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Church & Ministry
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| Church Of Virgin Mary And Saint Samaan The Tanner |
- This church was named after Virgin Mary and Saint Samaan The Tanner,
 commemorating the miracle of moving the Mokkatam Mountain on 27 Nov, 979 A.D, in which God Almighty used Saint Samman the Tanner to perform this miracle at the time of Bishop Abram the Syrian, the 62nd. Patriarch who had a vision of Virgin Mary showing him the man on whose hands the miracle would occur, "Saint Samaan the Tanner."
- This church was erected on two stages:
The first stage before its enlargement was a cave made of limestone embraced in the mountain. The height of the ceiling was only one meter high. This cave was used for prayer by a number of brethren for the salvation of people in the area. During the first stage, the ground was deepened and leveled in front of the altar. It was used as a church in 1986, to be the first church in the monastery. People attending sat on mats and rugs which were spread before the altar and on some side chairs.
- Due to the increasing number of attendants, it was decided to enlarge the church. At a later stage, the ground was deepened and the church building was completed on 27 Nov, 1993 during the commemoration of Saint Samaan. In 1994, it was equipped with fixed stone chairs in the shape of gradual curved benches to hold 20,000 (Twenty Thousand) people. It is considered the biggest church in the monastery. The church is also equipped with an audio-visual system and a large T.V screen to transfer both sound an sight clearly to the public.
- The church is used for Holy Masses and spiritual meetings that are held every Thursday all year round, and on other days to hold some spiritual movies plus other spiritual meetings.
- One the right side of the pulpit, the church contains the remnants of Saint Samaan the Tanner. The remnant was discovered in 1991 at the ancient church of Virgin Mary in Babylon Old Cairo. A water jar made of pot was also discovered near the remnants in which Saint Samaan used to carry water to sick and elderly people.
- A clear sculpture was discovered in 1974 on the right side of the church ceiling of Virgin Mary carrying baby Jesus. It was restored and renewed in 1994.
- "Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain." (Psalms 127:1)
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