Religion in Egypt

Religion in Egypt controls many aspects of social life and is endorsed by law. The state religion of Egypt is Islam. Although estimates vary greatly in the absence of official statistics. Since the 2006 census religion has been excluded, and thus available statistics are estimates made by religious and non-governmental agencies. The country is majority Sunni Muslim (estimated to be 85-95% of the population), with the next largest religious group being Coptic Christians (with estimates ranging from 5- 15%[note 1]). The exact numbers are subject to controversy, with Christians alleging that they have been systemically under-counted in existing censuses.[1]

See also: Ancient Egyptian religion
Mosques and minarets in Cairo. Islam is the official religion in Egypt.

Egypt hosts two major religious institutions.[2] Al-Azhar Mosque, founded in AD 970 by the Fatimids as the first Islamic university in Egypt and the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria established in the middle of the 1st century by Saint Mark.

In Egypt, Muslims and Christians share a common history, national identity, ethnicity, race, culture, and language.[3]

A common religious scene in Egypt: a mosque next to a church.

In 2002, under the Mubarak government, Coptic Christmas (January 7) was recognized as an official holiday,[4] though Christians complain of being minimally represented in law enforcement, state security and public office, and of being discriminated against in the workforce on the basis of their religion.[5][6]

Demographics

in 2010, based on the contested 2006 Census data, estimated that 94.9% of Egyptians are Muslims, 5.1% are Christians, and less than 1% are Jewish, Buddhists, or other religions. The share of Christians in the Egyptian population has according to official statistics been declining with the highest share reported in the past century being in 1927, when the official census put the percentage of Egyptian Christians at 8.3%. In each of the seven subsequent censuses, the percentage shrank, ending at 5.7% in 1996.[7]

However, most Christians refuted these figures, claiming they have been under-counted. Christians maintain that they represent up to 15 or even 25% of the Egyptian population.[8][9][10][11][12] In 2017 state-owned newspaper Al Ahram claimed that the percentage of Christians ranged from 10 to 15%,[13][14][15] similar to the range claimed by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.[16]

Recent self-identification surveys put the Christian percentage at around 10%, as found by Afrobarometer in 2016 (which estimated the country to be 10.3% Christian and 89.4% Muslim)[17] and by Arab Barometer in 2019 (which estimated it to be 9.6% Christian and 90.3% Muslim).[6]

According to 2015 figures from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Sunni Muslims make up 90% of the population, with Christians making up the remaining 10%.[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] A significant number of Sunni Muslims follow native Sufi orders.[27] There are reportedly close to fifty thousand Ahmadi Muslims in Egypt.[28] Estimates of Egypt's Shia Twelvers and Ismaili community range from 800,000 to about two to three million members.[29][30][31]

Most Egyptian Christians belong to the native Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, an Oriental Orthodox Christian church.[32][18][21][22][23][24] Other Christian denominations include Armenian Apostolic, Catholic, Maronite and Anglican. The Greek Orthodox number between 250–350,000. The most recent declarations, made by Pope Shenouda III and bishop Morkos of Shubra in 2008, claimed that the number of Orthodox Christians in Egypt was over 12 million. Other estimates made by church officials put this number at 16 million.[1] The Coptic Orthodox Church claimed that these figures are based on regularly updated membership records.[33] Protestant churches claim a membership of about 300,000 Egyptians,[34] and the Coptic Catholic Church is estimated to have similar membership figures.[25][26] These figures would put the percentage of Christians in Egypt between 10% and 20% of the total population.

There is a small but historically significant non-immigrant population of the Baháʼí Faith, with estimates in 2008 placing the number at around 2,000 people,[3] along with a far smaller community of Jews, with an estimated 13 adherents in 2014 (down from 80,000 prior to the 1953 dissolution of the monarchy and persecution during the decades long Arab–Israeli conflict);[35] an unknown number of Egyptians will openly identify as atheist and agnostic, since public expressions of irreligion risk harassment and legal sanctions.

