The rise of the #metoo movement made me question the status of the Coptic women in our current society. Part of my PhD research is focused on feminism in Egypt. While there are prominent Coptic feminists in the Diaspora like Donna Rizk and Jacqueline Isaac, in Egypt I have come across many prominent female feminists only to find one- and only one- Coptic woman: Ester Akhnoukh Fanous.
While researching information on Ester, I found photos of her attending feminist meetings with captions only indicating her name, sometimes her title, but nothing more. In addition, Wikipedia has a small page where you can find her origins and the small part she played in the feminist movement during the British colonization.
Ester is Doctor Akhnoukh Fanous’ daughter who was the founder of the Egyptian Party in 1908. Akhnoukh, also having a small page on Wikipedia, is known to be the leader of wealthy Copts fighting for the rights of Copts in Egypt.
Following her father’s footsteps, Ester was also politically involved. To fight against the British colonization, she wrote a letter to President Wilson of the United States urging him to help free Saad Zaghloul.
Moreover, she worked closely with Hoda Shaarawi, a prominent Egyptian feminist, and is rumored to have suggested to Hoda the idea of removing the hijab as an act of rebellion against the social imprisonment of women in Egyptian society. In addition to her political acts, she wrote two poetry books, The Virgin Heart and He Maketh Wars to Cease — World Unrest — Causes and Cure, and she helped with the education of women promoting literacy and social improvement.
As you can see, it only took a few paragraphs to talk about Esther’s achievements. I would like to believe that she had done more and that her presence was more pronounced in the feminist movement. I would like to believe that her achievements are silenced the same way many Copts are not be able to get published for their research at an Egyptian university. We are hidden and we have gotten used to it.
However, I am afraid that there might be another reason why there is no trace of Coptic feminists. I have come across a blog from an anonymous woman vocalizing her concerns regarding the status of women in the Coptic Church. For example, she questions the practice of abstaining from the Holy Communion during the menstrual period,
“However, my concern is that we do not separate the theological matters from the cultural ones. Menstruation does not change my relationship with God. I am not impure. I will not be condemned for a natural occurrence that is outside of my control. Being a woman should not separate me from the congregation on a monthly basis. My devotion to God during my time of the month could be whole-hearted in comparison to a non-menstruating male who may be thinking impure thoughts during the liturgy. What I mean is that my soul is connected to God, not my body. I can still pray and dedicate my life to God, regardless of my bodily state. My soul lifts up to heaven in prayer, so why should my hormones and womanhood affect this?”
Her points were valid and as I read along, I could not help myself but feel her frustration. Her experiences resembled greatly my own growing up as a female in the Coptic Church.
Of course, the blog was answered by another blog written by an American priest. While his points followed a politically correct structure to be expected from a priest trying to defend his points, he did not really address her central concerns. He wrote:
“A woman in her menstrual period is considered unprepared in her body. Similarly, a man who has a nocturnal emission or a married couple who have sexual relations the night before are also considered unprepared in their bodies to receive this holy Mystery, even though these are all natural, God-given physical processes. Similarly, there is nothing unclean about the food that God has given us, and yet, we fast and abstain from food as a preparation for the Mystery of the Eucharist. This is the real issue; it has nothing to do with women being ontologically unclean, unworthy, inferior, unequal, or anything of the sort”.
Consequently, the priest missed the whole point of the woman’s blog. He makes his argument focusing on the body and not the soul ignoring her core argument saying that her relationship with God has nothing to do with her bodily functions.
We, as women, understand that there were certain rules put into place during the foundation of the church in order to define roles clearly, and create a coherent community at the time. However, we are not in the same era. We are not trying to found a church anymore.
For us, today’s main issue is keeping the church alive. Many of my generation leave the church because of our stubbornness to hold on to the past and to not listen to the rhythm of change around us. What that anonymous woman was trying to convey was that our frustration is growing, we are restless, and that we have to address these issues with an open mind, heart and understanding.
Let me share an example. I live in a city where the closest Coptic Church is about a 5-hour drive or a very expensive 3-hour train. I don’t have a car. So when I do take that train, which I do once a year, and go to the church, I expect to attend mass from beginning to end and be able to take communion because I might not have the opportunity for the rest of the year. Imagine that I do get my period on that one day. Am I really to be expected to not take what may be my only chance for communion just because of something considered to be unholy? I actually consider having my period to be a sign of blessing. I have my period; that means I am healthy and will be able to bear children. I will not get into the details of what menstrual bleeding is, but I will say this, it is most definitely incomparable with male discharge.
That is when I realized why there are no Coptic feminists in the public eye. Coptic women’s voices are stifled, their spirits crushed, and their ambition restricted. There are no written rules to declare it, but we are pushed by so many around us not to speak up.
-Sandra Kirollos is a PhD candidate in Comparative Literature at Université Paris-Est and an English lecturer at Université Cergy-Pontoise in France. She loves traveling, discovering new cultures, learning new languages and going to the movies.
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