Pope Tawadros rejects calls of secession

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of Saint Mark Diocese underlined Saturday his rejection of calls by some Copts for secession and establishing a Coptic country in Egypt. "The church is an integrated part of Egypt which will not be divided and will be united forever as it has always been since King Pharaoh Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt," Tawadros said in statements published by Al-Arabiya News Channel. "Any one who promotes such calls is mentally disturbed," Tawadros added. Pope Tawadros asserted that there are no problems facing Copts under the Islamist rule in post-revolution Egypt. He added that the Egyptian church has reservations about some articles in Egypt's new constitution which was approved in a public vote last month. He asserted that the second article of the constitution, which stipulates the principles of the Sharia (Islamic law) are the main source of legislation, has received societal consensus since 1971. He attributed the withdrawal of the church from the constituent assembly to an explanatory article of the Sharia, which, he said, made the constitution addressing one segment of Egyptian society. Tawadros called on the Shura Council, which is responsible for legislation, to endorse a law on houses of worship that facilitates the building and renovation of churches and a law on personal status of non-Muslims