posted 20 May 2004 02:56 PM            

Hell on earth is the squalor and squalid lifestyle of most immigrant workers in the Gulf. Have you honestly seen how they treat the Sri Lankan,Indian,and Phillipino workers? You have to be kidding me comparing these types of lifestyles to modern day regions like Cairo or even in Upper Egypt.

posted 20 May 2004 03:14 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by neo*geo:
Are Egyptians Arabs? No and maybe so. I think we are all in agreement that Egyptians aren't racially Arabs. As far as Egyptians being culturally Arab goes, it all depends on the degree that they are similar to Saudis, and Yemenis.

What I mean is, different countries can and do share the same language and similar culture, and even history but have independent identities. For example, Ireland, the US, and Canada were all part of Britain as recently as the past 200 years. All four countries have unique dialects of English, all four have relatively similar cultures, and all share Britain's history. However, Americans are Americans, Canadians are Canadians, and no one dare call an Irish person British. I'm not sure how closely these comparisons relate to Egypt. My only point is that cultural and linguistic affinities do not mean that two different countries share the same identity.

Ultimately, the question of whether Egyptians are Arabs or just simply Egyptians can only be answered by Egyptians. Unless someone here can prove their argument with poll results, it's just something that we'll have to agree to disagree on...

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posted 21 May 2004 01:17 AM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by multisphinx:
Dubai boy u are not egyptian so stop saying what egyptian are arabs, u are from dubai, so u are arab u have no business in labling us to what we are. You probebly know egpytians u say, but most that u know are probebly from cities like ciaro and Alex these cities are arab cities u could say they are very diverse. But trust me if u were to go to the smaller cities and villiges in both upper and lower egypt u will find out that the people in these cities are totally different from the two big cities. First of all i dont give a damn about that bull sh iii t consititution, i consider by my self first as a muslim then egyptian, but not as an arab, sorry foo and nothing u say has any word here in this forum firstly because u an arab boy and second u aint egyptian.

---

What is there to say? Egyptians are dogs and that's final

posted 23 May 2004 12:30 AM            

true

T"he problem is Islam prescribes so much violence and hate it makes it easy to hate for muslims. That is why Muslim countries are all always at each others throat, they were bred in a place that advocated violence."

What the hell are u sayin u dumb **** i dont think i hate anyone, and i am muslim, most of the people who live in the muslim world dont practice the religion the right way. You gots to be ignorent to say that. First of all if u are not a devil whorshiper what are u? Second where in the quran did the quran or prophet say kill people and hate people, Man during the ottamen times the empire was the only part of the world that excepted the jews to live side by side with them, when all the european countries had kicked them out. Not only that but the christian lived peacefully with teh muslims. The muslims would share one building with the christian and jews so they can each do their services on the certain day. quit makin shyt up

"You get your hands chopped off if you steal, you get stoned to death if you commit adultery, and if your a muslim and decide to leave islam you get decapitated.
And if you use your logic you will see that islam is a 7th century philosophy rather than a divine religion."

The reason their are rules like that is so it would keep the muslim from commiting the sin.

"Mohammed said if a fly falls into your drink, dip it in again because one wing has the illness the other has a cure!??!?!?!
He also used camel urine as a medicine, he married a Aisha when she was 6 and consumated (had sex) the marriage when she was nine?!?!?! '"

what! are u on man crack the prophet never made medicine out of urine, u are really makin shyt up man, the prophet says if u eat a camel u got to make wudu because it is nagen why would he treat himself with camel urine u dummy.

"And at one stage of his life had 11 wives. I doubt a true prophet sent from god would say or do any of things I mentioned above"

God gave the privilage only for muhammad to have 11 wives and no one else, reason for that is because God allowed him. Now muslims today are not allowed to have no more then 4 wives. But on accout they got to take care of them and treat each one the same.

posted 23 May 2004 01:18 AM            

Volume 4, Book 54, Number 537:
Narrated Abu Huraira:

The Prophet said "If a house fly falls in the drink of anyone of you, he should dip it (in the drink), for one of its wings has a disease and the other has the cure for the disease."

and :

Narrated by Anas bin Malik
A group of people from 'Ukl (or 'Uraina) tribe--but I think he said that they were from 'Ukl--came to Medina and (they became ill, so) the Prophet ordered them to go to the herd of (Milch) she-camels and told them to go out and drink the camels' urine and milk (as a medicine). So they went and drank it, and when they became healthy, they killed the shepherd and drove away the camels. This news reached the Prophet early in the morning, so he sent (some) men in their pursuit and they were captured and brought to the Prophet before midday. He ordered to cut off their hands and legs and their eyes to be branded
with heated iron pieces and they were thrown at Al-Harra, and when they asked for water to drink, they were not given water... Al-Bukhari 8: 797. The same narration is repeated in 8: 794 and 1: 234

Thats the fucked up thing about most muslims, they think just because someone is not muslim they will be easily deceived by lies like 'SUCH RULES DON"T EXIST IN ISLAM!!!' . Your the one who is on crack my friend, go do your homework before you come here talking **** about what is and is not permitted in Islam. I am guessing now all muslims have the privilege to marry 6 year olds, as that was not restricted to the prophet.
Fucking idiot.
PS: I was raised as a muslim, studied the Qu'ran, the hadiths and so on and so forth, you can not lie to me with your crap cuz I KNOW what I am talking about. And I am Agnostic and follow no religion.

posted 23 May 2004 11:08 AM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by multisphinx:
Dubai boy u are not egyptian so stop saying what egyptian are arabs, u are from dubai, so u are arab u have no business in labling us to what we are. You probebly know egpytians u say, but most that u know are probebly from cities like ciaro and Alex these cities are arab cities u could say they are very diverse. But trust me if u were to go to the smaller cities and villiges in both upper and lower egypt u will find out that the people in these cities are totally different from the two big cities. First of all i dont give a damn about that bull sh iii t consititution, i consider by my self first as a muslim then egyptian, but not as an arab, sorry foo and nothing u say has any word here in this forum firstly because u an arab boy and second u aint egyptian.

