OUR WORK AND HISTORY IN EGYPT Over 20 Comboni Missionaries work in Egypt. We serve the refugees, especially those coming from Sudan and the Horn of Africa. We run four parishes and we try to create a missionary awareness in the Egyptian Church through the Mission Promotion Ministry. We also build bridges with the Muslim society through our schools, where Muslim and Christian students learn together, and through the Dar Comboni Institute (Arabic and Islamic Studies Institute), which fosters, through its activities, dialogue with Muslims, giving at the same time a background preparation for Church personnel and committed lay people who will be working among Christian communities living in an Islamic environment Click above and know about every community. The history of the Comboni Missionaries in Egypt began a long time ago. If you want to go in depth you can read: THE COMBONI MISSIONARIES AND EGYPT Brief Outline of our history in Egypt 1. The succession of St. Daniel Comboni Saint Daniel Comboni died in Khartoum on 10/10/1881. He was just 50 years old but he had already spent 24 years working for the Central Africa Mission. Nevertheless, his work had hardly begun and its structure was quite weak. The few members of his new born Institute were shocked by the death of the founder. "All of us, in Khartoum, and at El-Obeid and among the Nubans, though we have all felt the blow, are sternly determined to carry on with our holy enterprise with whatever strength God gives us and with His grace" (Bonomi: see A. Gilli, p. 9). Cardinal Canossa, who was the Bishop who authorized the opening of the Comboni Institute, asked the Salesians to take it over. In the meantime Card. Simeoni, Prefect of Propaganda Fide in the Vatican, asked the Jesuits to take over. Both congregations refused. It was also necessary to find a successor for Mons. Comboni. After several attempts with different candidates, the choice fell to Msr. Sogaro, who had known Mons. Comboni personally and had appreciated his work. He was the Parish Priest of St. George (Verona). He was appointed Pro-Vicar on 21/9/1882 and consecrated Bishop on 2/8/1885. Mons. Sogaro reached Cairo on 18th January 1883 and was in Khartoum on the following 6th March. There, he conceived the idea of transforming the Institute into a Religious Congregation. "He felt that a deeper religious formation would guarantee a better apostolic performance in the missions." (Cf. Agostoni pp. 121-122). The transformation of the Institute into a Religious Congregation took place within the next few years and the first group entered the Novitiate in 1885 and made their first professions on 28/10/1887, under the guidance of two Jesuit Fathers: Fr. Frigerio and Fr. Asperti. 2. The Mahdia and the withdrawal from Sudan The Mahdi was a Muslim religious leader in Sudan. Under his religious authority the divided clans of the Baggara and their subjects Fur tribesmen were united into an aggressive alliance dedicated to establishing an Islamic Republic as the first step in the global Islamic state. Believing himself to be the long awaited Mahdi, Muhammad Ahmed Al Mahdi declared a jihad, raised an army, and led a successful religious war to topple the secular Ottoman-Egyptian-British military occupation. The Mahdi's armies occupied most of Sudan and took into captivity the missionaries in Delen and El-Obeid. At the beginning of December 1883, Mons. Sogaro ordered the evacuation of Khartoum and the group of missionaries along with about a hundred Christians left for Egypt. They arrived at Shellal on 22/1/1884 and were received by Mons. Sogaro himself. But in March the whole group had to leave Shellal as well, because after the fall of Berber it had become unsafe. Mons. Sogaro tried to have the group accommodated in Manfalut - Upper Egypt in the farm of a wealthy Christian. But when this solution also proved not to be viable the whole group had to come to Cairo, where they arrived on 14/6/1884. (Ballin pp. 