Coptic Church Awards Winners of “Egypt, the Beautiful” Competition

By Nour El Hoda Fouad

CAIRO, Jan. 20 (SEE) - The Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral, in Abbasiya, awarded the winners of the first edition of "Egypt, the Beautiful" competition, organized by the Media Center of the Coptic Orthodox Church.

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of Saint Mark Diocese and Immigration Minister attended the celebration which was full of the Christian hymns, played by David Ensemble.

Pope Tawadros said: Art is the real historian of any nation and without it, we couldn't know our ancestors' glory and civilization. It is also the best way to express our feelings."

Makram, on her part, stressed the importance of the church's role in fighting all devil's power that aims at destructing Egypt.

"Church always defends the position of Egypt and Egyptians who more realized the dangers around them," she added.

Regarding the awards, they varied among its categories; Ola Hassan, Michael Labib, and Mahmoud Abdel Raouf won an EGP 1000-prize for "Egypt, the Human" category which focused on capturing photographic images that reveal Egypt’s beauty in her people.

Rania Mostafa, Duaa Sayed, and Ola Hassan won awards for "Egypt, the Rock" category that shows Egypt’s beauty in her archaeological and well-known historical artifacts.

Anas Abdel Gawad and Ahmed Abdel Rahman were awarded for their photos in the category of "Egypt, the Moon" which concentrates on endless natural beauty in all four seasons.