[Diocese of Egypt] On Tuesday evening (10 December) over 200 Imams and Priests gathered to celebrate at the conclusion of the three-year Together for Egypt program and receive certificates of completion.

Together for Egypt brought together Priests and Imams to work side by side in humanitarian and social work. The project demonstrated the capacity for leaders from very different religious backgrounds to work together for good, to make friendships with one another, and to create the foundations for future relations between the Christians and Muslims of Egypt. The goals of the project emphasise creating new stabilities in society as well as bringing about a brighter, more religiously tolerant future for Egypt.

The celebration featured speeches by a number of key figures of the Together for Egypt project including; Archbishop Mouneer Hanna Anis, Bishop Yohanna Kolta, Dr. Hamdy Zakzouk, Abdul Salem (representing Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayyeb of Al-Azhar), and Anba Arrameya (representing Pope Tawadros II). Following these addresses, each Imam or Priest was called forward by name and presented a certificate of completion.

The celebration was the culmination of Together for Egypt and the progress and success of the project was very clear. The Priests and Imams sat easily with each other, listening carefully to the speeches as one. At the conclusion the camaraderie and close friendships that had developed between the various Priests and Imams was apparent as they grouped around each other laughing, talking, telling stories, and taking photos.