Department of Ancient History to learn about Macquarie’s Coptic Studies

Program. This program, which was established in 2004 with financial

support from Sydney’s large Coptic community, is unique in the world

because it can be studied completely online. Visiting from Egypt were H E

Metropolitan Bishoy, the Secretary of the Holy Synod of the Coptic

Orthodox Church and H G Bishop Moussa, Bishop for Youth Affairs. They

were accompanied by the bishops for the Melbourne and Sydney dioceses

respectively, H G Bishop Suriel and H G Bishop Daniel. The bishops were

impressed by the large number of students enrolled in the Masters

program, and promised their support in publicising the program Australiawide

and overseas and in finding possibilities to support Egyptian

students wishing to enrol online.

Front row from left: Ibrahim Ibrahim (Macquarie University student),

Bishop Daniel, Metropolitan Bishoy, Bishop Suriel, Bishop Moussa, Sasha

Verma (student).

Back row from left: Fiona Brown and Ehab Wahib (students), Dr Tom

Hillard (Deputy Dean of Humanities), Matthew Underwood (student),

Professor Alanna Nobbs (Ancient History), Father Matthew Attia, Professor

Naguib Kanawati (Egyptology), Father Antonious Kaldas, Karl van Dyke

(Museum of Ancient Cultures), Heike Behlmer (Lecturer in Coptic Studies),