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posted 23 May 2004 09:56 PM            

That shyt about the urine is made up shyt again since u get ur info on islam off some christian website that probebly the reason, not everything on the internet is true buddy, anyone can make a website,of what they want it to be, they can make up shyt like waht u are doin and post how ever they want. What are u here to do? this is an egyptsearch forum not "i am a hater against islam" forum u dum *****. I am not the ignorent one here, u are. Next time bring me a website made by muslims not some christian website u stupid ass. foo dont eva talk to me like that or i bitch slap u back to Arabia.

posted 25 May 2004 09:30 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by dajjal supreme:
This multi-sphinx is really pissing me off with his typical ignorant islamic ass. Like I said before most muslims dont state the truth when it is embarrassing.
Here is an Islamic website for you pig fucker: http://www.bismikaallahuma.org/Hadith/Exegesis/urayna.htm
Now consider this my last reply to you as from your replies it quite apparent your ignorant and asked me if I thought the world came around by itself when I told you I WAS AGNOSTIC not Atheist. In fact your so ignorant you don't know **** about your own religion, and I would come up with more arguments but seeing how ignorant you are you probably would have no clue what I was talking about. I bet your one of those 'Western' muslims who thinks it's ok to have GF's, drink alcohol and do wtf they want cuz at the end of the day they are in Allah's hands. I will only argue with the knowledgable and not some one who bops around to 2pac cd's and prolly memorized more lyrics on that than the Qu'ran. If I am around make sure to keep your head well hidden in your hood!!!LOL
PS: Agnostic people do not deny the possibility of a creator, those are ATHEIST

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posted 01 June 2004 06:34 PM            

By the way how do you know that "i know u want to have egyptian in u some how" I am happy and proud with who I am, No Disrepect intended to Egypt or Egyptian but I am as proud of my self as they are.

quote:

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Originally posted by multisphinx:
i am not gonna say anythin simply because u area an arab from dubai. If u are egyptian i would respond to u but u are not, it would just be a waste of time, simply because u are from dubai and u are a pure arab. thank u though for replyin. man i feel ya, i know u want to have egyptian in u some how, but by sayin egyptian are arab wont make it happin. Its aight doc.[/B]

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posted 04 June 2004 01:11 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Akhenaten:
I havwe been to Egypt well over 15/16 times and ahve always felt that Egyptians were more African than Arab - yes I do believe that there is a distinction. The EGYPTIANS are one of the most friendly people in the world and I am well travelled on all continents.

One thing I must say is that race, religion, colour or creed means nothing to me. People - human beings are all that matters.

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posted 08 June 2004 02:10 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by dajjal supreme:
yo multi sphinx you mean you ain't got beef with arabs right? LOL fucking dickhead. Keep your glock loaded homie cuz I might just poke my head round your hood one day and spit on that despicable african face of your's.

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posted 22 June 2004 01:27 AM            

Someone mentioned piss. And I am amused.

Have you ever smelled a cat's urine?
Very heavy in ammonia.
This is why camels were specified!
Urine (albeit mostly synthetic synthesis now) is commonly used in all manner of products including mouthwashes and pretzels.
(So much for concerns about the unclean!)
Urea, uric acid, etc. ... all very useful topical antiseptics. When combined with other chemicals, a marvelous spectrum of pharmaceutical products are born.

Different animal urines were specified in pharonic medicinal papyrii and in the Koran. This might beg unrelated questions about who fathered alchemy ... a separate debate long argued between Europeans ...
But I would remind everyone that whomsoever claims it is admitting that their ancestors played with it.

And so ... Is an Egyptian an Arab? The answer will change depending on whether you pose the question genetically, ethnically, politically, emotionally, spiritually, etc., etc., etc.

There are blonde Egyptians in Alexandria.

You may now resume the debate.

posted 22 June 2004 01:53 AM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by DubaiDoctor:
"Most Egyptians look distinctively different from Arabs"
That does not make them non Arab. I have never ever met an Egyptian that claimed he was a non Arab and I know quite alot of them. You walk into any any village in upper Egypt and ask are you an Arab and the answere will be YES, I got the same response from Coptic Egyptian and I got it from Nubian, but what do they now about there own identity!! The only egyptian who claim to be non Arabs are those found on Africano centric web sites and who nows wether they were truely egyptian or Africano centric nuts

"I have been told by my Palestinian friend that Egyptians laborers who come to Jordan for work are often discriminated against."

This is so sick, it reminded me with Early Americans who justified taking black slaves from Africa by the fact that African them selfs have black slaves!! I don't think that there is a significant discrimination and if it was true it does not take Away the Arabic identity of modern Egyptians

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posted 22 June 2004 02:56 AM            

i didnt read of all the above posts but i guess somebody from the gulf said we are servant of the american and isreal and start swearing.

We are proud egyptian and we are no servants to anybody. Isreal consider us as a respectable enengy but they consider u guys as camel fucker because u do nothing in life. America gives us and also force the gulf countries to give us money (royal families have to first take orders from the white house) to help us cuz of the peace agreement we made with isreal which is kinda good but the american take ur money by force and dont even got respect for u. My britsh teachers in kuwait used to tell us noway u guys are arabs cuz they know how stupiod the gulf ppl are and how smart was egyptian in the school. U see those teachers get paid huge salaries from ur countries wealth and still got no respect for u cuz u actually dont desrve it, which make me kinda of sad.

but still i consider myself as an arab and i`m proud of it.

posted 22 June 2004 04:49 AM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by BahYBasha:
well i`m Egyptian arab which is different than the gulf arabs. i consider myself as an arab although i bety those stupiod gulf arabs.

---

quote:

---

Originally posted by BahYBasha:
My britsh teachers in kuwait used to tell us noway u guys are arabs cuz they know how stupiod the gulf ppl are and how smart was egyptian in the school. U see those teachers get paid huge salaries from ur countries wealth and still got no respect for u cuz u actually dont desrve it, which make me kinda of sad.

---

Ummm Bahy what kind of school did you go to in Kuwait? I mean if those British teachers called you smart then those gulf arabs should have been at a special ed institution. You can barely connect a single sentence without flooding it with all kinds of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Either your a liar or those gulf arabs should have been at a special education institution. Your definitely not a smart Egyptian either, cuz those ones who are at my school could definitely spell. If I was Egyptian and you called yourself a smart Egyptian I would be deeply offended. No one ever forced you or your family to move to Kuwait, it was your dad who was avaricious for the almighty dollar who moved there at his own will.

posted 22 June 2004 12:48 PM            

I am not going to argue about if I am smart or not because this is not our main topic. Plus what is wrong with my father going to work in Kuwait? Why do u consider it as greed? Is looking for a better standard of living considered as greed? You see that kind of thinking makes the world disrespect you guys!

posted 22 June 2004 01:29 PM            

And I won't disagree with you about Gulf Arabs being lazy asses cuz it is true, and like you had stated it's because they plan to live off their parents. But the poorer the Gulf countries the more likely there will be hard working people and that is the case all over the world. Even in my school there were very few brits who excelled in sciences/maths like the indians/Pakistanis/arabs etc. So it is not fair that you single out us as if we were born genetically defected.

As far as disrespecting muslim brothers well I don't even disrespect people of different religions. I was only offensive because I was offended, yet most of the stuff I post facetiously people take it personally. I guess the internet barrier doesn't help so I can't blame them. I have friends from a wide range of backgrounds and there is mutual respect amongst us. But what your saying is that most Gulf Arabs is racist, yet I find that mind boggling cuz I have seen several Egyptians take the piss out off Indians/Pakis and even of their own common men the 'Sae3edi's', I know several Jordanians/Pali's who take the piss out off Egyptians, the list is endless.
One of my close friends is a 'Saeidi' and he tells me how he gets really offended when Egyptians make jokes about 'Al-Sa3eyda', and lets not forget about how the black egyptians and sudanese are treated as well. You guys have enough internal racism as it is so how can you even start calling us racists people who do not deserve to be respected?!?! I never denied racism exists in the Gulf but most of you act like Egypt is a very tolerant place where racism is ceases to exist, which is simply not true.

posted 22 June 2004 02:14 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by dajjal supreme:
Ummm Bahy what kind of school did you go to in Kuwait? I mean if those British teachers called you smart then those gulf arabs should have been at a special ed institution. You can barely connect a single sentence without flooding it with all kinds of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Either your a liar or those gulf arabs should have been at a special education institution. Your definitely not a smart Egyptian either, cuz those ones who are at my school could definitely spell. If I was Egyptian and you called yourself a smart Egyptian I would be deeply offended. No one ever forced you or your family to move to Kuwait, it was your dad who was avaricious for the almighty dollar who moved there at his own will.

