Election of Pope Shenouda III
Election of Pope Shenouda III
The member of Holy Synod was gathered with the members of Coptic Human society of endowments and committee, Property of the patriarch to select the colonel to took charge of the management of patriarch during the period which decided the chair of saint Mark was free, the gathering according to the program of nomination his grace saint Mark the archbishop of Abu Tig ,
but he apologized then the gathering choose saint Antony , the archbishop of Sohag and the secretary of holy synod ( the one replaced by bishop Athanasius ) and started the meetings of holy synod for discussion the topic of the selection of the next pope and it continued days and then they put laws as a base to choose the next pope , his grace the colonel announced the starting of selection according to these laws .
The Holy Synod and the council of people failed to agreed upon the name of the new pope and the members of the Holy Synod wrote the names of candidates and they were 23 names in secret way and they became 17 names in the next times , and finally they form a committee to check these names and select the best 11 name and they selected saint Antony – saint Bacillus – pope Shenouda – bishop Lukas – bishop Paul – bishop yousab and from monks for example the high priest Qozman El Mohraqi – the high priest Matthew the poor – the high priest pope the saurian – the priest Carlos El Maqari ,
and then the holy synod made the selection to choose 5 only from candidates , and the three of them who won with high voice were pope Shenouda , the bishop of education , saint Antony , bishop Samuel the bishop of public services , and the other voices were equaled between the other three people , they were bishop Bacillus - bishop Lukas – the priest carols El Maqari ,
and the election was made to swing 2 of 3 who was equaled the voices between then and the result was the winning of bishop Bacillus and bishop Lukas , and it was noticed in this election that the selection of bishops but not monks.
The Holy Synod made a plane to elect 3 from 5 bishops and the selection one from three to became pope 117 and pope Shenouda announced his refuse to complete the election and he made this for as a principle who called it “the right of people to choose his Shepherd and insist upon his opinion ,
although the protest of some of bishops a afraid from rhetoric and defamation , and bishop Antony said “ have you satisfied that the new pope is embarrassed ? “ the pope shenouda said “ also if the pope examined in this closed room ,
it will be a reason for his we have to know the opinion of people with anything suggested” then the gathering exchanged their opinions to carry out the wise words which was spoken by pope Shenouda and the members of the council was agreed upon holding a reciprocal with the Coptic human society of endowments and the committee of patriarch management possessions to choose one from five who was chosen by council from 23 names to be a Coptic patriarch ,in the meeting they didn’t reach to nothing , and decided upon carrying out the regulation and starting the popular elections .
Starting the popular elections.
According to the regulation which was running in the election of candidate of the throne of patriarch that recommended by 6 from the members of holy council or 12 from creed council in 1971 , the results of recommendations was the nominations of 7 of them : the bishops : bishop Antony – bishop Bacillus – bishop Shenouda – bishop Samuel – bishop Paul ,
From the monks: the high priest mattew, the poor - the high priest shenouda the saurian it was rosen a case against choosing bishop Antony for his position as a colonel , as a considering that the creed council didn’t participate in the election of saint Antony as a colonel according to the texts of regulation in this time , then the people council was gathered in April 1971 and decided exchanging the regulation that the members of human society of Coptic endowments ,
and the committee of patriarch possessions management the place of creed council in choosing the colonel in recommendations , and in the other of Items the regulations , according by the new decision , all the previous recommendations were cancelled and others were started , and the result of the new recommendations In late April were been the nomination of 9 persons they were the bishops :
Bishop Bacillus, Bishop domadius , Bishop Paul, Bishop shenouda, Bishop Samuel, Bishop Gregorios , and they selected from monks : Father matta the poor, Fr. shenouda Syrian, father Timothy El maqqarī , and the committee held a meeting anther time to Filter the candidates , they were 9 , and they selected 5 they were :
the bishops : Bishop Bacillus, Bishop Samuel, Bishop shenouda, Bishopdomadius, and selected one monk that was father Timothy El maqqarī , there for the people could select one person from the five person to their new pope people elect their shepherd :in Friday 29 th October 1971 , the electors went to choose one person or 2 or 3 from the previous five persons ,
