The President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, attended a Christmas service at the Coptic Orthodox Church in Cairo last week and told worshippers that he was sorry for the slow rate of reconstruction of the churches that were attacked during the 2013 terrorist attacks and said that the rebuilding would be completed this year.

The Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem and the Middle East, the Bishop of Egypt, Mouneer Anis, was there and wrote this reflection for ACNS.

It is difficult for me to describe the joy that filled the Coptic Orthodox Cathedral when President Sisi entered to congratulate the worshipping crowds. This surprising visit was more meaningful than any words that might have been said. The visit was a message of multiple aspects.

First it was a message to the people of Egypt, affirming what President Sisi had said before: “the solution is to seriously love each other”. The visit expressed the President’s love for his people; not in mere words, but by action. It is this love that does not worry about criticism from extremists. It was a message that affirmed his determination to activate the rights of citizenship which are guaranteed by the new constitution. These rights were, for many years, just ink on paper. Two weeks ago, I attended the celebration of the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed alongside the President. Now he has come to attend the celebration of Christmas in the cathedral.

Second it is a message that says, “I am a president for all Egyptians. I share in both their joys and their sufferings.” It is a message that encourages people to follow in his steps and stop discrimination between the people of Egypt. It helps in shaping the minds of the people in a new way. The visit encouraged the acceptance and respect of diversity. He said, “God created us differently so we need to rejoice at these differences, not just accept them”.

He gave a wonderful example of this new mindset when he courageously gave apology to the Christians for the slowness of repairs to burned churches. These churches were burned by terrorists in July 2013. He also promised that the repairs would take place during 2016. It was encouraging to see his appreciation for the national role played by Pope Tawadros II during the times of crisis Egypt has gone through. It also demonstrates an appreciation to all Christians who shared with their Muslim neighbors in the revolution and in martyrdom in defending Egypt, especially Sinai.

Finally, this was a message to the outside world saying that Egypt now lives in a new age in which human rights and feelings can be respected. This was obvious in the messages I received from overseas. This was indeed a visit with deep and multiple significance.