The Saints Anba Bishoy and Anba Shenouda on Their Adjacent Feasts in Shiheet and Sohag
The two saints, Anba Bishoy and Anba Shenouda, on their adjacent feasts in Shiheet and Sohag [1]
Did this solitary monk ever imagine that the Church would celebrate his day with such great festivities as those witnessed in the wilderness of Shiheet?! Where the Pope gathered with a large number of bishops, receiving blessings from his holy body, anointing it with musk, spices, perfumes, and fragrances, while hundreds of visitors—rather thousands—crowded, seeking a blessing, even if only by touching the casket that carries his body.
The day of the departure of Saint Anba Bishoy has become a general feast, and his monastery has become crowded with visitors every year, and a retreat to which seekers of worship and solitude resort from various parts of the country.
All of this has been aided by the many reforms that have been established in the monastery, where places of comfort have been provided for visitors. The monastery still awaits much more in terms of progress, so that guests see something new in every visit.
And just as the Monastery of Anba Bishoy has been associated with the name of Pope Shenouda, so the feast of Saint Anba Shenouda has come adjacent to the feast of Saint Anba Bishoy: the first on 7 Abib (July 14), and the second on 8 Abib (July 15).
And just as the hand of Pope Shenouda extended with reform in the Monastery of Anba Bishoy, we desire that his Holiness’s hand may also extend to the Monastery of Anba Shenouda in Sohag, so that it may attain the same status, and that its feast may have the same splendor.
For better translation support, please contact the center.
