The Journey of the Holy Family in Egypt
The year is finally coming to a close. The weather is getting cooler, the days shorter, and the holiday season is officially here. Despite Egypt being a predominantly Muslim country, you’ll find people all over the country and from all kinds of backgrounds celebrating Christmas this weekend, in addition to the Coptic celebrations of January 7th. But this should really come as no surprise. Aside from the fact that we’re more than happy to celebrate just about anything, Egypt has played a central role in the Biblical narrative since the very beginning and the Holy Family’s journey through the country is a crucial part of the country’s religious and spiritual heritage.
The Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament recounts the story of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus as they took flight from Jerusalem to seek refuge in Egypt. It is said that when the Magi went to Jerusalem in search of Jesus, they went to King Herod asking for the newborn “King of the Jews”. Herod of course saw this as a direct threat to his own rule and set out to find and kill the child.
According to the Gospel, an angel appeared to Joseph to warn him about the danger of staying in Jerusalem and advised him to leave with his wife and young son to Egypt, a common practice at the time for people looking to escape persecution. Egypt was the perfect place to hide and using the Via Maris – “the way of the sea” – an ancient trade route linking Egypt with the Levant. Throughout their journey in Egypt, the Holy Family passed through more than 26 locations around the country, never staying in one place long; they had to avoid Herod’s spies.
The family’s first stop in Egypt was Tell el-Farama in Sinai, right on the edge of the Delta, followed by Tell Basta, near Zagazig, and Mostorod, a small town also known as al-Mahmma – “the bathing place” – so named because this is where Mary was said to have bathed baby Jesus. They made their way across the Delta, stopping at towns like Belbeis, Samanoud and Sakha, leaving behind small traces in each around which churches, monasteries and pilgrimage sites were eventually built and to which thousands will flock to each year. From the Delta they travelled to Wadi Natroun, an area that used to have one of the highest concentrations of monasteries in the world – now only four remain – and from there, they moved southward to the Cairo neighborhoods of al-Matariyah, Ain Shams and al-Zaitoun. Old Cairo, known at the time as Babylon, would be their next stop.
But not all were welcoming to the family, and the governor of Babylon was apparently not happy with their presence in his district, forcing them into hiding. It is said that they sought shelter in a cave for several months, and this very same cave was later turned into a church, the Church of Abu Serga or the Cavern Church, which dates back to the 5th century A.D.
The Holy Family eventually left Babylon, or Old Cairo, to try and make their way further south, to Upper Egypt, where it would be easier to avoid spying eyes and potential sources of danger. From their refuge in Old Cairo they headed west to Maadi, where the Church of the Virgin Mary stands today, and it was from here that they found a sailboat and embarked on their journey down the Nile to the Upper Egyptian cities of al-Minya and Assiut. It is said that the steps that lead down to the water at the church in Maadi are the very same ones used by Mary, Jesus and Joseph over two thousand years ago.
Church of the Virgin Mary, Minya - Image Credit
The family spent quite a bit of time in Upper Egypt, first on Minya, where the ancient Deir al Adra - the Monastery of the Virgin – now stands, high up on Gabal el Teir, or the Mountain of Birds in English. Their last stop was in Quseya in Assiut, where they stayed for more than six months. During the 6th or 7th century AD a fortress and monastery was built here, the Monastery of Virgin Mary in Qussqam, also known as Deir al-Mouharraq, or the “burned monastery”. It was here that the angel appeared once more to Joseph, this time to tell him that King Herod was dead and it was now safe for them to return to Palestine.
The Holy Family spent over three years in Egypt all in all, and followed the same route back to Jerusalem. Today there are a vast number of tours that follow the same path as part of important Christian festivals and pilgrimages, all commemorating the Holy Family’s journey. Each year, two festivals take place as part of this commemoration and Muslims and Christians alike will take part, a beautiful example of the unity and inclusivity of Egypt’s religious communities.
The first of the two is ‘The Festival of the Advent of the Holy Family to Egypt’, a one day event that takes place in June. The second, ‘The Nativity of the Virgin’, is a feast that takes place between May and August in a number of towns around the country. Earlier this year, UNESCO officially added the festivals related to the journey of the Holy Family to the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, a big win for those working to protect the heritage related to the Holy Family’s journey. There are NGOs like the St. Mark Foundation who, in cooperation with the Egyptian Government, have made it their mission to renovate, restore and preserve the many sites, churches and monasteries linked to this incredible historic journey.
With Christmas coming up this weekend, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the story of the Holy Family and Egypt’s role in it. It’s the perfect time to appreciate the unbelievable amount of heritage we have at our fingertips here, and the importance of that heritage on a global scale. Pilgrims come to Egypt from all corners of the world so they can follow in the footsteps of the Holy Family; it’s a beautiful thing, and it is definitely something worth protecting.
Merry Christmas everyone! May your life be as rich and full of love and life as our beautiful country is.