[This message has been edited by dajjal supreme (edited 22 June 2004).]

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posted 22 June 2004 05:46 PM            

We making jokes of the sa3iedy is very nature, everywhere u find people making fun of some specific groups for example in Syria they make fun of homs and in Palestine they make fun of people in khalil and in Canada(Nova Scotia) here they make fun of people from Newfoundland. It is not we hate them but they are hard headed (rashom nashfa, right expression?) and by the way, they are the smartest, zawel and nagieb mahfoz are sa3eeds (both took the Nobel Prize).

posted 22 June 2004 10:03 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by cassia:

There are blonde Egyptians in Alexandria.

You may now resume the debate.

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posted 22 June 2004 11:06 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by BahYBasha:
What are you talking about? We don’t have internal racism man!!! We have 5 million Sudan living in Egypt. They all have respect and they aren’t treated any differently than others and how the heck could we be racist against the black? We are brown (samara) and there aren’t that much difference between us. Mohammed mouner, one of the best Egyptian singers ever, I think personally he is number one; there are a lots of fans for this guy. Did u hear his songs? Half of his songs is in nawbie lanuage and although we don’t understand it but we listen to it. He had the best selling records after amr diab. I guess if we were raciest as u said we wouldn’t to listen to mounier.

We making jokes of the sa3iedy is very nature, everywhere u find people making fun of some specific groups for example in Syria they make fun of homs and in Palestine they make fun of people in khalil and in Canada(Nova Scotia) here they make fun of people from Newfoundland. It is not we hate them but they are hard headed (rashom nashfa, right expression?) and by the way, they are the smartest, zawel and nagieb mahfoz are sa3eeds (both took the Nobel Prize).

You saying we have internal racism that really shows me that u know nothing about Egypt.

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posted 23 June 2004 10:44 AM            

The blondes in Egypt are rare and found in Mansoura where the French soliders raped village women. Believe me this is not a common place but a rare oddity amungst Egyptians. The French also raped women near a village in Luxor called Marris. Many of these people here look French,so what exactly is people's point.

posted 23 June 2004 05:18 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by ausar:
Mahfouz is not a Sa3eadi. He is originally from the Delta. Yes,there are more than a few Sa3eadi authors like Taha Hussein and even one from Aswan.

The blondes in Egypt are rare and found in Mansoura where the French soliders raped village women. Believe me this is not a common place but a rare oddity amungst Egyptians. The French also raped women near a village in Luxor called Marris. Many of these people here look French,so what exactly is people's point.

Egyptians are not Arabs!!!!! Egyptians are not Arabs !!!!

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posted 23 June 2004 08:53 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by supercar:
Ausur, you may be wasting your time on individuals who continue to insist that Egyptians are Arabs, even though they have heard most Egyptians on this board repeatedly say that they aren't! It's like insisting that an American is a British, even after the American refutes it.

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posted 23 June 2004 09:35 PM            

quote:

---

Originally posted by dajjal supreme:
LMAO@ this hypocrite. Your the one who denied that Egyptian terrrorist exist even when they were pointed out to you.
Go play in the rain.

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posted 24 June 2004 05:59 AM            

Who are the Copts ?
Synopsis
Historical Outline
Pharaohs Era::
Archaic Period, Dynasties I-II
Middle Kingdom, Dynasties XI-XII
New Kingdom, Dynasties XVIII-XX
Equality, Arts and Knowledge
Late Period, Dynasties XXVI-XXX
Hellenic Era:
The Library of Alexandria
Christianity in Egypt
Early Coptic Philosophers
Monasticism
Schism between the Churches

The Arabic and Turkic Eras:
The destruction of the Library of Alexandria
Arab and Turkic Dynasties, 640-1798 A.D.
Assault on Coptic Language, Culture, and Monuments
Resistance for Oppression
Flourishing and Tribulation
Modern Era, After the Ottomans:
Copts in the 19th and 20th Centuries
Epilogue

Who are the Copts ?
The word Copt is an English word taken from the Arabic word Gibt or Gypt. The Arabs after their conquest of Egypt in 641 A.D. called the indigenous population of Egypt as Gypt from the Greek word Egyptos or Egypt. The Greek word Egyptos came from the ancient Egyptian words Ha-Ka-Ptah or the house or temple of the spirit of God Ptah, one of the major ancient Egyptian Gods. The word Copt or Coptic simply means Egyptian, however the Muslim population of Egypt calls themselves Arabs. In contemporary usage, the word Copt or Coptic refers to the Christian population of Egypt.

Synopsis:
The Coptic people are the descendants of the ancient Egyptians. The known history of the Copts or Egypt starts with King Mina or Menas the first King, who united the northern and southern kingdoms of Egypt circa 3050 B.C. The ancient Egyptian civilization under the rule of the Pharaohs lasted for approximately 3000 years. Many Copts accepted the teachings of Christianity, possibly because the ancient Egyptian religions believed in life after death. This is evidenced by their elaborate efforts to preserve the bodies of the dead by embalming or mummification. Like other early Christians throughout the Roman Empire, the Copts suffered from the persecution perpetrated against the new religion. Many Copts shed their blood in testimony for Jesus Christ. Saint Mina or Menas is one of the major Coptic saints. He was martyred 309 A.D. The Copts history continues through the present as Father Mina the Anchorite led the Coptic Orthodox Church, who was named as Pope Cyril the 6th 1971 A.D. He is considered to be a contemporary saint and among the great leaders of the Coptic Orthodox Church. The Coptic or Egyptian history continues from circa 3050 B.C. through the present. Many cotemporary Copts continue to carry ancient Egyptian names such as Mina, Ahmos, and Ramesses for men, Isis, Nofert, Nefertiti, and Nitocris for women. Two examples are noteworthy about the influence of the ancient Egyptian civilization on the western civilization. The first example is that the present western or Gregorian calendar has its roots in the solar ancient Egyptian calendar. The second is that the modern name of the science of Chemistry gets its name from the ancient name of Egypt, or "Chimie" in the Coptic language.

Historical Outline:

Pharaohs Era:
The ancient Egyptian civilization evolved over approximately three thousand years. Thirty Pharaohnic dynasties are known to have ruled Egypt. Egyptologists around the world continue to study and rediscover many of the facets of history and life in ancient Egypt. Dates prior to the Persian invasion are approximate and Egyptologists differ in their estimates of these dates.