Freedom of religion and human rights

Freedom of belief and worship are formally recognized as absolute by the Egyptian Constitution under Article 64, but are effectively limited by government intervention and sectarian conflict. Some aspects of the country's laws are heavily founded on Islamic principles. Egyptian authorities only recognize Judaism, Islam and Christianity, allowing them public worship unlike other faiths.[36] President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and other senior figures have emphasized religious tolerance. In 2019, Sisi's cabinet approved a number of churches. Authorities however, have often failed to sanction or take stringent action against mobs who have indulged in violence against Christians. While construction of mosques is freely allowed by the authorities without any intervention, they have sometimes let mob rule dictate that even registered churches be closed down. Christians have also been consistently targeted by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Contempt or blasphemy against a religion can be charged under section 98 (f) of the Egyptian Penal Code. Conversion from Islam to any other faith is not recognized officially, though issues have also occurred for those converting to Islam.[36] The government also discriminates against Islamic religious minority groups, most notably Shi'a Muslims, who face open official discrimination, including being barred from admission to Al-Azhar University.

In 2006 Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court made a clear legal distinction between "recognized religions" (i.e., Islam, Christianity, and Judaism) and all other religious beliefs. This ruling effectively delegitimizes and forbids practice of all but the three Abrahamic religions,[37] and made it necessary for non-Abrahamic religious communities to either commit perjury or be denied Egyptian identification cards (see Egyptian identification card controversy), until a 2008 Cairo court case ruled that unrecognized religious minorities may obtain birth certificates and identification documents, so long as they omit their religion on court documents.[38]

Restrictions on conversion

While freedom of religion is guaranteed by the Egyptian constitution, according to Human Rights Watch, "Egyptians are able to convert to Islam generally without difficulty, but Muslims who convert to Christianity face difficulties in getting new identity papers and some have been arrested for allegedly forging such documents.[39] The Coptic community, however, takes pains to prevent conversions from Christianity to Islam due to the ease with which Christians can often become Muslim.[40] Public officials, being conservative themselves, intensify the complexity of the legal procedures required to recognize the religion change as required by law. Security agencies will sometimes claim that such conversions from Islam to Christianity (or occasionally vice versa) may stir social unrest, and thereby justify themselves in wrongfully detaining the subjects, insisting that they are simply taking steps to prevent likely social troubles from happening.[41] In 2007, a Cairo administrative court denied 45 citizens the right to obtain identity papers documenting their reversion to Christianity after converting to Islam.[42] However, in February 2008 the Supreme Administrative Court overturned the decision, allowing 12 citizens who had reverted to Christianity to re-list their religion on identity cards,[43][44] but they will specify that they had adopted Islam for a brief period of time.[45]

Relations with the Coptic minority
Main articles: Anti-Christian sentiment in the Middle East, Persecution of Copts § Modern era, and Abduction and forced conversion of Coptic women

Coptic Christians, being the largest ethno-religious minority in Egypt, are the most negatively affected by possibly discriminatory legislation. Copts in Egypt have faced increasing marginalization since the 1952 coup d'état led by Gamal Abdel Nasser.[46][47] Until recently, the Christians in Egypt were required to obtain presidential approval for even minor repairs in churches. Although the law was eased in 2005 by handing down the authority of approval to the governors, Copts continue to face many obstacles in building new churches. These obstacles are not as much in building mosques.[3][48][49]

Muslims and Christians share a common history and national identity; however, at times religious tensions have arisen, and individual acts of prejudice and violence occur.[50] The most significant was the 2000–2001 El Kosheh attacks, In which Muslims and Christians were involved in bloody, inter-religious clashes following a dispute between a Muslim and a Christian. "Twenty Christians and one Muslim were killed after violence broke out in the town of el-Kosheh, 440 kilometres (275 miles) south of Cairo."[51] In 2005, in Kafr Salama village, Sharqiya governorate, an altercation between a Muslim and a Christian resulted in the death of the Muslim. Muslim villagers later attacked the Abu Sifin Church and several Christian homes and looted several shops before the authorities restored order.[50] In 2006, one person, described by police as drunk and mad, attacked three churches in Alexandria, leaving one dead and from 5 to 16 injured, although the attacker was not linked to any organisation.[52][50][53] On January 7, 2010, Muslim gunmen open fire on Christian worshipers leaving a church in Nag Hammadi resulting in the murder of nine Coptic Christians.[54] On January 1, 2011, at least 21 people were killed and 83 injured when a car bomb exploded outside a Coptic Christian church in Alexandria.[55] On 7 May 2011, a church was burnt down in Cairo.[56] Then on October 14, 2012 in the absence of security officials 2 Muslims from a group were killed after they tried to kidnap a woman from a Christian family.[57]

