taking into account all the procedures stipulated by law,” said Edmundus Kassimatis, head of the Greek community.
He explained that the restoration work was carried out under the supervision of Egyptian civil engineer Gregoris Saatsoglou, whom Kassimatis thanked along with the rest of the team who worked on the project.
“As the head of the Greek community in Alexandria, I thank God who invited me to the Church to lead the restoration and renovation work of this historic temple, where the grave of the great poet Constantine P. Cavafy and the graves of hundreds of our ancestors lie,” he added.
“I know you well, and your sincere desire to return service again to this church. With all respect and love for your highness, I hand over this temple to your blessing,” Kassimatis said in a speech directed to the patriarch.
“We do not close the churches, but we open them to the glory of our Orthodox faith here in Egypt, with the sounds of bells everywhere, and as an expression of the friendship between the great countries of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus,” Antonios quoted the patriarch as saying.
Theodore II dedicated a symbolic gift to the renewed church, which is a cross that was given to him by the Greek community in Zimbabwe.
The pope will also start a pastoral religious visit to three African countries including Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Sierra Leone on November 2 until November 12, Antonios said.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