Archaic Period, Dynasties I-II:
King Mina is the first historical king of Egypt. He unified southern and northern Egypt under his rule circa 3050 B.C. He founded a new city Memphis, and built a temple for the Ptah, the God of creation for ancient Egypt. The succession of females to the throne of Egypt was declared valid during the second dynasty. Early ancient Egyptian medical texts and the book of the dead were written as early as the time of the second dynasty.
Old Kingdom, Dynasties III-VI: Pharaohs of the Old Kingdom were known to be great warriors and builders 2663-2195 B.C. The kings of the 4th Pharonic dynasty Kheops or Khufu, Khpheren or Khafre, and Mykerinus or Menkaure built the pyramids. Khafre is also believed to be the builder of the Sphinx. The Sphinx is hewn out of the living rock, but pieces of stone have been added where necessary. Originally there probably were ornaments on the head, the whole of which was covered with limestone and the face was colored red. E.A. Wallis Budge, the famous Egyptologist, indicated " the conditions of the sphinx deteriorated due to the savage destruction of its features by the Muslim rulers of Egypt". The last ruler of the sixth dynasty was Queen Nitocris, most probably the first female ruler allover the world. She enlarged the pyramid of Mykerinus and covered it with slabs of granite. The Old Kingdom was followed by the first intermediate period, dynasties VII-X.

Middle Kingdom, Dynasties XI-XII:
Egypt's prosperity and civilization continued under the Pharaohs of the middle kingdom 2066-1650 B.C. Thebes emerged as the capital of Egypt. King Amenemhat I built a temple for Amen Ra, the King of the Gods, at Thebes. During his reign examples of ancient Egyptian literature were written, the story of Senehet or Senuhi. Subsequent to the Middle Kingdom time, Egypt was weakened during the second intermediate period. This allowed invaders from Asia, the Hyksos, also known as shepherd kings to rule northern Egypt, dynasties XIII-XVII, 1650-1535 B.C.

New Kingdom, Dynasties XVIII-XX:
The Egyptian kings of southern Egypt ultimately liberated Egypt from the Hyksos rule. King Ahmose or Amosis defeated the last of the Hyksos, and initiated the 18th dynasty and the new kingdom 1550-1064 B.C. This is considered to be the golden era of ancient Egypt. During this era, Egypt ruled an empire that extended from Syria to the north to Nubia in the south. Several Pharaohs distinguished themselves both in military conquests and civilian achievements e.g. Thuthmosis III 1479-1424 B.C. and Ramesses II 1279-1212 B.C. King Akhenaten 1360-1343 B.C. established a monotheistic religion to worship one God Aten. Many people all over the world have seen the famous king Tut's treasures and golden funerary mask. King Tut or Tutenkhamun 1343-1333 B.C. was Akhenaten's son in law. He reversed his father in law's one God worship back to the worship of the ancient Egyptian gods.

Equality, Arts and Knowledge:
The equality of men and women and respect for the role of women in the family and society at large were evident in the ancient Egyptian culture, and continue at present in the contemporary Coptic culture. As indicated above women as well as men ruled Egypt. Queen Nitocris, the last ruler of the sixth dynasty was probably the first female ruler allover the world. King Ahmose's mother Queen Ahhotep II and his wife Queen Nefertari were major supporters of the liberation wars against the Hyksos. Achievements of Queen Ahhotep were recorded on a stele at Karnack. The stela praised Queen Ahhotep as the " one who cares for Egypt. She looked after her soldiers; she guarded her; she brought back her fugitives, and collected together her deserters; she pacified Upper Egypt and expelled her rebels". Queen Nefertari, Ahmose's wife was a key figure at the beginning of the 18th dynasty. Another famous Queen is Hatshepust who ruled Egypt 1472-1457 B.C.
Knowledge, arts, and literature flourished in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian temples were centers for both religious and secular learning and libraries, e.g. Ramesses II scared library. Some scholars compared ancient Egyptian poetry to some of the verses of the book of psalms. This should come as no surprise, as history indicates a lot cultural and trade exchanges between Egypt and the Israelites. The Old Testament shows the relationship in many of its books, e.g. the migration of Jacob and his sons to Egypt, the exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt led by Moses, King Solomon's marriage to an Egyptian princess, and the migration of the Israelites to Egypt after Jeremiah the prophet time.
Subsequent to the new kingdom several dynasties ruled Egypt including Libyan and Kushite dynasties, the period is known as the third intermediate period, dynasties XXI-XXV. King Taharqa, a famous kushite King ruled both Egypt and what is now northern Sudan 690-664 B.C. He built beautiful monuments both in Egypt and Kush. Taharqa conducted an active foreign policy against the then growing military power of Assyria. Also, the bible cites Taharqa's name in 2 Kings 19.9 and Is 37.9, as cotemporary to King Hezekiah of Judah and referred to the conflict between Judah and Assyria.

Late Period, Dynasties XXVI-XXX:
In the Saite period 664-525 B.C. many Greeks immigrated to Egypt to trade, learn or settle. King Psammetichus I hired Ionian and Carian Greek mercenaries for the Egyptian army. Pythagoras, the Greek mathematician and Herodotus the Greek historian visited Egypt to learn about the Egyptian knowledge and arts at the time of the Persian occupation of Egypt. Several alliances against the Persian incursions were concluded between Egypt and Greek cities such as Sparta and Athens. The Persians occupied Egypt 525-404 B.C. and later on 343-332 B.C. Some historians record atrocities committed by the Persian rulers against the Egyptians, however the Persians also appreciated the high caliber of the Egyptian art. They used many Egyptian artists to work on Persian palaces and temples. A statue for Darius I, the Persian King, was excavated from the ruins of his capital Susa, Iran. This statue shows the influence of Egyptian art and includes inscriptions in hieroglyphics.

Hellenic Era:
Alexander the Great 332-323 B.C. defeated the Persian Empire. He established a new great city in Egypt, Alexandria, to immortalize his name. The Greek Ptolemaic dynasty ruled Egypt from 305-30 B.C. The Romans under Ocatvian Augustus Caesar defeated the last Ptolemaic Queen Cleopatra VII and her Roman husband Anthony. Egypt was annexed as a province of the Roman Empire 30 B.C.- 641 A.D. The Greeks followed by the Romans, though they ruled Egypt, were admirers of the Egyptian civilization, knowledge and culture. Greek and Roman rulers in fact rebuilt many of the pharaonic temples of southern Egypt in the Hellenic era. The Egyptian civilization influence was so great during the Hellenic era to the extent that the worship of Isis the Egyptian goddess had adherents allover the Roman Empire. Alexandria, Egypt became a major center for trade, learning and culture in the Hellenic Era.

