Ethiopian Orthodox Church to Talk with Egypt Coptic Church over Deir El Sultan monastery Renovation in Jerusalem
A Coptic Orthodox Church delegation is to visit Jerusalem on Tuesday in response to an invitation from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church to discuss the renovation of Deir El Sultan monastery in the Old City. Spokesman for the Coptic Orthodox Church, Boulos Halim, told al-Masry al-Youm that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church cannot renovate the monastery without the approval of the Coptic Church.
The two church denominations have been contesting ownership of the monastery since 1967. According to the website of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem, the Egyptian claim to the monastery dates back to the reign of the Muslim Sultan Al Mo-ez (1033-1054). The group say Egyptian delegates used to transport the Gezia money (Islamic taxes) collected from the Copts of Egypt to the Muslim Caliphate in Baghdad.
