Egypt
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Faith Across the Ages of Egypt: Pharaohs to the Moving Mountain (Contents)
Chapter 1 – The Dawn of Egyptian Spirituality Chapter 2 – Foreign Influence and Religious Syncretism Chapter 3 – The Rise of Christianity and the Coptic Identity Chapter 4 – Doctrinal Conflict and the Coptic Church Chapter 5 – The Arab Conquest of Egypt (641 CE) Chapter 6 – Gradual…
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Chapter 1 – The Dawn of Egyptian Spirituality
Part I – The Sacred Origins of Egypt 1.1 The Nile as the Source of Life and Faith The civilisation of ancient Egypt emerged along the fertile banks of the Nile around 3100 BCE, when Upper and Lower Egypt were unified under King Narmer. The river’s annual inundation transformed arid…
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Chapter 2 – Foreign Influence and Religious Syncretism
Part I – The Sacred Origins of Egypt 2.1 The Persian and Hellenistic Encounters (525–332 BCE) In 525 BCE the Persian Achaemenid Empire, under Cambyses II, conquered Egypt and absorbed it into a vast multicultural realm stretching from the Indus to the Aegean. Persian rule largely preserved Egypt’s administrative and…
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Chapter 3 – The Rise of Christianity and the Coptic Identity
Part II – The Christianisation of Egypt 3.1 St Mark the Evangelist and the Birth of the Alexandrian Church According to early ecclesiastical tradition, St Mark the Evangelist arrived in Alexandria around 42 CE, bringing the Christian message from Jerusalem to one of the ancient world’s greatest intellectual capitals. While…
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Chapter 4 – Doctrinal Conflict and the Coptic Church
Part II – The Christianisation of Egypt 4.1 The Council of Chalcedon (451 CE) and the Schism The fifth century marked a decisive rupture in Egyptian Christianity. The Council of Chalcedon (451 CE) attempted to resolve long-standing Christological disputes concerning the nature of Christ. Building upon the formulations of the…
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Chapter 5 – The Arab Conquest of Egypt (641 CE)
Part III – The Coming of Islam and the Reconfiguration of Society 5.1 The Historical Setting By the early seventh century, Egypt stood as one of the richest provinces of the Byzantine Empire, supplying grain to Constantinople and functioning as a bastion of imperial power in the eastern Mediterranean. Yet,…
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Chapter 6 – Gradual Islamisation and Cultural Integration
Part III – The Coming of Islam and the Reconfiguration of Society 6.1 From Conquest to Cultural Transformation The Arab conquest of Egypt (641 CE) brought administrative and political change, yet the process of Islamisation—the adoption of Islam as a faith and culture—was gradual and complex. Initially, Muslims formed a…
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Chapter 7 – Taxation, Law, and Tolerance in Medieval Egypt
Part III – The Coming of Islam and the Reconfiguration of Society 7.1 Fiscal Foundations: Zakat, Jizya, and Kharāj The early Islamic state that emerged after 641 CE was both a religious community and a fiscal entity. Its stability depended upon a just and sustainable taxation system. In Egypt, as…
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Chapter 8 – Egypt under the Fatimids
Part IV – The Fatimid Era and the Miracle of Mokattam Mountain 8.1 The Rise of the Fatimid Caliphate The Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171 CE) emerged in North Africa as an Ismāʿīlī Shiʿa dynasty claiming direct descent from the Prophet Muḥammad through his daughter Fāṭima. Unlike the Sunni Abbasids in Baghdad,…
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Chapter 9 – The Story of Saint Simon the Tanner
Part IV – The Fatimid Era and the Miracle of Mokattam Mountain 9.1 Historical and Religious Context The reign of Caliph al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh (953–975 CE) was marked by prosperity, intellectual debate, and religious tolerance. Within his pluralistic court, inter-faith disputations were encouraged as demonstrations of the empire’s scholarly sophistication.…
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Chapter 10 – The Miracle Re-examined
Part IV – The Fatimid Era and the Miracle of Mokattam Mountain 10.1 Primary Sources and Transmission The earliest and most authoritative record of the Moving of Mokattam appears in the Coptic History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria, compiled between the 11th and 13th centuries (Gawdat & Vivian 2013). The…
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Chapter 11 – Muslim and State Perspectives
Part IV – The Fatimid Era and the Miracle of Mokattam Mountain 11.1 Fatimid Pragmatism and Religious Neutrality The Fatimid Caliphate (969–1171 CE) was remarkable for its administrative sophistication and religious pragmatism. While the Caliphs were Ismāʿīlī Shiʿa, they governed a majority Sunni Muslim and Coptic Christian population with deliberate…
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Chapter 12 – From Miracle to Memory