The Library of Alexandria:
King Ptolemy I, on the advice of Demetrios of Phaleron created the ancient library of Alexandria and Museum circa 285 B.C. Among the famous scholars of the time were Eratosthenes, Euclid, the father of geometry, Aristomachos of Samos, the first astronomer who tried to measure the size and relative distance to the moon and sun, Strato of Lapsakos in the study of physics. Ktesibios of Alexandria designed remarkable pneumatic and hydraulic devices. Herophilos of Chalecedon, Ptolemy II physician made major discoveries in human anatomy, Dioskorides wrote medical treatise following the Hippocratic tradition, and Zopoyros a pharmacologist developed famous prescriptions. The medicine and sciences of the era as might be expected built on the pharaonic medicine and its great expertise in the human body thanks to centuries of embalming experience. Among the great achievements of the old library of Alexandria is the Old Testament's first translation from Hebrew to Greek. This translation is known as the Septuagint, and was popular and used extensively by the early Christians.

Christianity in Egypt:
The bible tells us the story of the flight of the holy family to Egypt from Herod. The holy family sojourn in Egypt included several places in both northern and southern Egypt. Saint Mark the Evangelist introduced Christianity into Egypt. He was martyred at Alexandria, Egypt. Saint Mark is the first leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and was followed by his first convert in Alexandria, Annianus circa 62 A.D. An unbroken succession of leaders for the Coptic Orthodox Church starts with Saint Mark and continues to the present Pope Shenouda III. He is the 117th successor of Saint Mark.

Early Coptic Philosophers:
The early Christian Egyptians or Copts followed the ancient traditions of learning and established a theological school or the Catechetical School. Athenagoras of Athens was one of one of the professors at the library of Alexandria's museum, which was a major stronghold of intellectual paganism at Alexandria. He like many other pagan Platonic philosophers of his time was interested in Christianity and desired to expose its fallacies. He studied Christian writings to refute the new religion. However, his study led him to be convinced with the truth of Christianity. After Athenagoras 's conversion to Christianity, he continued his philosophical teaching at the museum. He became a champion to defend Christianity and addressed his defense of Christianity or " Apology" to the Roman emperors Marcus Aurelius and Commodus circa 176-177 A.D. Pataenus and Clement of Alexandria were indicated to have studied with Athenagoras; and both like most Copts of their time had been well educated in all the learning of the ancients, as well as in the truths of Christianity. Under the rule of the Emperor Commodus, the newly established Coptic Catechetical School was led Pantaenus circa 190 A.D. Clement of Alexandria followed Pantaenus as head of the Catechetical school. Oregon or Oreganos was one of the most celebrated and prolific Coptic philosophers who led the Catechetical school. These philosophers and others defended early Christianity against the pagan and later heretic teachings. For example, the Alexandrian Catechetical School also used the method of interpretation or "exegesis" developed by the pagan scholars of the Alexandrian library museum. Further more, Origen, whose name means, born of Horus the ancient Egyptian God, not only translated the bible and developed the Hexapla, he also ventured in philosophical speculations that influenced Christian scholars and philosophers for ages. One of his philosophical speculations is that GOD has unlimited mercy to the extent that ultimately all creation, including non- believers in Christ and even Satan, will be saved. The Coptic and other Orthodox Churches did not follow the speculative interpretation of Oregon on salvation, however the Roman Catholic Church belief in purgatory may have been to some extent influenced by Origen's interpretation. Another Coptic philosopher was Hepatia. She was a respected pagan philosopher known for her erudition and knowledge.
Hepatia met an unfortunate death at the hands of an unruly mob. Her murder occurred during clashes between Christians and pagans during the region of the Roman Emperor Theodosius around 390 A.D.

Monasticism:
The ancient Egyptian religious traditions included temple devotees who led celibate lives of poverty, pursuit of knowledge and prayers. The story of Ptolemios and Harmais or Haremhab tells us about two devotees or monks who led celibate lives at the Serapeum temple. They were cotemporaries of Queen Cleopatra. Following in the footsteps of the ancient Egyptians, Copts started Christian monasticism. Saint Paul of Thebes led a solitary life of prayer and asceticism in the Egyptian desert. Saints Amon followed by Saint Macaruis led monastic lives in the desert valleys of Scets and Niteria. Monasticism was introduced to Europe by Saint Athanasius's book about the Life of Saint Anthony.

Schism between the Churches and Efforts towards Reconciliation:
The Coptic Church of Alexandria worked with the Church of Rome defended the Christian faith against several early Christian heresies, e.g. the Arian heresy. The Nicene Creed, still used by most of the Christian Churches allover the world, was originally written by a Coptic young deacon, Athanasius of Alexandria. The Council of Nicea 325 A.D adopted the creed. However, the council, Calchedon, debated the nature of Christ in 451 A.D., and ended up in the schism of the Coptic Orthodox Church from the Churches of Rome and Constantinople. Different explanations are given for this schism, ranging from political motives, to inaccurate translation from Latin and Greek and visa versa, to clash of some of the personalities involved. Attempts to reconcile the views of the churches continued for centuries and almost succeeded at times but not quite. A 19th century Protestant scholar studied the issues of this schism. He concluded that both the Coptic and western churches believe in the same dogma, but the choice of words was problematic. It is heartening to witness that the cotemporary movement for reconciliation and unity among the Churches in the late 20th century. The Coptic Orthodox Church joined the International Council of Churches, and friendly exchanges and dialogue were pursued. As the dialogue among Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant Churches continues, there seems to be a common movement towards the unity of faith as contrasted with the unity of the Churches.

The Arabic and Turkic Eras:

The wars between the East-Roman Empire and The Persian Empire in the 6th and 7th centuries weakened both empires. The Muslim Arabs attacked both empires in the 7th century. After their conquest of the East-Roman provinces of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel, they invaded Egypt in December 641 A.D. Egypt was one of the precious crown jewels of the East-Roman Empire. It was the breadbasket of Rome first then Constantinople. It was a fertile land that produced and exported wheat, corn, wine, oil, textiles, glass, cosmetics, and medicinal and chemical products of the time. The population Copts is estimated to be about 9 millions at the time the Arabs conquest.

The destruction of the Library of Alexandria:
Scholars differed in views on how the ancient library of Alexandria was destroyed. However, recent research by Luciano Canfora concluded that the Arab general Amer ibin Alass at the orders of the Arab Caliph Omar ibin Alkhatab did the destruction of the library. The story of the Arabs destruction of the library indicates that it took them six months to burn the books in about one thousand public bathes in Alexandria.