In January 2013 when the Muslim Brotherhood was in power, Christian nonprofit organization Open Doors ranked Egypt as the 25th most difficult place to be a Christian, on their annual World Watch List.[58]

Religions in Egypt

Islam
Main article: Islam in Egypt
Islamic Cairo As viewed from the Cairo Citadel

Islam has been the state religion in Egypt since the amendment of the second article of the Egyptian constitution in the year 1980, before which Egypt was recognized as a secular country. The vast majority of Egyptian Muslims are Sunni, with a small Mu'tazila, Shia Twelvers and Ismailism communities making up the remainder.[59] A significant number of Sunni Egyptians also follow native Sufi orders.[27] Egypt hosts the most important Sunni institution in the world, Al-Azhar University. It is the oldest Islamic institution of higher studies (founded around 970 CE), and is considered by many to be the oldest extant university in the world.

Al-Azhar Mosque founded in AD 970 by the Fatimids as the first Islamic University in Egypt

The Shia Ismaili caliphate of the Fatimids made Egypt their center, and made Cairo their capital. Egypt's various social groups and classes apply Islam differently in their daily lives. The literate theologians of Al-Azhar generally reject the popular version of Islam practised by religious preachers and peasants in the countryside, which is heavily Sufi-influenced. Sufism has flourished in Egypt since Islam was first adopted. Most upper- and middle-class Muslims believed either that religious expression is a private matter for each individual or that Islam should play a more dominant role in public life. Islamic religious revival movements, whose appeal cuts across class lines, have been present in most cities and in many villages for a long time.

According to the constitution of Egypt, any new legislation must at least implicitly agree with Islamic law. The mainstream Hanafi school of Sunni Islam is largely controlled by the state, through Wizaret Al-Awkaf (Ministry of Religious Affairs). Al-Awkaf controls all mosques and supervises Muslim clerics, but the Shafi'i and Maliki madhhabs were mixed together. Imams are trained in Imam vocational schools and at Al-Azhar. The ministry supports Sunni Islam and has commissions authorized to give Fatwā judgements on Islamic issues.

Christianity
Main articles: Christianity in Egypt and Copts in Egypt
About 5% to 15% of Egyptians follow the Christian faith as members of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. Egyptian Christians are the largest Christian community in the Middle East by raw number of adherents.

The Coptic Christian population in Egypt is the largest Christian community in the Middle East and North Africa standing at between 5% – 15% of Egypt's population according to different statistics.[32][60] About 95% of Egypt's Christians are members of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria.[21][22] an Oriental Orthodox Church, Traditionally believed to be established in the 1st century A.D. by Saint Mark. The Church is headed by the Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, attests to Egypt's strong Christian heritage. It has a followers of approximately 10 million Christians worldwide.[61][62][63][64]

The Hanging Church of Cairo, built in the third or fourth century AD, is one of the most famous Coptic Churches in Egypt.

Other native Egyptian Christians are adherents of the Coptic Catholic Church, the Coptic Evangelical Church and various Coptic Protestant denominations. Non-native Christian communities are largely found in the urban regions of Alexandria and Cairo, and are members of the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Latin Catholic Church, the Episcopal/Anglican Province of Alexandria, the Maronite Church, the Armenian Catholic Church, the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Syriac Catholic Church, or the Syriac Orthodox Church.

Significant minorities within Egypt's Christian community include the following denominations:[23]

Archangel Michael's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Aswan. A noticeable large proportion of Egyptians in Upper Egypt are of Coptic Orthodox heritage.

Judaism
Main article: History of the Jews in Egypt
Annex of the Library of Jewish Heritage in Egypt, Ben Ezra Synagogue, Old Cairo.

