U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) welcomed His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, the Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, for the consecration of Archangel Michael Church in Howell, NJ. Sunday.
Smith told Pope Tawadros that there are many in other faiths and denominations, who know, admire and respect him, and support the persecuted Coptic community.
“I chaired several congressional hearings on Coptic Christians and their many challenges,” Smith said. “It is a faith that has persevered despite persecution, and I want to say we in Congress are inspired.”
More than a thousand people turned out for the celebration. Pope Tawadros presented Smith with a commemorative plaque in appreciation for Smith’s work on the plight of the Coptic community in Egypt.
Congressman Smith has held multiple hearings on religious persecution, including: his “Human Rights in Egypt” hearing in 2011, his “Human Rights Abuses in Egypt” hearing in 2013 and his “Advancing Human Rights to Combat Extremism” hearing in 2017 to counter violent extremism in the Islamic world, including by promoting religious freedom. Among other honors in recent years, Smith has been given the 2014 Coptic Solidarity Leadership Award for work on behalf of the Copts and People of Egypt, and the 2017 Thomas Jefferson International Religious Freedom Champion Award from the International Religious Freedom Roundtable.
In additions to the hearings, Smith told Pope Tawadros of his Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act, enacted in 2016, which is a congressional effort to try to promote religious freedom all over the world.
On Saturday, Sept. 22 Pope Tawadros visited St. Mina Coptic Orthodox Church, also in Smith’s district, on Route 34 in Holmdel, NJ. Smith was invited to attend the consecration of St. Mina’s as well. This is Pope Tawadros' second visit to the United States. He arrived on Sept. 13 and is visiting several parishes in the northeastern United States through Oct. 11. The Archdiocese of North America includes more than 200 Coptic Orthodox churches, including at least nine in New Jersey.
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