Arab and Turkic Dynasties, 640-1798 A.D.:
Several Muslim Arab and Turkic dynasties ruled Egypt from 640 A.D. to 1798 A.D. The French under Napoleon Bonaparte defeated the Ottomans and the Mumelukes rulers of Egypt in 1798 A.D. The Arab dynasties included the Umayyad (660-751 A.D.) and the Abbasids ( 751-880 A.D.) The Turkic dynasties include the Tolonides ( 880-904 A.D.) and the Akhsids ( 904-913 A.D.). They were followed by the Fatimites (913-1171 A.D.), a Shiite Arab dynasty. They were followed by Turkic, Ayubides (1171-1250 A.D.), the Mamelukes (1250-1517 A.D.) and the Ottomans (1517-1798 A.D.).
After the Arabs conquest 641 A.D., the start of their rule was relatively mild. The Arab rulers primary interest was in exacting the maximum financial gain out of the rich land of Egypt. John of Nikiu in his chronicles indicates that Amer ibin Alass, after the conquest of Egypt, " increased the taxes to the extent of 22 batr of gold till all the people hid themselves owing to the greatness of the tribulation, and could not find the wherewithal to pay." The Ommyiads followed by the other dynasties instituted heavy taxes including poll tax or Algyzya, tribute and different exactions. At times the Arab rulers found it convenient to throw prominent Copts, e.g. a Bishop or Pope, in jail and request ransom to release them. The Umayyad Caliph Suliman ibin abed Almalek reflected this policy, in writing his appointed ruler of Egypt " to milk the camel until it gives no more milk, and until it milks blood". Though some of the Arab rulers were moderate, most were oppressive, cruel and committed a lot of atrocities against the Coptic population. The ultimate policy of the Muslim Arab rulers changed gradually from maximum financial gain to Isalmization either through incentives of reduced taxation, or by outright violence and force. Arab and Turkic rulers from different dynasties continued to levy heavy taxation to impoverish the Copts, instituted policies to eradicate the Coptic culture, language, leadership, and initiated violence and pogroms against the Coptic population.

Assault on Coptic Language, Culture, and Monuments:
The assault on culture that was initiated by the destruction of the Alexandria library continued by the Umayyads who decreed the use the Arabic language instead of Coptic in the governance of Egypt. It took centuries for Arabic to replace Coptic as the spoken language of the land. The Coptic language continued in general use until the 13th century.
Unlike the Greek or Roman rulers who maintained and rebuilt some of the ancient Egyptian temples, several Islamic rulers destroyed and pillaged the ancient Egyptian temples and Churches. The marble and porphyry pillars obtained by the destruction of many ancient temples and churches were used to build palaces, mosques, and at times just left a trail of destruction. Sultan El Aziz attempted to destroy the great pyramids of Giza circa 1193 A.D. He gathered a large labor force that attempted to destroy the pyramids for eight months. At the end of which, they succeeded in only destroying a part of the casing of the pyramid and made a small breach in one side. Fortunately the great effort needed convinced El Aziz to abandon the destruction of the pyramids.

Resistance for Oppression:
The Arab's oppression led the Copts to several rebellions, but these rebellions failed to break the yoke of oppression or achieve independence. The Copts in the eastern Delta fought against the Ommayyds oppression in 725 A.D. A large-scale Coptic revolt against the Abbasids took place circa 815 A.D. El Maamoun, the Abbasid Caliph, had to bring in a large army with elephants to conquer the Copts revolution of 815 A.D. Even as late as 1176 A.D. the Copts of the city of Koptos revolted against the oppression of the Turkic rulers. The policy of heavy taxation, pillage, and violence was also accompanied by forced migration of Copts to other parts of the Islamic Empire, and settlement of Muslim Arabs into Egypt. As a result, many of the Copts were forced into Islam to escape the continued oppression and heavy taxation. The forced Isalmization policy was followed by most of the Arab rulers, and later on also by most of the Mamluks and Turkic rulers. Gradually, the population of Muslims increased and the Copts decreased. The population of the Copts decreased from 9 million at the time of the Arabs conquest 641 A. D. approximately 700,000 at the early 1900's.

Flourishing and Tribulations:
Though persecution of the Copts by the Arabs, Mamluks and Turks was the norm rather than the exception, most of these rulers needed the knowledge of the Copts to govern the country and collect taxes. The history of the Islamic era shows a vicious cycle in which the Muslim rulers hire Copts because of their knowledge, skill and honesty to administer the affairs of the government of Egypt. Accordingly, the Copts do well and prosper, and ultimately the Muslim rulers change their minds for different reasons and expel the Copts from government jobs, confiscate their property, put them in jail, and a times put them to death. As the affairs of the government become erratic without the Copts knowledge, the rulers return back to hire the Copts again and so on. Under the rule of the Fatimite dynasty, one of the rulers was in fact insane. El Hakem hired several Copts in his employment. El Hakem however, decided to either to force his Coptic employees into Islam or kill them. Two prominent Copts Fahed iben Ibrahim, and Yuhana iben Nagah, were among El Hakem's employees, who accepted death rather than converting to Islam 1004 A.D. During the reign of moderate rulers and peaceful times, many Copts managed to excel in literature and the arts. Among the famous writers during the Ayubide dynasty, were the Iben Al Asaal brothers. Though the rule of the Mameluks produced many beautiful monuments, they were bloodthirsty and extremely oppressive for the Egyptians both Muslims and Copts. It is not unusual to read about pogroms launched against the Copts during the Mamluks time. A supposedly devout unknown Fakir, who would instigate a Muslim mob after the Friday Muslim prayers to attack the Copts, their homes and businesses, usually started the pogroms. However, the Mameluks also needed the services of the Copts to run the affairs of the government. Ibrahim Algawhery was the Chief Clerk of the Mameluks Abuel dahab and Ibrahim Bey 1795 A.D. Effectively he was the prime minister of Egypt and he was so influential to the extent that the Muslim historian Algaberti wrote about him and his achievements. Later on in the early 20th century another prominent Copt Botrous Galli became the prime Minister of Egypt under the rule of the British rule.

Modern Era, After the Ottomans:
After the French left Egypt, the country returned back under the rule of the Ottomans and Mamlukes. An Albanian officer of the Ottoman army, Mohamed Ali, managed to become the ruler of Egypt under the Ottoman Empire 1805 A.D. Mohamed Ali was a smart though ruthless ruler. He managed to massacre the Mamlukes and get rid of the Ottoman occupation army. He introduced western style education, industry, and new crops. His rule did not care much about religion as much as about competence. He hired a lot of Armenians and Copts to help his government. He challenged the rule of the Ottoman Empire, but lost as the European powers intervened on the behalf of the Ottomans 1845 A.D. Egypt became semi-independent under the Ottomans Empire, then under the British Empire 1882 A.D. and was ruled by the family of Mohamed Ali through 1952. A group of army officers led a coup d' etat that ended the rule of King Farouk, the last ruler of the Mohamed Ali family. The coup brought Nasser and his fellow officers to power. He pursued a socialist domestic policy, alliance with Soviet Union, and aggressive conflicts against the West and Israel. Nasser's socialist policies and conflicts with the West resulted in severe economic hardships for Egypt. After Nasser's death 1970, Sadat assumed the presidency of Egypt. Sadat reversed his predecessor's policy, expelled the soviet advisors, followed a more pro-western approach, and pursued peace with Israel. After a militant Islamic group assassinated Sadat in 1981, Mobarek assumed the presidency in Egypt until the present time. President Mobarek continues to follow a pro-western policy, and brokered several peace initiatives in collaboration with the U.S. between the Israel and the Palestinians.