and the seven hundred voters who restricted in the voters agendas , attended around 622 voters from all places of Egypt, the regulation stipulates the Coptic law agents in dioceses , and 24 priests in Cairo , 7 from Alexandria and the members of Ecclesiastical council who had a right of election , also they attended the election delegation from the church , they were the archbishop Tomas and the Ethiopian high priest Hight Mary the secretary of Ethiopian Emperor , and the President of the trinity theological college , and attended with the Ethiopian delegation Ethiopian ambassador in Egypt in this time was Mr. Melas , and the place of election was the cathedral of saint Mark in The azbakeya, and also attended the election delegate from the ministry of interior from the beginning to the end and the election was ended at 5 p.m the last one who voted was his grace bishop Mark ( the archbishop of Abu Tig ) ,
but bishop Shenouda didn’t vote because he was praying in the morning in saint George church in Rod El Farag ,at night he was casting his weekly sermon in the cathedral who was attended by hundreds of Coptic people and also bishop Samuel didn’t participate in the voting who was solitude in the monastery ,
and the Father Timothy El maqqarī didn’t participate in the election , because he was performed his service in Kuwait , the result of Sort the votes was appeared that the selection of 3 of them they were bishop Samuel had got 440 votes , Bishop shenouda had got 434votes , and the Father Timothy El maqqarī had got 312 votes the structural drawing select bishop Shenouda :
on Sunday thirty – first of October 1971 , the holy mass was started which was named the mass of drawing by Coptic around 7 and half in the morning , the members of the holy synod , the member of committee of The Patriarchate's property, the members of human society of endowments , the Coptic ministries and delegates of radio television and press , also attended the Ethiopian ambassador in Cairo ,
and thousands of Coptic people , and after Raise the incense morning and before his grace bishop Antony entered the colonel and prepared a table and put it in front of the temple , and then bishop Antony stand up and was holding 3 papers in each of them the name of candidates names ,
then bishop Antony said ;(now I will see you the three papers all in the same size and same color and were sealed from the two sides with two seals and sealed with election of committee and I will folded each paper of them in front of you and I will put it in the box then I closed it and I wax it and finally I will seal with seal)
Then bishop Antony caught the empty box and saw the people and then caught with the first box and extended it in front of people to see what the name was inside it , then read the name which was inside it , and folded it and put it in box , also he made the same thing with the other two papers ,
then closed the box and sealed upon the box with a seal and delivered the seal to the minister , the engineer Mr. Ibrahim Naguib then he took the box and put it upon the alter to prepare the holy mass after the ending the holy mass , they returned the table anther time in front of the temple , and gathered all the children who were attended the praying and ate until they selected one of them to pull the drawing paper , they were 9 children and they selected the youngest one of them,
he was 10 years old , his name was Ayman Mounir kamel Gabriel, it was surprised that he attended with his father from Alexandria and they didn’t had a tickets for entering the church in this day , but they could attended the holy mass after great hardship and the God’s will wanted that the hand of this child who hadn’t invited to this party that pulled a paper of the next Coptic pope .
And they wore the child Ayman the deacon’s clothes and his grace bishop Agapitos held him and came to the colonel ,and bishop Akonios rose the box which was contained about 3 strapped and sealed paper until people see her ribbons, seals and then he rotated the box in his hands several times and shake it so that the leaves and put them then seals off the tray and stop in front of the child right after that hid his eyes even saw something of the papers will be drawn one, meanwhile, started thousands of Coptic people in church praying, saying, kirialaison 41 times and it means Lord have mercy.
Then Ayman the child was with closed eyes, draw, take him locum tenens bishop Antony and everyone was silent on the head was a bird, and grabbed her by the hand and took everyone out and open and read the name which was written on the paper and said to the people:-
“his grace bishop shenouda, the bishop of education “ , and Girgis Helmy Azer , the consoler the journalist was mentioned about pope Shenouda ,”I and pope Shenouda accompanied pope Carlos when he died from the old cathedral in klot bay to the new St. Mark church ,
in this day the coffin was discovered by pope Shenouda to see the body of pope carols and said to me that Patriarchs in old times were opening the tombs of pervious predecessors to received the Stick care from him , and the aim of it the new patriarch have to be very honest upon their messages and caring of their people of the church with the honest way .