Before 1956 and according to the 1948 census there were 65,639 Egyptian Jews, including Karaites. Jews participated in all aspects of Egypt's social, economic and political life; one of the most ardent Egyptian nationalists, Yaqub Sanu' (Abu Naddara), was Jewish, as were the musician Dawoud Husni, popular singer Leila Mourad and filmmaker Togo Mizrahi. For a while, Jews from across the Ottoman Empire and Europe were attracted to Egypt due to the relative harmony that characterized the local religious landscape in the 19th and early 20th centuries. After the 1956 Suez Crisis, a great number of Jews were expelled by Gamal Abdel Nasser. Their Egyptian citizenship was revoked and their properties were confiscated. A steady stream of emigration of Egyptian Jews followed, reaching a peak after the Six-Day War with Israel in 1967. As of mid-2016, there were a total of 6 Jews remaining in Cairo, including their spiritual leader, Magda Tania Haroun, all women over the age of 65.[35] There are a further 12 Jews in the city of Alexandria, whose spiritual leader is Ben Youssef Gaon.[66]

Ahmadiyya Islam
Main article: Ahmadiyya in Egypt

The Ahmadiyya movement in Egypt, which numbers up to 50,000 adherents in the country,[67] was established in 1922[68] but has seen an increase in hostility and government repression as of the 21st century. The Al-Azhar University has denounced the Ahmadis[69] and Ahmadis have been hounded by police along with other Muslim groups deemed to be deviant under Egypt's defamation laws.[70][71] On 15 March 2010, nine Ahmadis were detained due to their adherence to the movement.[72][73]

Bahá'í Faith
Main article: Baháʼí Faith in Egypt

In 1925, the Kingdom of Egypt became the first Islamic state to legally recognize the Baháʼí Faith as an independent religion apart from Islam. The state-sanctioned persecution of Baháʼís started to emerge after the 1953 dissolution of the monarchy, culminating in Law 263 in 1960, banning all Baháʼí institutions and community activities in Egypt. Reports in 2006 revealed that, as followers of the Baháʼí Faith had difficulty obtaining documentation from government authorities, and police regularly detain people who do not have correct documentation, some Baháʼís frequently stayed home to avoid possible arrest.[74] In 2008 a court case allowed Baháʼís to obtain birth certificates and identification documents, so long as they omit their religion on court documents.[38]

Informal estimates about the Baháʼí population in Egypt suggest that, in 2006, there were approximately 2,000 Baháʼís resident in Egypt,[75][76] though other estimates go as high as 6,900 adherents in 2010.[77]

Since their faith is not officially recognized by the state, they were not allowed to use it on their national identity cards. Without valid identity cards Baháʼís encounter difficulty registering their children in school, opening bank accounts, and establishing businesses.[74] On 16 December 2006, after only one hearing, the High Court of Egypt ruled against the Baháʼís, stating that the government would not recognize their religion in official identification cards.[37] The ruling left Baháʼís unable to obtain ID cards, birth certificates, or death certificates.[37] However, on January 29, 2008 Cairo's court of Administrative Justice, ruling on two related court cases, ruled in favour of the Baháʼís, allowing them to obtain birth certificates and identification documents, so long as they omit their religion on court documents.[38] The ruling accepted the compromise solution offered by the Baháʼís, allowing for them to obtain identification papers without the Baháʼí Faith being officially recognized.[78][79]

During and since the 2011 Egyptian revolution tensions have remained high, including homes being burnt,[80] though Baháʼís made ongoing efforts to contribute to the dialog.[81] Since 2011 Baháʼís remain concerned,[76] noting such things as a 2012 statement by a Salafi spokesman that "We will prosecute the Bahai's [sic] on charge of treason".[82]

Hinduism
Main article: Hinduism in Egypt

Atheism and agnosticism
Main article: Irreligion in Egypt

There are Egyptians who identify themselves as atheist and agnostic. It is however difficult to quantify their number as the stigma attached to being one makes it hard for irreligious Egyptians to publicly profess their views.[83][84] Furthermore, public statements that can be deemed critical of Islam or Christianity can be tried under the country's notorious blasphemy law. Outspoken atheists, like Alber Saber, have been convicted under this law. These types of crime in Egypt hold a status similar to Antragsdelikt, legal proceedings only occur if a citizen takes the step of suing the person engaging in blasphemy, and cases are not initiated by the general prosecutor. In 2000, an openly atheist Egyptian writer, who called for the establishment of a local association for atheists, was tried on charges of insulting Islam in four of his books.[85]

