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In memory of His Holiness Pope Shenouda III

danocopticabdelnourdanocopticabdelnour
edited March 2022 in Coptic Orthodox Church
It still feels like yesterday, when we heard the news of the departure of our Beloved Father, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III. I cannot believe 10 years has already passed!

Although I sometimes still can’t believe he moved on from this world, however I am very thankful to God for blessing us with His Holiness and I feel particularly blessed to have lived in his generation.

His goal, was to live with Christ and to leave this vain world with all its lusts and desires.

In his poem Stranger, His Holiness says:
“I left the world´s charms, and did not accept its calling. I began preparing for travel, far from its pleasures”.

Truly His Holiness left the desires of this world and chose to live a life of prayer and solitude with God.

“Before I lived in Monasticism, Monasticism lived in me”

In his book ‘Release of the spirit’, His Holiness wrote:
“...God placed me on the earth.. But I shall leave it after a while and return to God..., I want to be released from the world and be united to You, who gave me the gift of knowing you”.

Truly His Holiness left this world and returned to his true home, with God, united with his Creator.

We shall miss you a lot Your Holiness, your words and your wisdom. Please always pray for the Church and for your children.

Remember us before the Throne of Grace.

1923 - 2012

Comments

  • mabsootamabsoota
    i remember the day well, although it does seem a long time ago to me (maybe i live life more slowly).
    we thank God the we benefitted from such a lovely father
    :-)
    i highly recommend 'release of the Spirit', very useful book.

    also does anyone know where to find the poem 'stranger' in the original arabic (audio)?
    it is really lovely
    :-)
  • Jeremy
    It was the only time I ever saw Abouna cry. He finished the prayers but was crying through them, which alarmed us all. Then he told us, and other people cried too. I did not cry because I was too new to know HH very well, even though it was listening to his sermons that originally motivated me to look into the Church, as I heard in them the faith that I didn't have but instantly knew I needed. I took Shenouda as my baptismal name, mostly for St. Shenouda the Archimandrite but also to remember that it was in HH's time that I formally entered into the Church.

    May his intercessions for us be accepted before the throne of God.
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