The following comes form an October 28 Manteca Bulletin article by Glenn Kahl:
His Holiness Pope Tawadros II began his first United States tour with a two week visit to Texas. The Egyptian and Eastern Rite Pope is the 118th pope of the Coptic Church of Egypt. He is the leader of the 16-million- member Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt now on a whirlwind pastoral tour that has taken him from Florida to California.
The Pontiff’s visit throughout the U.S. has been little noticed with minute fanfare about his presence and very little media attention throughout the country. There has been growing immigration to the states, Europe and Australia by its church membership due to the growing turmoil in Egypt. Churches outside the country have been introducing English into their religious services that have traditional been conducted in Coptic and Arabic.
The pope’s religious career began late in life after he received a pharmacy degree in 1975 and managed a pharmaceutical plant before studying to become a priest. He was ordained in 1989 and elevated to a bishop status eight years later.
The 62-year-old church leader was installed as the church’s 118th pope in 2012. The church traces its heritage – its original founding – back to the apostle St. Mark in the first century followed by the separating from the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches in 450 A.D. It was a year after being elevated as pope that Tawadros became only the second Coptic pope to visit a sitting Roman Catholic Pope at the Vatican in Rome in 2013.
Sometimes there is confusion. There are Eastern Rites within the Catholic Church.
Catholics can fulfill their obligation by attending the Latin Rite (which most attend in the USA), or Ambrosian, Byzantine, Alexandrian or Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Maronite or Chaldean rites.
CCC #1203
The Eastern ORTHODOX Churches are not Catholic.
Yes, this article was very confusing because I don’t think the author knows anything about the history of Christianity. In short, this bishop is the Eastern Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria.
and not in communion with Rome, as I understand it.
I agree Maddie and Steve. Thats correct YFC. He is not.
Those that are in conformity with the Roman Catholic Church are called “Uniates”
Yes, Uniates is one of the names of the Eastern Churches that are united with Rome, and I would think it would include the Copts who united with Rome, too. The gentleman above, Pope Twadros, is not. Never the less, I think it is a good idea to buy merchandise from them that is not against the teaching of our own Church since they have suffered so much from radical Islam and are Christian, too. The cross I bought from them is of a type that is also used by the Latin and Eastern Rite Catholic Churches too.
As an Eastern Catholic, I’d like to note that the Coptic Catholic Patriarch of Alexandria is Ibrahim Isaac Sidrak. Please pray for him and his flock. As previously noted, Tawadros II is Coptic Orthodox. Listen to the bishops prayed for during an Eastern Divine Liturgy (Mass) and if you don’t hear the Pope, the bishop of Rome, prayed for, then you’ll know they’re Orthodox and not Catholic. Also, the term “uniate” is a derogatory term Eastern Orthodox use to describe us. (They claim we compromised the faith in the process of reuniting with the Pope and the Catholic Church.) Better to simply refer to us as what we are, Eastern Catholics. And, as pointed out, the Coptic Orthodox too are brothers and sisters, though separated from…
Thank you Deacon, for your clarification. It was a confusing article, and you helped clarify it.
Great comments Deacon!
Deacon Anderson, I had no idea the term “Uniates” was derogatory and am sorry for using it.
It would, also, be most helpful if someone could tell us where we can buy such things as Jesus Prayer Ropes from those Eastern Catholics who are united to the Vatican.
So does the Vatican count all the Eastern, Greek, and Russian Orthodox members as catholics in its census of the size of the Catholic Church in the world, some nearly 1.0 billion?
no
No.
No thanks for your non-credible replies. Leave it to a couple of deceivers to be the first to answer. Deceivers that actually know little about the Catholic Faith, deceivers who tempt others to break God’s heart with their sinful homosexual actions and agenda.