The number of atheists is reportedly on the rise among the country's youth, many of whom organize and communicate with each other on the internet.[86][85] According to a survey by Arab Barometer, around 10% of Egyptians identifying themselves as non-religious.[87] In the same survey, about a fifth of the young Egyptians described themselves as non-religious.[88] The Same Survey also stated, 0.1 of Egyptian's Identified with No Religion.[89] An Egyptian newspaper Al-Sabah claimed 3 million of Egypt's 84 million population have no religion, citing an unnamed US survey.[90] While the government has acknowledged this trend, it has dealt with it as a problem that needs to be confronted, comparing it to religious extremism. In 2014 the Ministry of Youth and the Ministry of Awqaf announced a joint strategy to combat the spread of "harmful ideas" among the nation's youth, namely atheism and religious extremism.[91] In December 2014 Dar al-Ifta, a government-affiliated Islamic centre of education and jurisprudence, claimed that there are 866 atheists in Egypt, a figure which amounts to 0.001% of the population and was called by The Guardian "suspiciously precise".[92] Despite hostile sentiments towards them, atheists in Egypt have become increasingly vocal since the Egyptian revolution of 2011.[93]

In a 2011 Pew Research poll of 1,798 Muslims in Egypt, 63% of those surveyed supported "the death penalty for people who leave the Muslim religion"[94] However, no such punishment actually exists in the country.[95] In January 2018 the head of the parliament's religious committee, Amr Hamroush, suggested a bill to make atheism illegal, stating that "it [atheism] must be criminalised and categorised as contempt of religion because atheists have no doctrine and try to insult the Abrahamic religions".[96]

Atheists or irreligious people cannot change their official religious status, thus statistically they are counted as followers of their parent's religion.[85]

See also

Notes
  1. Numbers vary widely. The 1996 census, the last for which public info on religion exists has 5.6% of the population as Christian (down from 8.3% in 1927).[note 2] However the census may be undercounting Christians.[note 2] The government Egyptian Demographic and Health Survey (2008) of around 16,500 women aged 15 to 49 showed about 5% of the respondents were Christian.[note 2] According to Al-Ahram newspaper, one of the main government owned national newspapers in Egypt, estimated the percentage between 10% - 15% (2017).[note 3] QScience Connect in 2013 using 2008 data estimated that 5.1% of Egyptians between the ages of 15 and 59 were Copts.[note 4] The Pew Foundation estimates 5.1% for Christians in 2010.[note 5] The CIA Fact Book estimates 10% (2012)[note 6] while the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs states in 1997, "Estimates of the size of Egypt's Christian population vary from the low government figures of 6 to 7 million to the 12 million reported by some Christian leaders. The actual numbers may be in the 9 to 9.5 million range, out of an Egyptian population of more than 60 million" which yields an estimate of about 10-20% then.[note 7] Several sources give 10-20%.[note 8] [note 9] The British Foreign Office gives a figure of 9%.[note 10] The Christian Post in 2004 quotes the U.S. Copt Association as reporting 15% of the population as native Christian.[note 11]
  2. Suh, Michael (15 February 2011). "How many Christians are there in Egypt?". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  3. "Egypt's Sisi meets world Evangelical churches delegation in Cairo". english.ahram.org.eg. Al-Ahram. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  4. Mohamoud, Yousra; Cuadros, Diego; Abu-Raddad, Laith (26 June 2013). "Characterizing the Copts in Egypt: Demographic, socioeconomic and health indicators". QScience Connect (2013): 22. doi:10.5339/connect.2013.22. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  5. "Religions in Egypt | PEW-GRF". www.globalreligiousfutures.org. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  6. "Egypt from "The World Factbook"". American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). June 22, 2014.
  7. Wagner, Don. "Egypt's Coptic Christians: Caught Between Renewal and Persecution". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs (October/November 1997). Retrieved 28 June 2014.
  8. "The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. October 25, 2005.
  9. Morrow, Adam (24 April 2006). "EGYPT: Attacks Raise Fear of Religious Discord". Inter Press Service. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
  11. Chan, Kenneth (7 December 2004). "Thousands Protest Egypt's Neglect of Coptic Persecution". Christian Post. Retrieved 28 June 2014.