Part V – Modern Egypt and Religious Continuity 12.1 The Enduring Presence of Mokattam Over a millennium after the supposed Moving of the Mountain, the Mokattam Hills still dominate Cairo’s eastern skyline—no longer a site of fear or debate, but of worship, art, and community life. The Coptic Church continues…
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Chapter 13 – The Enduring Coptic and Islamic Identities
Part V – Modern Egypt and Religious Continuity 13.1 Egypt as a Land of Two Faiths Modern Egypt remains one of the world’s oldest and most complex religious landscapes. Roughly 90–92% of Egyptians are Muslim, predominantly Sunni, while 8–10% are Christian, almost entirely Coptic Orthodox (CAPMAS 2021). Both faiths claim…
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Chapter 14 – The Legacy of Faith: Lessons from Mokattam
Part V – Modern Egypt and Religious Continuity 14.1 The Journey of Faith through Time From the pharaohs to the Fatimids, and from the Copts to contemporary Cairo, Egypt’s history is not merely political — it is profoundly spiritual. Across 5,000 years, belief has taken many forms: Each era has…
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4: Cultural and Political Backdrop – Egypt, Sinai, and Roman-Occupied Judea
The Ten Commandments and the Teachings of Jesus: A Theological, Cultural, and Political Exposition 1. Introduction To properly understand the Ten Commandments and the teachings of Jesus, one must examine the cultural and political contexts in which these laws were delivered and reinterpreted. The law given at Mount Sinai arose…
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17: Trade Routes and Economic Networks in Ancient Israel: Geography and Cultural Exchange
1. Introduction Trade routes have historically played a pivotal role in shaping the geography, economy, and cultural interactions of ancient Israel. This article examines the major trade corridors traversing the region, their influence on urban development, and their role as conduits for goods, ideas, and people. 2. Major Trade Routes…
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Egypt in Biblical Context
1. Introduction Egypt occupies a prominent position in biblical history and theology, featuring in narratives from the patriarchal age through to the prophetic writings. As both a place of refuge and oppression, Egypt functions symbolically and historically within Scripture. This article provides an academic exploration of Egypt’s role in the…
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8.7 Stories of Egyptians
🔹 Story 1: Abraham and Sarah in Egypt Main Characters: Abraham, Sarah, PharaohStory Summary: During a famine, Abraham went to Egypt and asked Sarah to pretend to be his sister. Pharaoh took her into his palace, but God afflicted him with plagues, revealing the deception.Key Verses: Genesis 12:10–20Theme Connection: Egypt…
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Jacob (Israel) and the Twelve Tribes
Introduction and Narrative TransitionJacob, the younger son of Isaac and Rebekah, emerges as a central figure in the patriarchal narrative and the direct progenitor of the twelve tribes of Israel. His story, as recorded in Genesis 27–50, is complex and multilayered, interweaving themes of deception, divine encounter, transformation, and providential…
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PART II: Egyptian Sojourn and National Deliverance (c. 1700–1250 BCE)
Sojourn in Egypt and Enslavement Historical Transition and Settlement in EgyptThe period following Jacob’s migration to Egypt marks a significant shift from the patriarchal era to the emergence of Israel as a distinct ethnic group. The relocation of Jacob and his household to Egypt, as narrated in Genesis 46, occurred…
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The Exodus under Moses
The Call and Commission of MosesThe Exodus narrative begins with the divine calling of Moses, a Hebrew raised in Pharaoh’s household but later exiled to Midian following his defence of an oppressed Hebrew (Exodus 2:11–15). While tending flocks in the wilderness, Moses encounters God in the form of a burning…
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Wilderness Journey and Covenant Testing
Introduction to the Wilderness PeriodThe wilderness journey, which spans approximately forty years, constitutes a critical phase in Israel’s formation as a covenant people. It occurs after the dramatic deliverance from Egypt and before the conquest of Canaan. This period, detailed primarily in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy,…
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PART XI: Modern State of Israel (1948–Present)
Declaration of Independence (1948) Historical Background and the UN Partition PlanIn the wake of the Holocaust and the breakdown of the British Mandate, international pressure mounted to resolve the question of Jewish statehood in Palestine. On 29 November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 181, recommending the partition…
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Major Wars and Peace Treaties
Introduction: Conflict and Diplomacy in a Volatile RegionSince its founding in 1948, the modern State of Israel has been shaped by a series of wars and peace efforts that have defined its borders, security doctrine, and regional relationships. Military confrontations with neighbouring Arab states, driven by unresolved questions of territory,…