I would like to felicitate all Egyptians for the forty-eighth anniversary of the glorious victory of October, which we are celebrating today. We plead for God to grant goodness and peace to all Egyptians, and to protect our beloved Egypt and the entire world from the epidemic. Glorious October is one of the important stations in Egyptian history; as the people’s cohesion with the army was manifest, maintaining an unrelenting will and unshakable determination, in order to save our country from its distress and ordeal at that time, and Egypt indeed achieved its aspiration. Since humanity has known the meaning of “homeland”, the Egyptians have composed with their blood victories on the pages of their noble history, teaching the world what does “love of the homeland” mean.
The love of the homeland is the basis upon which the Egyptian character is formed, the Egyptian people is one of the peoples who were first to know the meaning of one homeland, on the banks of its immortal river, which flows, with hundreds of streams of homeland love, in the heart of every Egyptian. Speaking about homeland, the words of the thrice beatified Pope Shenouda III are recalled to our minds: “Egypt is not a country we live in, but rather a country that lives in us. Yes, Egypt is the homeland that lives in the depths of every Egyptian, wherever he is around the world. An Egyptian’s love to his country was chanted by Mustafa Sadiq Al-Rafei:
I have passionate tongue and blood for my country
My heart praises it while my tongue wishes it the best
Nothing is good in a man who does not love his country
Neither a fond lover unless he is enamored
The Prince of Poets, Ahmed Shawqi, expressed the depth of homeland love and being the occupier of one’s heart, through his pearly words:
O, my country, if I were to be kept busy by eternity
My soul would long for it in heaven
Our homeland has attracted the hearts of many, with their sole wish being setting foot on our homeland. I recall a meeting with an American doctor in the United States of America in which he asked about my country. No sooner had he heard the word “Egypt”, than he engaged in a long conversation about it, saying that visiting Egypt is one of his desirable wishes through the journey of his life, he wished to come in contact with the ancient Egyptian civilization by visiting the pyramids and ancient Egyptian temples. I quote his words: “In Egypt, you are on set for a history-crossing journey! You can see and contemplate the glories of the great civilization established by the ancients Egyptians and presented to the world, which are still standing with pride and loftiness, singing the glories of the ancient Egyptian! Here I recall the words of the poet:
I swear Egypt is nothing but a supreme paradise for those who contemplate
Her children are Adam’s offspring, her gardens are paradise,
her Nile is the Pond of Abundance
The pages of history display heroism performed by the Egyptian men of the armed forces and witnessed by the whole world. The Israeli Minister of Defense, Moshe Dayan said about the heroes of Egypt: “The Egyptians possess a lot of armor, and they are strong… they have concentrated their forces over the past years in preparing their men for long and hard warfare, using advanced weapons that they have trained and fully assimilated.” In the international symposium on the October War, held in Cairo in October, 1975, the American military historian Trevor Dupuy, President of the HERO Foundation for the Scientific Evaluation of Historic Battles in Washington, mentioned the ingenuity of the Egyptians in planning and implementing manifest at October War. He says: “The efficient professionalism in planning and performing the crossing operation could never be better pcarried out by any other army in the world! The result of this meticulous work on the part of the war- particularly the surprise element implemented- is the remarkable success in crossing the Suez Canal on a broad front.” Undoubtedly, such Egyptian heroism witnessed by the whole world is flowing from the homeland love permanently settled in our depths, such love is manifested today in what our country is currently witnessing on the road to building a “New Egypt”.
A greeting of appreciation to our armed forces heroes on the anniversary of their victories, a special greeting to the families of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the homeland, and to every hero who participated in achieving victory. May God keep Egypt and protect it from all evil. And… Stories in beautiful Egypt never end!
The General Bishop
Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