References
  1. "Egyptian Copts reject population estimate – Politics – Egypt – Ahram Online". english.ahram.org.eg. Retrieved 2015-11-27.
  2. Washington, Suite 800; Inquiries, DC 20036 USA 202-419-4300 | Main 202-419-4349 | Fax 202-419-4372 | Media (16 February 2011). How many Christians are there in Egypt?. Pew Research Center. ISBN 978-2024194347.
  3. "Egypt, International Religious Freedom Report 2008". Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. September 19, 2008.
  4. "Copts welcome Presidential announcement on Eastern Christmas Holiday", Arabic News, December 20, 2002, archived from the original on September 30, 2007.
  5. Egypt: Overview of human rights issues in Egypt. 2005, Human Rights Watch, 2006-01-18.
  6. Arab Barometer Wave V (2018 - 2019) "Data Download". Data can be also accessed using the "Online Data Analysis Tool". Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  7. "Religions in Egypt | PEW-GRF". www.globalreligiousfutures.org. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  8. IPS News (retrieved 09-27-2008)
  9. . The Washington Post. "Estimates of the size of Egypt's Christian population vary from the low government figures of 6 to 7 million to the 12 million reported by some Christian leaders. The actual numbers may be in the 9 to 9.5 million range, out of an Egyptian population of more than 60 million." Retrieved 10-10-2008
  10. The Christian Post. Accessed 28 September 2008.
  11. NLG Solutions Archived 2016-03-24 at the Wayback Machine <Online>. Egypt. Accessed 28 September 2008.
  12. Morrow, Adam (April 24, 2006). "EGYPT: Attacks Raise Fear of Religious Discord". Inter Press Service. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  13. "How many Christians are there in Egypt?". Pew Research Center. 2011-02-16. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  14. "Egypt's Sisi meets world Evangelical churches delegation in Cairo – Politics – Egypt – Ahram Online". english.ahram.org.eg. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
  15. "Egyptian Copts reject population estimate – Politics – Egypt – Ahram Online". english.ahram.org.eg. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
  16. "The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. October 25, 2005.
  17. "Egypt Round 6 Data (2016) | Afrobarometer". afrobarometer.org. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  18. ."Egypt". The World Factbook. American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). September 4, 2008.
  19. "Muslim population", The 2009 American Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life (PDF), archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-10-10.
  20. "Religion/Islamic conservatism's revival attracts followers, worries governments". Star Wars Tribune. June 18, 2009.
  21. "Egypt". Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. United States Department of State. September 30, 2008.
  22. "Egypt". Foreign and Commonwealth Office. UK Ministry of Foreign Affairs. August 15, 2008. Archived from the original on December 12, 2012.
  23. "Egypt Religions & Peoples". Encyclopedia. LookLex. September 30, 2008.
  24. "Egypt". Encarta. Microsoft. September 30, 2008. Archived from the original on October 31, 2009.
  25. "Controversy in Egypt after a prominent church figure declared the number of Copts in Egypt exceeds 12 million". Al Arabiya. November 2, 2008. Archived from the original on June 3, 2010. Retrieved November 2, 2008.
  26. "Pope Shenouda III declares to a TV station that the number of Copts in Egypt exceeds 12 million". October 29, 2008.
  27. Hoffman, Valerie J (1995), Sufism, Mystics, and Saints in Modern Egypt, University of South Carolina Press.
  28. Khalil, Mohammad Hassan (2013). Between Heaven and Hell: Islam, Salvation, and the Fate of Others. Oxford University Press. p. 297. ISBN 9780199945412. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  29. "Egypt: Attack On Shia Comes At Dangerous Time". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  30. "Four Egyptian Shi'ites killed in attack by Sunni Muslims". Reuters. 2013-06-23. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  31. Bengali, Shashank (2013-08-10). "Egypt's Shiite Muslims saw the Sunni hatred grow under Morsi". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Archived from the original on 2015-09-22. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
