July 1, 2005

Dear Friends,

I have spent a good portion of this weekend looking at the tall mountains of western Saudi Arabia. I had never before thought of Saudi Arabia as mountainous, but it has enormous mountains lining its western coast, visible somewhat distantly (like a mirage) from the eastern coast of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. If we knew where Saudi Arabia stopped and Jordan began we would also be able to see Jordan and a small part of Israel from our location here. But the Saudi Arabia-filled horizon is what strikes me most, driving home the fact that we really, really live in the Middle East.

We are wrapping up a weekend at the beach with some partners from America who have been visiting with us in Egypt for the past two weeks. They have treated us to a few days of R&R with them before they walk across the border into Israel to continue their travels in this part of the world. We have had a number of American visitors over the past six weeks, which has punctuated our Egyptian “immersion” with some good reflection as we seek to share and interpret what we have experienced so far with others who are even newer to Egypt than we are. It has been a busy May and June, with “extra” events or visitors almost every day, but I’d like to give a glimpse into just two events we have been involved in.

The Coptic Orthodox church, traditionally thought to have been founded in Egypt in the first century by St. Mark himself, normally sees itself as the true Egyptian church and tends to treat Protestant Egyptians as second-class Christians. Protestants and Orthodox alike were very glad to have the “mother church” and the daughter church unified for this event. Secondly, some recent headway has been made with the Egyptian government, which is increasingly open to large gatherings of Christians for the purpose of prayer, and this was a continued example. The prayer time focused on worship and on asking God to bless Egypt—I don’t believe the word “Muslim” ever came up, due to sensitivities here—but it was a very significant gathering that I was happy to join.

Graduation at ETSC

We had four days completely blocked off on our calendar for the seminary’s graduation festivities, but in reality the festivities extended over a week or two. It was an event worthy of celebration, as 37 students graduated and will serve as pastors or other Christian leaders in Egypt and the Middle East. About 1,500 people attended the actual graduation event, filling the largest Protestant church in the Middle East to standing room only. When the group of graduates left their chairs to go up to the stage, friends and family took the newly vacated seats.

With the past month for a backdrop, as I wrap up my weekend of gazing upon Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel, I feel renewed in my thankfulness for the strong presence of the Christian church here in Egypt, and for the potential impact from the Egyptian church toward the deep needs of the Middle East. I am thankful for the prayerfulness of Christians here—for example, the Egyptian family with whom I attended the Global Day of Prayer joins with others in praying for Egypt all night long every Saturday, even though Sunday is a work day in this country. I am thankful for the training being done at the seminary, and for the young men (and a few women) who have been sent forth into their new ministries just this month. Thank you for your spiritual, emotional, and financial partnership, which allows us to be partners with the Christians of Egypt as they impact their country, their region, and perhaps even the West with their contagious faith.

Blessings to all,

Sherri (for the Ellingtons)

The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 159