Pope Shenouda speaks to his flock

I have always found the way Oriental Orthodox hierarchs take their people to task refreshing. There is a bit of the firebrand mixed with an avuncular delivery. His Holiness is not in the best of health, but continues an active travel schedule.

(Coptreal) - As usual, Coptic Pope Shenouda III, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark's Church, delivered a sermon full of stinging remarks and thorny issues.

In his sermon on Sunday evening, he called for the quick formation of a committee of civil engineers to inspect the cracks on the walls of the Orthodox Church in Alexandria.

"If the engineers in Alexandria aren't happy, I'll send some of mine from here in Cairo. We won't wait for anything dangerous to happen to the faithful, will we?" he said.

When cheers and applauses went up from the audience, the Pope scolded them saying: "You can't do that. There are no applauses or cheers at Church". Bravo!

He also called on the church officials to make it easier for disabled and elderly people to enter it, as it was difficult for them to climb the stairs.

The Pope was then asked about his stance on the Israeli television's mockeries of Jesus Christ, especially after Catholic Pope Benedict XVI protested against these mockeries.

Shenouda said he had not heard about them, pointing out that the Church was studying these mockeries and the way to protest at and respond to them.

"By the way, why do you listen to this kind of radio stations?" he asked.

Shenouda also said he had noticed some mistakes in the religious education curriculum for the fourth year of elementary school.

He said such wrong information contradicted the teachings of the Gospels and called for correcting it, as they could have a negative effect on pupils. He also said that he would talk to the minister of education to correct these mistakes.

There was also time for sentimental questions. A 29-year-old girl asked the Pope about her bad luck, as she had not found a husband yet.

"Don’t be so upset. Girls used to get married at 15, then at 20. Now they do at 35 and one day they will at 44. You're still young. God will send you a person suitable to your age."