  32. "Egypt's Sisi meets world Evangelical churches delegation". english.ahram.org.eg. Al-Ahram. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  33. "Egyptian Copts reject population estimate – Politics – Egypt – Ahram Online". english.ahram.org.eg. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  34. Who are the Christians in the Middle East?. Betty Jane Bailey. 2003-03-27. ISBN 9780802810205. Retrieved June 19, 2009.
  35. "Egypt's Jewish community diminished to 6 women after death of Lucy Saul". Egypt Independent. 2016-07-30. Retrieved 2017-03-03.
  36. "Egypt Chapter - 2019 Annual Report" (PDF). United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (report).
  37. "Government Must Find Solution for Baha'i Egyptians". Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. 2006-12-16. Retrieved 2006-12-16.
  38. Johnston, Cynthia (2008-01-29). "Egypt Baha'is win court fight over identity papers". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2008-02-15. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
  39. "Egypt", World report, Human Rights Watch, 2007-01-11, archived from the original on 2008-09-28.
  40. Egypt: national unity & the Coptic issue, Ahram, 2004-07-05, archived from the original on 2007-09-12.
  41. Egypt: Egypt Arrests 22 Muslim converts to Christianity. November 03, 2003
  42. Shahine, Gihan. "Fraud, not Freedom". Archived 2008-10-15 at the Wayback Machine Ahram Weekly, 3 – May 9, 2007
  43. Audi, Nadim (February 11, 2008). "Egyptian Court Allows Return to Christianity". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  44. Associated Press. Egypt court upholds right of converted Muslims to return to Christianity Archived 2011-11-21 at the Wayback Machine. 2008-02-09.
  45. AFP. Egypt allows converts to revert to Christianity on ID Archived 2009-04-16 at the Wayback Machine. February, 2008.
  46. Harvard encyclopedia of American ethnic groups By Stephan Thernstrom. Page 242.
  47. Social and economic geographical analysis of the Egyptian Copts, by Fouad N. Ibrahim. GEOJOURNAL Volume 6, Number 1, 63–67, doi:10.1007/BF00446595
  48. WorldWide Religious News. Church Building Regulations Eased Archived 2009-03-18 at the Wayback Machine. December 13, 2005.
  49. Compass Direct News. Church Building Regulations Eased Archived 2017-10-18 at the Wayback Machine. December 13, 2005.
  50. "Egypt, International Religious Freedom Report 2006". Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. September 15, 2006.
  51. "Egyptian court orders clashes retrial". BBC News. July 30, 2001.
  52. Miles, Hugh (April 15, 2006). "Coptic Christians attacked in churches". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-10-07.
  53. BBC. Egypt church attacks spark anger, April 15, 2006.
  54. "Egyptians riot after seven killed in Church attack". NBC NEWS. January 7, 2010. Retrieved October 10, 2011.
  55. "Bomb hits Alexandria church at New Year's Mass, 21 dead".
  56. "11 killed, churches burned in Cairo". Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  57. "Sectarian tensions rise in wake of crime boss death – Daily News Egypt". Daily News Egypt. 2012-10-15. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  58. "The Open Doors World Watch List 2013". Open Doors.
  59. "Egyptian people section from the World Factbook". World Fact Book. Retrieved 2007-01-29.
  60. Cole, Ethan (July 8, 2008). "Egypt's Christian-Muslim Gap Growing Bigger". The Christian Post. Retrieved 2008-10-02.
  61. "Orthodox Christianity in the 21st Century". Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. 8 November 2017. Egypt has the Middle East’s largest Orthodox population (an estimated 4 million Egyptians, or 5% of the population), mainly members of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
  62. "BBC - Religions - Christianity: Coptic Orthodox Church". www.bbc.co.uk. The Coptic Orthodox Church is the main Christian Church in Egypt, where it has between 6 and 11 million members.
  63. CNN, Matt Rehbein. "Who are Egypt's Coptic Christians?". CNN. Coptic Christians make up the majority of Egypt's roughly 9 million Christians. About 1 million more Coptic Christians are spread across Africa, Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States, according to the World Council of Churches.
  64. "Coptic Orthodox Church — World Council of Churches". www.oikoumene.org.
  65. Pope Theodoros II
