Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Cairo (Agenzia Fides) - The use of an old Fatwa helped leaders of the Salafist al-Nour Party, issued by Sheikh Mohammed Nasreddin Albanian al Albani, to justify in the eyes of the more rigid leaders and activists, the recruitment of Copt candidates in the electoral roll of the Islamist political party, in view of the upcoming elections. According to Coptic sources consulted by Agenzia Fides, the Fatwa pronounced by the scholar of Koranic law who died in 1999 - and today seen as a point of reference by the leaders of al-Nour - justifies the presence of baptized people in the lists of Islamic origin with the argument that Christians are considered less dangerous than atheists for Islam, and thus represent a kind of "lesser evil".
Meanwhile, discussions on whether to nominate Christians in the Islamist lists continue also within the Coptic community. In recent days (see Fides 11/09/2015), Nader El-Serafy, Christian candidate on the lists of al-Nour, stressed that the Coptic Church has never condemned the choice of Christians who decide to be part of inspired Islamist parties. In his view, the presence of baptized people in the lists of al-Nour is "a model of optimal exercise of citizenship", and shows that people of different religious beliefs can coexist in the same political formations pursuing programs that focus on the national interest rather than particular claims. (GV) (Agenzia Fides 22/09/2015)