597-604) 3. The foundations of Mons. Sogaro (see Ballin pp. 604-623) During his mandate, Mons. Sogaro founded some new communities: a. Suakin (1885): Fr. Hanriot and Fr. Speeke were sent to the Sudanese Red Sea Coast to assist a few hundreds resident Catholics and the missionaries prisoners of the Mahdia. They also established a little school b. St. Joseph / Leo XIII Agricultural Farm in Zamalek (1888). The community was opened with the purpose of hosting and giving work to the displaced Christians of Sudan. The number of people living in the farm fluctuated between 100 and 200, with families, young people and children. After the end of the Mahdya, the colony gradually closed down. Some Sudanese returned to their homeland, a number of them remained in Cairo (see BENETTI, I neri) c. Helwan (1888): During the month of March 1887, Mons. Sogaro, not feeling well, was advised to take some holidays in Helwan, a thermal city 30 km. South of Cairo. On the request made by the local Christians, Mons. Sogaro promised to open there a Church and a school. And this materialized in May 1888. d. Massawa (1888): As requested by Leo XIII, Fr. Bonomi became the chaplain of the Italian troops. e. Austro-Hungarian Hospital (1888): This community was opened for the spiritual assistance of the sick and the staff of the Hospital. This commitment lasted only for a few years. 4. A new period in the Mission of Central Africa On 14/5/1894 Mons. Sogaro was promoted Archbishop, Secretary to the Sacred Congregation for Indulgences. He moved to Rome where he remained until the day of his death on 6/2/1912, at the age of 72. (Agostoni p. 130) In decisions for the development of the Mission in Central Africa and the Institute founded by St. Daniel Comboni (see Agostoni p. 139 e Ballin p. 647-649): - the Vicariate of Central Africa was entrusted to the Institute, and its boundaries changed (as a result of these changes the whole of Southern Sudan and the Northern Uganda which had been given to the White Fathers in 1878 were given back to the Vicariate) - include the city of Aswan in the Vicariate of Central Africa, with the order for the Vicar to establish there his residence - Mgr. Roveggio (36 years old) was appointed Vicar Apostolic. 5. The mandate of Mons. Roveggio and the foundation of Asswan Mons. Roveggio moved to Aswan on 5/1/1895 and was named Apostolic Vicar on 15/2/1895. After an extensive search, a plot of land was bought the following year and immediately the works for the building of the house and the Church started, together with a school that in 1896 had already 100 pupils, mostly from the families of the Italian workers at the barrage. The house of Shellal, bound to be submerged by the water of the new lake, was sold out. It had belonged to the Mission since 1859. (Ballin pp. 653-654) Aswan remained part of the Vicariate of Khartoum until 1950 and, the remains of Mons. Comboni and Mons. Roveggio were kept in its Church up to 1957. After the defeat of the Mahdi's troops, the way to Sudan was reopened. Mons. Roveggio left Asswan on 29/12/1899, to reach Khartoum after a week on 4/1/1900. In 1901 the Mission of Lul, among the Shilluk, was started. Returning from this last tiring journey to Sudan, Mons. Roveggio fell sick and died at Berber on 2/5/1902. Mons. Geyer replaced him as the Apostolic Vicar. It is amazing to see how amidst all these uncertainties about the future both of the Mission of Central Africa and the Religious Institute, the group remained faithful to the original plan and the reference to St. Comboni returned with strength as the original and essential inspiration for its mission. (Cf. Agostoni pp. 131-135) 6. At the service of the Mission of Central Africa With the end of the Mahdya revolution, the Comboni Missionaries in Egypt mainly devoted themselves and their resources to support the development of the new missions that were gradually established in Sudan and Uganda. Egypt was still the door to Africa. When