  66. "Egypt's last Jews aim to keep heritage alive". timesofisrael.com. 26 March 2017.
  67. Lawrence, Bruce B. (2013; p.297), 'Citizen Ahmad among the Believers: Salvation Contextualized in Indonesia and Egypt' in Khalil, M. H. (ed.) Between Heaven and Hell: Islam, Salvation, and the Fate of Others, pp.288–312. New York: Oxford University Press
  68. Yohanan Friedmann. Prophecy Continuous: Aspects of Ahmadi Religious Thought and its Medieval Background Oxford University Press, 2003 p.24
  69. Jones-Pauly, Christina; Tuqan, Abir Dajani (2011). Women Under Islam: Gender Justice and the Politics of Islamic Law. I.B.Tauris. p. 416. ISBN 978-1-84511-386-5.
  70. Sarah Carr (19 November 2012). "Insult laws: Elusive and longstanding". Egypt Independent. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  71. Lawrence, Bruce B. (2013; p.302), 'Citizen Ahmad among the Believers: Salvation Contextualized in Indonesia and Egypt' in Khalil, M. H. (ed.) Between Heaven and Hell: Islam, Salvation, and the Fate of Others, pp.288–312. New York: Oxford University Press
  72. "Rights group demands release of Ahmadiyya detainees". 16 May 2010. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  73. "Egypt Ahmadis detained under emergency law: rights group". 14 May 2010. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  74. U.S. Department of State (2006-09-15). "Egypt: International Religious Freedom Report". Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Retrieved 2007-05-08.
  75. IRIN (2006-05-16). "EGYPT: Court suspends ruling recognising Bahai rights". Reuters. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
  76. "Egypt's forgotten Baha'i community fearful and hopeful of future". Bikya Masr. 2012-01-07. Archived from the original on 2012-03-21. Retrieved 2012-02-25.
  77. "QuickLists: Most Baha'i Nations (2010)". Association of Religion Data Archives. 2010. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
  78. AFP (2008-01-30). "Egypt's Bahais score breakthrough in religious freedom case". AFP. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
  79. BWNS (2008-01-29). "Egypt court upholds Baháʼí plea in religious freedom cases". Baháʼí World News Service. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
  80. "Baháʼí Homes Set on Fire Again in Egypt – UPDATED". The Muslim Network for Baháʼí Rights. 2011-02-23. Retrieved 2012-02-25.
  81. Baháʼís of Egypt (April 2011). "An open letter to the people of Egypt". www.bahai-egypt.org. Archived from the original on 2011-04-09. Retrieved 2012-02-25.
  82. al-Shahat, Abdel Moneim (2012-02-18). "Shahat: Baha'is threaten Egypt's national security". Egypt Independent. Archived from the original on 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
  83. "Who is afraid of Egyptian atheists?". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
  84. "Controversial Egyptian film 'The Atheist' gets go ahead by censors". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  85. Halawi, Jailan (December 27, 2000). "Limits to expression". Al-Ahram Weekly. Archived from the original on December 26, 2004.
  86. "Leaving Islam in the age of Islamism". Daily News. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
  87. The Arab world in seven charts Are Arabs turning their backs on religion?
  88. "Young Arabs are Changing their Beliefs and Perceptions: New Survey". Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  89. https://www.arabbarometer.org/survey-data/data-analysis-tool/
  90. "Egypt: Are there really three million atheists?". BBC News. 2013-11-19. Retrieved 2014-11-15.
  91. "Govt announces campaign to save youth from atheism". Mada Masr. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  92. Kingsley, Patrick (12 December 2014). "Egypt's atheists number 866 – precisely". Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  93. Keddie, Patrick. "Egypt's embattled atheists". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
  94. "The World's Muslims: Religion, Politics and Society" (PDF). Pew Research Center. 30 April 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 October 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
  95. Egypt 2015 International Religious Freedom Report
  96. Winston, Kimberly (4 January 2018). "Egyptian Parliament considers outlawing atheism". World-Wide Religions News (WWRN). Retrieved 26 March 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.