A State Institution

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's role in making the Coptic Museum a state institution of Egypt. In 1920, Fuad I, ruler of Egypt and Sudan from the Muhammad Ali dynasty, visited the Coptic Museum. From that moment, the king conceived the idea of making the Coptic Museum a state museum and asked Simaika to cede the museum to the government. Simaika replied that he would submit the request to Cyril V. All objects in the museum belonged to the Coptic Orthodox Church, and Simaika would not have been able to transfer them from the different monasteries and churches without ecclesiastic approval and on the condition that they be exhibited in an annex to the Muʻallaqa Church and under the care of the priest of that church. The chapter describes the annexation of the Coptic Museum by the state and its nationalization, as well as its acquisitions and collections.

The Coptic and Ethiopian Dispute over Deir al-Sultan in Jerusalem

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's involvement in the dispute between the Copts and Ethiopians regarding what is known as Deir al-Sultan or the Imperial Monastery in Jerusalem. Ethiopia has long been acquainted with monotheism, and the Ethiopian Church is the largest of all the Oriental Orthodox churches. The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria has a longstanding relationship with the Ethiopian Orthodox Tawahedo Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Tawahedo Church. Tawahedo means 'unified,' referring to the single unified nature of Christ, as opposed to the belief in the two natures of Christ held by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. The patriarchs of Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and many others had refused to accept the two-natures doctrine decreed by the Council of Chalcedon in 451, and these churches are sometimes referred to as monophysite. Simaika maintained that Deir al-Sultan belonged to the Coptic community from time immemorial.

Al-Majlis al-Milli

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's role as a member of Al-Majlis al-Milli. At Cyril V's return from exile, the majlis was dissolved and a committee was appointed to carry out the work of the Coptic patriarchate. Due to accusations of bribery and corruption, the committee was dissolved and a new majlis was elected in 1905, of which Simaika was again a member. Three years later, Simaika was elected vice president of the Majlis al-Milli under the ex-officio presidency of the patriarch. Four committees were formed: the first to look after Coptic schools; a second in charge of Coptic churches, monasteries, and the clerical college; a third to administer waqfs; and a fourth to supervise the administrative work of the patriarchate. Simaika resigned in 1928 in protest at the financial policy followed by the majlis.

The State Railways

This chapter focuses on Marcus Simaika's career in the Egyptian State Railways. When Simaika graduated in 1882, Egypt was under British occupation. Gross financial mismanagement, first by the viceroy, Said Pasha, and to a far greater extent by his nephew and successor, Ismaʻil Pasha, had put Egypt on its way to bankruptcy. After conducting an investigation, the British government implemented a number of measures that led to widespread nationalistic resentment in the country, particularly within the army. Simaika first worked at a hospital in Cairo before applying as a translator in the Engineering Department of the State Railways. He eventually transferred to the Purchasing and Contracts Office. In his memoirs, Simaika recounts several incidents in which he fell prey to machinations by colleagues and superiors who resented his accomplishments. In 1906, he resigned his position of chief auditor and retired from government service at the age of forty-two.

A Love of Learning

This chapter describes Marcus Simaika's early education. Marcus began his education at the Coptic Patriarchal School, founded by Patriarch Cyril IV and entirely maintained by the Coptic patriarchate. At school, Marcus studied the Bible and learned Coptic, Greek, and Arabic. His father forbade him to learn any European languages, believing that they would distract Marcus from ecclesiastic studies and interfere with his plan of consecrating him to the service of the Church. In his memoirs, Marcus recollects most of his teachers, including Sheikh Muhammad al-Kinawi, his Arabic language teacher, and Mikhail Effendi Abd al-Sayed, his English teacher. The chapter also discusses Marcus's time at the Collège des frères des écoles chrétiennes, where he studied the French language.

A Crumbling Heritage

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's efforts to preserve the ancient Coptic churches that had been subjected to destruction and damage. In the preface to his book A Brief Guide to the Coptic Museum and to the Principal Ancient Churches of Cairo, Simaika addressed the importance of Coptic antiquities. He divided Coptic art into two main periods: the first spanned the era from the fourth to the tenth centuries, and the second period extended from the tenth century. During his stay at Alfred J. Butler's house in Oxford in the fall of 1890, Simaika warned both Butler and Somers Clarke of the danger to the ancient Coptic churches from well-meaning but misguided benefactors who wanted to replace these priceless monuments with Italian marbled structures in the Greek style. Simaika proposed that these churches be placed under the control of the “Committee for the Preservation of Arab Art.”

An Ancient Church

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's service to the Coptic Orthodox Church. Simaika's interest in the ancient Coptic churches was first aroused by the study of Dr. Alfred Joshua Butler's work on these churches, The Ancient Coptic Churches of Egypt, published in two volumes in 1884. It was while staying at Butler's house in Oxford in the autumn of 1890 that Simaika met Somers Clarke, the architect responsible for restoring English cathedrals. Simaika also wrote a book in which he provides a brief account of the dawn of Christianity in Egypt. The chapter considers the emergence of Christian monasticism in Egypt and the role played by monks and missionaries in the formation of the Coptic Orthodox Church's character of submission, simplicity, and humility. It also describes the impact of the Arab conquests on the Copts and the rise of lay Coptic notables such as Muʻallim Ghali.

A New Museum

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's role in the establishment of the Coptic Museum. It was in 1908 that Simaika made his first attempt to start a small Coptic museum. While engaged in the repair and restoration of the ancient churches as a member of the Comité, Simaika had collected a large quantity of interesting carved wood and stone fragments. He had asked Patriarch Cyril V for permission to move the objects he had collected, along with any spare icons, manuscripts, and carved wooden screens, into two rooms adjoining the Muʻallaqa Church in Old Cairo. When it was constructed, the Coptic Museum filled a gap in the chronology of Egyptian history and culture, and with its foundation Egypt finally had museums grouping together the antiquities of each of the four main periods of its history.

The Committee for the Preservation of Arab Art

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's work as a member of the Committee for the Preservation of Arab Art (Comité de conservation des monuments de l'art arabe). The Comité was founded in 1881 by Khedive Tewfik, son and successor of Ismaʻil Pasha. Long before joining it in 1905, Simaika had been in constant communication with, and was a very good friend to, Max Herz Pasha, a Hungarian Jew who worked under Julius Franz Pasha, the architect who directed the technical office of the Waqfs (Endowments) Administration and was a driving force in the Comité until his retirement in 1887. The chapter provides an overview of the Comité's activities, including the restoration of ancient Coptic churches.

The Awakening of the Coptic Church

This chapter discusses Marcus Simaika's role in the reformist movement within the Coptic Orthodox Church. To understand the position of the Copts in Egypt during Simaika's lifetime, it is important to revisit the year 1854, when Said Pasha, son of Muhammad Ali Pasha, became wali (viceroy) of Egypt. In that same year, Cyril IV ascended to the patriarchal throne as the 110th successor to Saint Mark. Two years later, the Hatt-i Humayon, the most important Turkish reform edict of the nineteenth century, was decreed by Sultan Abd al-Mejid I. This edict established community councils for Christian and other non-Muslim communities. Simaika became a member of the community council, or majlis milli, in 1889 and became involved in the campaign for church reform. The chapter examines Cyril V's banishment and triumphant return and the subsequent defeat of the reformist movement within the Coptic Church.