A Christian Coptic theological reflection on religious inclusion and forgiveness

Being a Coptic Christian living in a country where Christians are a minority is quite challenging. Every day I face many questions. How can I live as a true Christian in this discriminative context? Is diversity a blessing or a curse? How can I be a loving person to every human being even when they could oppress me or discriminate against me? As a theology student I have to answer these questions in a way that is faithful to the Christian teachings. In this article, I will review three theological principles that I believe can help to solve the dilemma between diversity and inclusiveness in modern times.

what is the nature of humanity?

In the Book of Genesis, we read that “God said: Let us make man in our image, afer our likeness; [...] So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him, male and female created He them. And God blessed them”

(Gen. 1:26-27, esv Global Study Bible). So, what does this “image and likeness” mean? This is the topic of numberless biblical and theological debates. For me, it refers to the grace of dignity and royalty given to us from the Triune God, regardless of our religion, age, gender, ethnicity, race, sociopolitical views, etc. St. Gregory of Nyssa afrms that humanity is blessed with “royal nature”1, which is a “resemblance to the universal King [i.e. God]”2.

Several early Christians understood the radicalism of this doctrine. St. John Chrysostom described humanity as the “greatest and most marvelous among the living beings and the creation most worthy of honor before God”3. The paradox of this doctrine is that however we can easily notice the deep corruption of humans; we must dig deep inside every human action in order to find the “image and likeness of God” which is buried in everyone. We may even add that the “image and likeness of God” is buried deep inside every thief or murderer, that the image of God in humanity “survives the scars of human sin”4. It might be challenging to articulate the doctrine in this way, but nonetheless, this is the only faithful conclusion drawn from it. Human beings are given dignity by God, regardless of the many results of sin and death. This is a starting point for our anthropological understanding.

who is jesus christ?

The doctrine of the incarnate God is the essence of Christian faith. Various theological debates throughout centuries rose from the same question: who is Jesus Christ? A theological or historical representation of Christ goes beyond the scope and the goal of this article. However, I want to highlight that it is historically accepted by the Christian Tradition that Christ is both God and man, he is the truly God and truly human, as the Gospel of St. John writes: “The Word became flesh” (John 1:14).

This unity between the divine and human natures means not only human dignity’s restoration through the union with the Son of God but also it is the ultimate hope for complete communion of humanity with God, inasmuch as God, through the incarnation of the “Son/Logos”, united humanity with himself5. So, if Christ united human nature to himself in order to restore humanity’s relationship with God, the Father, then it is God’s teaching that every human being is certainly precious regardless their diversity.

4 An introduction to Christian theology, Richard J. Plantinga, Thomas R. Thompson, and Mathew D. Lundberg, P.181 (United Kingdom: Cambridge university press, 5th ed., 2014)

5 I am using “himself” not in a way to priorities one gender on the other, I am using it in the same way as the biblical language in many translations.

what do we mean by trinity?

According to the Christian faith God is unique and reveals himself as Triune. God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Every person of the Holy Trinity is God Himself, the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God, and the whole Trinity is one Triune God. They are not three Gods, nor they are three models or manifestations of the same God. They are three persons in one being, they are in mutual indwelling inside each other. The Trinitarian doctrine is paradoxical and radical. Paradoxical, as we are used to understanding unity in an individualistic sense.

Contrary to the individualistic post-modern paradigm, Trinitarian unity is performed in communion and solidarity. According to the doctrine of Trinity, unity is accomplished between diferent persons who share the same being. This doctrine is also radical as it reshapes our view of love and unity. Love is the essence of God (1 John 4:8). Love doesn’t mean to dissolve or to remove the uniqueness of each person, but it presupposes openness to the beloved one without reducing one’s identity, So we can afrm that “love is supremely a predicate of person-in-right-relation”6. As Christians, we believe that “God is like a family, a community or a society of persons”7

Thus, we can conclude that the Trinitarian doctrine is a true model for a love which emphasizes inclusiveness and does not dissolve diferences. It entails loving the other person without trying to remove his identity and peculiarity.

Dealing With Human Diversity And Inclusion

Based on the theological conclusions mentioned above and noticing the diversity in our contemporary world, I argue for the following:

1 The doctrine of “image and likeness of God” can help us to appreciate every human being per se, regardless of his or her diversity in religion, age, gender, ethnicity, race, sociopolitical views, etc. Emil Brunner once said “first of all [humanity] be defined theologically, only then may the philosopher, the psychologist and the biologist make their statement”8. It is our duty as followers of Christ to love and respect every human being.

2. Based on the doctrine of God’s incarnation and the subsequent unity of divine and human natures in Jesus Christ, I believe that humans are invited to be sisters and brothers for Christ, and to look for a beter future for all humanity. This future may be inspired by the graceful incarnational act of Jesus as way of salvation given by God to us.

3. Finally, based on the doctrine of the Trinity, a truly inclusive love must be based on accepting and loving the person by not trying to look for identifying the other with ourselves, but by respecting and promoting his or her personal identity.

A Christian Coptic Response To Religious Excluding Violence

As Gavin D’Costa states: “there is, in efect, no such thing as action without belief”9. So reflecting is both a framework and a catalyst for every ethical and moral action. I assume that these three statements -if understood rightly- summarize most of the Christian message and therefore they can refine any Church’s discourse, regardless of the situation of the believers (i.e., majority or minority).

2014)

On the other hand, this theology will encourage the minority to show Christian values, ethics and morals in the darkest hours of history. A good example of this is the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt. Afer the violent dispersal10 of the sitin of the Muslim Brotherhood on August 14, 2011, other radical Islamic movements and pro-Morsi supporters in Rab’a

9 Christianity and World Religions: Disputed Questions in the Theology of Religions, Gavin D’Costa, P. 17-8 (Wiley-Blackwell; 1st ed.,2009)

10 htps://www.hrw.org/news/2013/08/21/egypt-mass-atacks-churches (checked on 1-March-2019)