Copts in the 19th and 20th Centuries:
The poll tax, Algyzia was finally abolished in 1815 A.D. This gave some relief to the Copts in the 19th century-mid 20th century. This period saw a modest revival and renewal. A Coptic leader, Pope Cyril 4th a reformist followed the ancient Egyptian or Coptic tradition of respect for knowledge and learning in the 19th century. He looked to the western knowledge for inspiration. He established two schools with a western schooling system, and imported a new printing press to disseminate information. He started an effort o collect and catalog Coptic music and hymns. The Coptic music has been handed down orally from the days of the ancient Egyptian temples. It is believed that the Egyptian Government agents poisoned him and he died in 1861 A.D., as they were concerned about his reformist movement. The Copts in the 19th and early 20th century worked together with their Muslim compatriots to achieve independence and democracy in Egypt. They participated in the revolt of 1919 against the British rule after WWI. Several political Coptic leaders participated in the short-lived democratic parliaments in the early to mid 20th century.
World War I resulted in the defeat of the last Islamic Empire, the Ottoman Empire. The last Caliph of the Muslims; the Ottoman Sultan was replaced by a secular president in modern Turkey. Though Turkey has and continues to progress as a secular nation, the impact of a superior western culture and influence was felt in many Muslim countries. A militant fundamentalist Islamic called the Muslim Brothers was initiated in 1920's. Other groups also followed, e.g. the society for Muslim Youth. These movements aimed at resisting the influence of the superior western culture. These movements espoused a more conservative interpretation of Islam, and many of them also espoused violence against the Copts that raged on and off for years. Nasser became President of Egypt shortly after an army coup in 1952. Though Nasser cared mostly about power more than religion, many of his protégé's espoused the more fundamentalist Islamic teaching of the Muslim Brothers. The Nasser government followed a socialist regime and nationalized most of the private enterprises, which hit the Copts a lot harder as they depended on private businesses for their livelihood. The economic pressures and resurgent discrimination led many Copts to start immigration to countries such as the U.S.A., Canada, and Australia in the 1960's. Active and successful Coptic-Americans live at present at most of the large metropolitan areas of the U.S.A. The same applies for many of the large metropolitan areas in many of the western countries.
President Sadat was successful in establishing a peace treaty with Israel. However, in his struggle for power against the Nasserite factions, he encouraged the militant Islamic groups in Egypt. In the 1980s, the militant fundamentalist Islamic movement resurgence was accompanied by renewed and escalated assaults on the Copts in Egypt. The Militants instigated several violent episodes against the Copts and western tourists, attacked, sacked and burned churches and Coptic businesses. G. Kepel in his study of Muslim extremism in Egypt indicated that the Militants financed the assassination of President Sadat using gold robbed from Coptic-owned goldsmith stores. On the political side, the Islamic Militant groups called for changing the laws from the civil laws to the Islamic code or Sharia. Their claim is that the return to Sharia provides a solution instead of the western approach of democracy and free enterprise. It would return the Islamic countries to the glory of the medieval age Islamic Empires. However, the return to the Islamic code essentially deprives the non-Muslims including the Copts from equal rights as compared with the Muslims and subjects them to formal discrimination. In the 1990's attacks on Churches, property and businesses of the Copts have been on the increase. Abduction of young Coptic girls and forced Islamization increased. Pogroms have been frequent lately. In the early days of the year 2000 a pogrom was initiated by the militants Islamic groups resulted in the murder of about 21 Copts, and the destruction of many Coptic homes, businesses and a Church in the village of Al Kosheh in Southern Egypt. Similar incidents and persecution continues. Even obtaining permits to build or maintain churches is getting a lot more difficult. The sad irony is that the laws used to mire requests for permits for churches are rooted in the laws of the Ottoman Empire. Though the Ottoman Empire has expired after its defeat in World War I, the Egyptian government bureaucracy spurred by the militants teachings uses the defunct Ottoman law called the Hamayouni decree against the Copts free expression and practice of their religion.

Epilogue:
The heritage and legacy of the Copts and their ansctors the ancient Egyptians continue to be manifested all over the world in every day life in the use of the Gregorian calendar, a descendant of the ancient Egyptian solar calendar. The Coptic name of ancient Egypt " Chimie" has lent itself to the modern Chemistry. Ancient Egypt continues to provide inspiration for cotemporary mystics and followers of new age beliefs. Modern artists continue to be inspired by ancient Egypt. In recent years, architects have taken renewed interest in Egypt and the forms of its stylishly pyramid, continue to be applied to many public and commercial buildings.

Suggested Reading:

1- The Mummy, Funeral Rites & Customs in Ancient Egypt, by Ernest A. Wallis
Budge, reprint of 1893 edition by Senate Studio Editions 1995
2- The Twilight of Ancient Egypt, First Millennium B.C.E., by Karol Mysliwiec, translated by David Lorton, Cornell University Press2000
3- Egypt in The Age of Cleopatra, by Michel Chauveau, translated by David Lorton, Cornell University Press, 2000
4- Women in Ancient Egypt, by Gay Robins, Harvard University Press, 1996
5- Women and Society in Greek and Roman Egypt: A Source Book by Jane Rowlandson, Cambridge University Press, 1998
6- The Chronicle of John Coptic Bishop of Nikiu (circa 690 A.D.), translated by Robert Henry Charles, reprint from 1916 edition, APA-Philo Press Amsterdam, Holland
7- The Vanished Library, A Wonder of The Ancient World, by Luciano Canfora, University of California Press
8- The Story of The Church of Egypt, Volumes I and II, by Edith L. Butcher, reprint of 1897 edition by AMS Press Inc, New York, N.Y 1975
9- Coptic Egypt, by Murad Kamil, Le Scribe Egyptien, 1968
10- Traditional Egyptian Christianity, A History of the Coptic Church, by Theodore. Hall Patrick, Fisher Park Press, 1999
11- Muslim Extremism in Egypt, The Prophet and the Pharaoh, by Gilles Kepel, University of California Press 1993
12- Ancient Egyptian Culture, published by Chartwell Books, Edison, N.J. 1998.





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quote:

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Originally posted by El Kadafi:
Egyptians are native north African, and are of Hamitic ethnicity. Hamitic peoples are in no way related to Semetic people (Arabs and Jews). Also, ANY Egyptian that has been to Saudi Arabia knows how fakely these people follow Islam, how unIslamic their laws are, and how racist their society is. As an Egyptian, you will be looked down upon as a servent. What the hell do we have to do with these people? Pan-Arabism is also a joke. People can speak the same langauge but not share the same culture. I am a pan-Islamist. Just remember that saying you're not Arab does NOT make you a worse Muslim or severe your love for the Prophet. God created different cultures as a blessing.

And don't get me wrong, I don't like that Pharaonic party in Egypt at all. Top of the boot: they're secular, want to bring back ancient Egyptian to replace Arabic language, and keep distance from Arab people. I am not with any of that. Any Arab Muslim is my brother/sister but the fact is Egyptians not Arabs.

peace and power to the people

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posted 24 June 2004 09:13 AM            

The Islamic Siege of Egypt

Many people wonder about the contrast between the highly civilized society of ancient Egypt, and the hapless, chaotic state of modern-day Egypt. Modern-day Egyptians are also loath towards their ancient history, as if they don't belong to their ancient Egyptian roots.