the Apostolic Vicar of Central could return to his original place in Khartoum, Aswan ceased to be the See of the Vicariate. However, since 1902 the Church of Aswan was the burial place of Mons. Comboni and Mons Roveggio. Their remains were moved to Verona (Italy) in 1957. The original Church of Cordi Jesu was demolished in 1930 and replaced by a new sanctuary, larger and adorned with paintings and marbles from Italy. Holy Family School of Helwan was developed into an educational institution well known also beyond the boundaries of the small city. In 1939 a new Church was inaugurated in Zamalek, dedicated to St. Joseph. In 1952 it became a Parish. 7. The erection of the Delegation of Egypt (1946) Since 31/7/1946, Egypt is a circumscription for the Comboni Missionaries and its headquarters are at Cordi Jesu Church. These are the names of the Superiors who have led the Comboni Missionaries in Egypt from 1946 up to our days: 1946-1947 Fr. Zanini 1947-1950 Fr. Bombieri 1950-1953 Fr. Andriollo Giacomo 1953-1959 Fr. Zambonardi Giuseppe 1959-1969 Fr. Capovilla Agostino 1969-1972 Fr. Minoli Giovanni 1972-1975 Fr. Rodorigo Angelo 1975-1979 Fr. Calvia Salvatore 1980-1981 Fr. Rossi Ezio 1981-1989 Fr. Ballin Camillo 1990-1995 Fr. Calvia Salvatore 1996-2001 Fr. Picotti Giuseppe-Zeno 2002- Fr. Lurati Claudio 8. Latest developments: Sakakini and Dar Comboni The Comboni Missionaries took charge of the Sacred Heart Church (Sakakini) in 1983 and opened a small club for Sudanese University students in Cairo. With the worsening of the political situation in Sudan and the massive influx of Sudanese refugees to Cairo during the 90s, Sacred Heart Church dedicated itself to the spiritual and material assistance of the Sudanese Displaced population in Cairo. In 1994, to cater for the need of more qualified personnel for the service of the Church in predominantly Arabic speaking country, the Comboni Missionaries established Dar Comboni for Arabic Studies in Zamalek. Bibliography General Bibliography AGOSTONI T., The Comboni Missionaries. An outline History 1867-1997, Rome 2003. BENETTI A., Comboni e i Comboniani in Egitto, Cairo 2004. BENETTI A., Comboniani in Egitto. Da Comboni a oggi, Heluan 1992. BENETTI A., Comboniani in Egitto. Missionari Defunti, Assuan 1999. BENETTI A., Testi e Fonti per la Storia Comboniana in Egitto, Verona 2002, 12 voll. LUCIANI S. e TADDIA I. ed., Fonti comboniane per la storia dell'Africa nord-orientale, Bologna, 1986, 2 voll. PAGANINI S., Il movimento mahdista e p. Joseph Ohrwalder, Roma 2001, Bibliotheca Comboniana 11FS. PESAVENTO M. C., SPINIELLI D., Pie Madri della Pigrizia in Egitto. 1877-1997, Cairo 1997. From the death of Comboni until the death of Roveggio (1881-1901) ASHER M., Khartoum. The ultimate imperial adventure, London 2006, Penguin Books. BALLIN C., Il Cristo e il Mahdi, Bologna 2001, EMI. CRUCIANI G., Comboniani in Alto Egitto. GILLI A., History of the Comboni Missionary Institute. From the death of the Founder to the transformation into a religious congregation (1881 - 1885), Studium Combonianum, Rome 1985. PEZZI E., L'Istituto Pie Madri della Nigrizia 1881-1901, Bologna 1987, EMI. PEZZI E., Tutti sapevano che ero stata suora (Vita di Teresa Grigolini), Bologna 1996, EMI. PEZZI E., Un amore che va lontano (Srs. Andreis e Pesavento), Roma, 1984 PEZZI E., Una strada che si chiama silenzio (Vita di Sr. Giuseppina Scandola), Bologna 1978, EMI. Until the World War II (1902-1948) BENETTI A., I beni di Cairo, Cairo 2004 BENETTI A., I neri della Ghezirah (Zamalek). BENETTI A., Separazione dei Comboniani: nata in Egitto?, Cairo, pp. 9 BERTOLOTTI A. M., Il Vicariato Apostolico dell'Africa Centrale e l'istituto dei missionary Figli del Sacro Cuore di Gesù (1898-1919), Roma 1999. From the erection of the Delegation of Egypt up to our days AA.VV., Comboni Missionaries. Newsletter of the Egyptian Delegation, 1999-2007 AA.VV., Il Postulato Arabo, Cairo, 1990 BENETTI A., Gli Annuari Comboniani, Cairo 1999.