Following the success of the museum set up by the Coptic emigrant community near Toronto, plans are being drawn up for a Canadian-Coptic village to provide a community centre and teach the younger generation about their heritage. Jill Kamil visited the organisers Last September, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III laid the foundation stone for a new community project on a 12-acre parcel of land purchased by Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Church in the Scarborough suburb of Markham. The project involves the construction of a living model village for Canadian Copts, and is the fulfilment of an ambitious vision. "We want to share Coptic cultural heritage with Canadians and the ecumenical community," said Father Marcos A Marcos, priest of St Mark's and a key figure in the project. Father Marcos was not only the first priest to minister to Copts in North America, but he has also outlived the first two of the many priests who followed him out there. In just one generation the Coptic faith has blossomed in North America. In Canada there are now 12 Coptic churches in Southern Ontario alone. The first, St Mark's in Scarborough, remains the North American headquarters for Copts and it is here that the small museum, which opened to the public in July 2000, is located. "Establishing the museum was a difficult and costly undertaking," says Helene Moussa, a 1952 graduate of the American University in Cairo who is now coordinating activities, outreach and training a team of guides in Scarborough. "At first building a museum was not high on our priority list. But still we started collecting objects," she said. "It took 25 years and many trips to Egypt, France and the United States to research and collect the initial items." The first acquisition, in 1972, was a rare 16th- century triptych, a masterpiece showing the Virgin and Divine Child in the central panel flanked by the saints George and Demetrios. Other pieces followed. The objects on display cover the whole span of Egyptian history from Pharaonic through to the Coptic, Islamic and contemporary periods. Showcases display necklaces, coins and amulets of Pharaonic inspiration; others show third- to fifth-century textile fragments -- themselves among the finest of all Coptic arts -- with motifs of great diversity and sense of liveliness in the stylised figures: frames of birds and flowers and borders in geometrical design. There is a seventh-century carved seal for stamping consecrated bread bearing the monogram of Jesus Christ, as well as various 18th-century arabesque objects in wood inlaid with mother of pearl. Among the many crosses is an early 18th-century Ethiopian Coptic altar cross in wood. The museum's collection of neo-Coptic icons include the inspired works of the most outstanding contemporary Coptic iconographers, among them Isaac Fanous, chairman of the Coptic art department at the Institute of Coptic Studies in Cairo, Budur Latif and Youssef Nassief. Moussa proudly pointed out the folkloric paintings of Marguerite Nakhla, who was born in Alexandria in 1912 and died in 1977. "She revived the ancient Coptic folkloric tradition, and her paintings are one of our main attractions," she said. "Among her many works -- and she was most prolific -- she painted 14 large biblical themes for which she received international awards and commendations -- Pierre du Bourguet, former curator of the Louvre's Coptology department, among them. We were lucky to acquire six of these 14 masterpieces." Nakhla's remarkable works can best be described as original yet traditional. Large and colourful portrayals of such biblical episodes as The Baptism of Jesus, Jesus among the Wise, The Great Catch, and The Last Supper are rendered in delightful Coptic realism; that is to say, the figures are contemporary and painted in natural poses to convey the miracles of Christian thought and belief. Two of the great treasures of the museum are an 18th-century Arabic manuscript of St John Chrysostom's exposition of the Gospel according to St John, and a codex, also in Arabic, of the "Agpia" or Prayer Book of Hours, which was completed on 17 November 1876. Father Marcos has provided much of the inspiration for the church projects. He was born and raised in Sohag, studied in the United States, took holy orders and set out on a mission to seek out Copts in North America and provide them with spiritual guidance. "For years I lived out of a suitcase, travelling with a portable liturgy and meeting Copts in their own homes or in rented churches for counselling, confession, baptism, Sunday school classes -- anything they needed," he said. They were encouraged to settle near to one another, and Father Marcos saw the first Coptic churches founded: in Toronto in 1964, Montreal in 1967, Los Angeles in 1970 and New Jersey in 1971. Today there are Coptic communities throughout the United States and Canada, two of them dioceses under a bishop. To provide a centre for Copts to congregate and promote understanding of Coptic heritage and culture, a Canadian-Coptic village is being set up east of Highways 404 and 407, just 300 metres away from Saint Mark's Church. Mofeed Michael, its enthusiastic chairman, is anxious for everything possible to be done to acquaint young Copts with their rich past. "The village, through its various activities, will do much to ensure that they don't lose sight of their cultural heritage," he says. Even while architects draw up blueprints for a cathedral, church, school, community centre, health care facility and other buildings that will make up the village, public lectures and other social activities are taking place. "Egyptian faith and identity is all important," Father Marcos says. "Our aim is to become recognised as an institution where individuals and groups of different ages and walks of life can learn about and carry out research on Coptic culture and spirituality. Art is one medium through which this can be achieved. The museum is a witness to Coptic art as a living tradition. Already we are building a library on art and architecture." Back in September 2002, when the second Coptic Festival took place on the land acquired by Saint Mark's, the event was attended by Canadian and Egyptian dignitaries and some 2,000 worshippers who enjoyed the entertainment laid on for the occasion. These included plays, Pharaonic and Egyptian fashion shows, a riding event and games for children, not to mention the opportunity to savour Egyptian delicacies prepared by church members. At this ceremony, Pope Shenouda blessed the new cornerstone. Built of solid granite, it has been temporarily removed from the site of the village and stored in the church. Weighing half a ton, it is engraved in English, Arabic and Coptic and carved with Coptic crosses. In The Bulletin, published by the church in commemoration of the ceremony, a caption says: "The steel capsule that fits tightly inside it (i.e. the foundation stone) is custom-made to be airtight and waterproof. There is a cover for the capsule and a granite cover for the whole stone. This solid strong foundation stone symbolises the strength of the faith of the church that stood the test of time and that will continue to prevail." The Coptic tradition is clearly thriving in Canada. "We live in the midst of a largely Chinese-Canadian community," Father Marcos adds, "and many of them have showed interest in our church, our teachings, and our museum. Some have converted to Coptic Christianity." Practical information Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Church, 41 Glendenning Avenue, Scarborough, Toronto M1W 3E2, Ontario. Tel: (416) 494 4449. www.stmark.toronto.on.coptorthodox.ca The Founding of the Coptic Orthodox Church in North America: http://www.stmark.toronto.on.coptorthodox.ca/stmark.html Recommended reading Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St Antony at the Red Sea, edited by Elizabeth Bolman, ARCE/Yale University Press, 2002. Coptic Monasteries: Egypt's Monastic Art and Architecture by Gawdat Gabra, AUC Press, 2002. Christianity in the Land of the Pharaohs: The Coptic Orthodox Church, Jill Kamil, Routledge, AUC Press, 2002.