Because of such a contrast, many people invent answers that have absolutely no scientific and/or historical basis whatsoever. Here are some of the baseless statements:

The Moslem population of Egypt (about 90%) are Arab settlers from the Arab Peninsula (Saudi Arabia.) The Christian population (about 10%) are the true Egyptians, referred to as Copts, and the descendants of the ancient Egyptians.

The Moslem population of Egypt is of a mixed blood, of ancient Egyptian and the Arabs who invaded Egypt in 640 CE. The ancient Egyptian "blood" does not exist anymore.
Read the article, The Christian Copts of Egypt, to find the true un-Egyptian origin of the Christian population of Egypt.

As for the Egyptian population status, let us examine the worst turning point in Egyptian history, which was the invasion of Egypt by the nomadic Arabs in 640 CE and the subsequent Islamic siege of Egypt.

Jihad: The Islamic Terrorism

The nomadic invaders walked unchallenged into a weakened country (as a result of the Roman/Byzantine occupation) that did not have an army to defend its borders. When the Romans (Byzantines) left, the gates were wide open.

In the name of Islam, the nomadic invaders forced both their religion (Islam) and their language (Arabic) on the hapless population of Egypt. The strong grip of Islam has been, and still is, the "invisible" dominating power in Egypt.

Jihad is one of the pillars of Islam, and it was by jihad that Islam spread throughout the world. Jihad is stated very clearly and unequivocally in the Koran itself. Islamic jihad is an obligation for every Moslem to practice. The Koran specifies the conditions of jihad, summarized as follows:

Any Moslem must try to convert others to Islam, and if they don't listen to him (in other words, don't convert), then he is allowed to kill their men and enslave their women and children, or enslave all of them. Islamic jihad was the means by which black Africans were enslaved and sold worldwide.
Jihad is also allowed as a form of "self defense", or to use a common expression, "pre-emptive strike". In other words, the Koran allows a Moslem who "feels" threatened or that his belief and way of life is "threatened" by others, in any way shape or form, to kill and destroy his "enemies" in a jihad. This is a free-for-all clause.
Any Moslem is allowed/authorized to declare a jihad, against another born-Moslem, if in their view, the other Moslem is not being a "good Moslem" and can be killed or enslaved. This is a free-for-all clause.

The Islamized Cancerous Community/Country

The terror of Islamic jihad caused a quick and massive conversion after Mohammed gained power in the Arab Peninsula. Yet the state of terror did not end there. In Islam, a person automatically becomes a Moslem because his father is a Moslem. S/he never has a choice. The Koran is very clear, that if a Moslem apostate, s/he is to be killed. As such, no born Moslem has the luxury of arguing/leaving his/her "Islamic birthright." Lacking opposition, the Moslem clergymen tell the population that Islam is rational, logical, scientific, etc. Contesting such claims is not allowed, and is considered blasphemy, punishable by death from any Moslem. Witness the case of Salman Rushdi, being a born Moslem, he therefore does not have the luxury of writing a book, which directly or indirectly blemishes Islam. Salman Rushdi is a wanted man, by any Moslem, for he dared to write what was construed as opposition to his "Islamic birthright."

The Rulers (Afrangi) and the Ruled (Baladi)

The silent majority of Egyptians are called (and they call themselves) Baladi, meaning natives. The loud minority of Egyptians (high governmental officials, academicians, journalists, and the self-proclaimed intellectuals) are described by the silent majority as Afrangi, meaning foreigners.

The Afrangi are the Egyptian people who compromised the Egyptian heritage to gain high positions and approval of foreign invaders of Egypt. As a tool of foreign forces, like Arabs, the Afrangi rule and dominate the Baladi--the natives. The Afrangi are, like their foreign masters, arrogant, cruel, and vain. After foreign forces left Egypt, the Egyptian Afrangi continued their role as the righteous rulers.

It has been written and repeated, that the Ancient Egyptians accepted the domination of the Ptolemaic and Roman rules, that they had willingly changed their religious beliefs into Christianity, and a short time later, they willingly accepted Islam as a substitute for Christianity. Accordingly, many conflicting sides, who use Ancient Egypt to promote each's own agenda, insist that the ancient religion and traditions have died. The truth is that they never died, and they continue to survive within the silent majority--the Baladi people of Egypt.

Because of the ironclad control of Islam over history writing since 641 CE, Moslem historians publicize that Egyptians forgot their identity and became a part of a big happy family called "Arabs". No one can dare oppose the line that Islam saved Egypt from previous Gahe-Liya (ignorance era). As a result, we witness an intellectual state of terrorism that conceals realities into a cloud of dust by the dominating Afrangi Egyptians.

The Egyptian Baladi (natives) have suffered from foreign rule (including and especially the moslem/Arabs) for about 2,000 years. They learned to survive. They kept the old traditions under a thin exterior of Islam, in order to survive the foreigners and their Egyptian Afrangi.

To grow up in Egypt, one is taught to accept the Koran as the "Book from God". Both the Koran and the Bible condemned ancient Egyptians' beliefs and the Pharaohs. No historical fact can contradict the Koran. The whole world's knowledge of Ancient Egypt is largely based on the biblical (koranic as well) accounts of interaction between the Hebrews and Egypt. And as our "view" is mostly from these sources, it is largely negative.

A conflict between historical facts and religious convictions is very dangerous indeed. Because of such religious fear and intimidation, most fellow Egyptians do not appreciate their own ancient history, and as a result, they suffer from a self-imposed identity crisis. It is no wonder that the Ancient Egyptian history is studied almost exclusively by non-Egyptians.

The Arab (Islamic) Egyptian Police State

Contrary to the popular notion that Egypt is a "secular" state, its laws and actions show otherwise. Most oppressive measures go unnoticed in the world public opinion. The authorities of Egypt, at its highest level, are engaged in a pitiful campaign against indigenous traditions. An example can be found in a news item that was published in Al-Ahram (the largest newspaper in Egypt), in their Friday edition of 21 Apr 2000. For Al-Ahram to publish this, and similar items, on a regular basis, is indicative of a scare tactic campaign to terrorize the defenseless population of Egypt.

The police department in Cairo continued its efforts to find the outlaws and those who practiced magic, charlatanism, etc, when they arrested a "charlatan" (61 years old) who performs zars (exorcism, etc) at her apartment in El Waylee, assisted by another 8 persons. The article goes on to say that the lady, whose name is Sadeeka Hasan Mohammed Gad, convinced her victims, especially young women, of her ability to solve their marital and health problems. There were three of these young women present at dawn when the suspects were arrested.
This police operation was in accordance with directives from the First Lieutenant to the Interior (Police) Ministry, who ordered the intensification of finding people who practice magic, …etc.
The above is a sample of the activities used to impose Islam on the people of Egypt, and suppress the indigenous beliefs of the Egyptians. In a democracy, other people's views and actions don't need to make sense to the thugs of the Egyptian Interior (Police) Ministry.

Because of religious fear and intimidation, the Baladi (silent majority) Egyptians learned to camouflage their ancient traditions under an Islamic exterior. This is described in their common saying, "playing with an egg (traditions) and a stone (Islamic authority)", so as not to break the fragile egg with the [tyranny] of the stone.