And Pope Tawadros II, the church’s newly elected patriarch, broke with the institution’s usually muted politics to urge Egyptians to vote “yes” in an editorial in the country’s state-owned newspapers.
“The success of this vital step will be the real beginning to building a modern Egypt,” the pope wrote.
Many Copts say that they backed the draft constitution because of its strengthened language on religious freedom and more liberal understanding of the role of Islamic law.
But the church’s public position has irked some of its leaders and rank and file. They caution that the move is opening the Middle East’s largest Christian population—Copts make up about 10% of the population—to accusations that they are part of a Western-backed conspiracy. Others say the move undermines Egyptian Copts’ customary stance that religion should be separated from matters of state.
“Pope Tawadros is a good person and a very wise man. But this last position, it makes many Copts and youth feel uncomfortable,” said Vivian Fouad, a Coptic activist and lay member of the church. “Copts want to work in the political scene as citizens, not as a minority belonging to the church. They don’t want the church to express their political will.”
To be sure, Egypt’s new constitution seems likely to have passed without Coptic support. Egyptian state’s flagship newspaper, Al Ahram, said on Thursday that a count of the majority of votes show the constitution approved with a nearly 98% “yes” vote with a turnout of about 37%, amid a boycott by the Brotherhood. Official results are expected on Saturday.
If the early tallies stand, the military-backed government will have received the mandate it sought for its so-called road map to democracy. The 2012 version of the charter, written by an Islamist-dominated panel, was approved by a 64% vote with a 33% turnout.
“Early indications point to the fact that Egyptians made history this week with a high level of participation in the vote on the draft Constitution,” a spokesman for Egypt’s interim president, Adly Mansour, said on Thursday. “This vote represents a resounding rejection of terrorism and a clear endorsement of the road map to democracy, as well as economic development and stability.”
International monitoring groups said this week’s poll was administered properly with only minor violations. But many said the polls had unfolded under a cloud of political repression against dissenting views and opposition factions.
Since the military ousted former President Mohammed Morsi in July and suspended the previous constitution it has arrested tens of thousands of Brotherhood supporters and leaders and killed at least 1,000 of them. As oppression against them rose, Brotherhood sympathizers were accused of lashing out against Coptics.
Many Christians blamed the Brotherhood for acts of sectarian violence that culminated in a series of arson attacks on at least 34 churches throughout southern Egypt in mid-August. The Brotherhood denied that.
“The Muslim Brotherhood condemns sectarianism and the targeting of any religious group,” said Abdullah El-Haddad, a Brotherhood spokesman. “However, religious leaders are not above criticism or accountability, and just like political leaders, religious leaders—both Muslim and Christian—have come under criticism for supporting, legitimizing and justifying the brutal military coup and abortion of democracy, thus abusing their positions.”
When Pope Tawadros took a front seat at the military’s July announcement of Mr. Morsi’s ouster, the Brotherhood began portraying the church as a partner with the military in the coup and part of a war against Islam.
Statements posted on the website of the Freedom and Justice Party, the Brotherhood’s political party, say Christians have gained politically and financially from Mr. Morsi’s demise.
In one statement, posted the day after the military-backed regime designated the Brotherhood a terrorist organization on Dec. 25, the party accused Christians of seizing the development to convert poor Egyptians who had depended on Brotherhood charities for social services. Proselytizing to Muslims is a taboo in Egypt and has long been a major source of sectarian flare-ups.
A day earlier, in an English statement, the party sent a greeting to Christians on the occasion of Christmas.
The church wasn’t available to comment. But critics within the church argue that such attitudes are exactly why the institution should shy away from direct political engagement.
Other older leaders say the current circumstances are extraordinary and demand that the church fulfill what they describe as a patriotic duty.
“The church doesn’t intervene in politics. But it has a national role,” said Father Abdel Masiih Baseet, a researcher at the Institute of Biblical Studies in Cairo. “It’s a role that the church plays at times of crisis.”
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Wall Street Journal http://m.us.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304149404579324760771758326?mod=rss_middle_east_news&;mobile=y