St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church

Church in , United States of America

St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church

Ϯⲉⲕ⳿ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⳿ⲛⲣⲉⲙ⳿ⲛⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⳿ⲛⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ ⳿ⲛⲧⲉ ⲫⲏⲉⲑⲟⲩⲁⲃ Ⲁⲃⲣⲁⲁⲙ
ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos ente fi.ethowab Abra'am

A view of St. Abraam's Church from outside.

St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church

Location in New York

40°49′52″N 73°27′23″W﻿ / ﻿40.831083°N 73.456369°W﻿ / 40.831083; -73.456369
Location| Woodbury, New York
(Long Island)
Country| United States of America
Denomination| Coptic Orthodox
Membership| 350 families
Website| http://www.stabraam.org/
History
Status| Cathedral
Dedication| Abraam, Bishop of Faiyum
Consecrated| 12 January 1992
Architecture
Functional status| Active
Style| Coptic
Administration
Diocese| New York and New England
Clergy
Bishop(s)| Bishop David
Archpriest| The Very Rev. Hegumen Fr. Guirguis Tadros
The Very Rev. Hegumen Fr. Moussa Shafik
Priest(s)| The Rev. Priest Fr. Joseph Loka

St Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church (Coptic: Ϯⲉⲕ⳿ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⳿ⲛⲣⲉⲙ⳿ⲛⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⳿ⲛⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ ⳿ⲛⲧⲉ ⲫⲏⲉⲑⲟⲩⲁⲃ Ⲁⲃⲣⲁⲁⲙ // transliteration: ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos ente fi.ethowab Abra'am) is a Coptic Orthodox parish in Woodbury, New York. It is one of over 200 Coptic Orthodox Churches in the United States.[1][2]

## History of the Building[edit]

St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church was incorporated by 20 families residing in Long Island in January 1978,[3] only five years after the first Coptic Orthodox parishes in New York were founded in Ridgewood, Queens and Brooklyn, New York.[4] For over a decade, these families used a Ukrainian church in Hicksville for accommodating weekly Liturgies.[5] In September 1989, Pope Shenouda III blessed the endowned lands in preparation for building the church.[5]

After the church was built in 1990, in a pastoral visit by Pope Shenouda, the parish was consecrated on 12 January 1992. It was the first Coptic Orthodox Church in Long Island, New York.[5]

St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church serves areas in and around Long Island, particularly in Nassau County, which is just east of Queens. The closest Coptic Orthodox parish is St. Mary & St. Antonios Coptic Orthodox Church, in Ridgewood, Queens. St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church was served by multiple priests such as Fr. Micheal Tobia of East Brunswick NJ, Fr. Marcos Ghaly of Toledo, Ohio,[6] as the Coptic Orthodox clergy in North America often visit or temporarily serve churches that are still developing. However, from recent years, Fr. Girgis Tadros was made a permanent priest of the church up until now. St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church currently has two priests, The Very Rev. Fr. Guirguis Tadros, The Very Rev. Fr. Moussa Shafik, and The Very Rev. Joseph Loka. There are currently about 600 Coptic families served by St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church.[3]

The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of New York and New England was officially established in 2013 by Pope Tawadros II. Bishop David was consecrated in formal ceremonies taking place in Cairo, Egypt on November 16–17, 2013. Bishop David was formally enthroned on December 7, 2013 at St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church in a ceremony that brought together thousands of the Coptic faithful, clergy, and dignitaries. This church is now the seat of the bishop.

## See also[edit]

* Coptic Orthodox Church
* Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria
* Coptic architecture
* Coptic Cairo
* Coptic Orthodox Church in North America
* Coptic Orthodox Church in Canada
* Coptic Orthodox Church in the United States
* List of Coptic Orthodox Churches in the United States
* St. George Coptic Orthodox Church (Philadelphia)
* St. George Coptic Orthodox Church (Brooklyn)
* St. George & St. Shenouda Coptic Orthodox Church (Jersey City, New Jersey)
* St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church (Jersey City, New Jersey)
* St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church (Los Angeles)
* St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church (Lancaster, Pennsylvania)
* St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church (Los Angeles)

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Coptic Church Urges Thorough Investigation In Murder of Jersey City Family Archived 2015-03-17 at the Wayback Machine". Coptic Church Network, January 20, 2005. Accessed August 11, 2008.
2. ^ CNEWA:The Coptic Orthodox Church Archived 2009-08-13 at the Wayback Machine (Retrieved 17-07-2008)
3. ^ a b Data on St. Abraam Church (Retrieved 20-07-2008)
4. ^ "Saint George Church - Brooklyn NY". 2005-03-04. Archived from the original on 2005-03-04. Retrieved 2018-02-16.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
5. ^ a b c Ketcham, Diane (1990-07-01). "Long Island Journal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-02-16.
6. ^ Short Biography of Fr. Marcos Ghaly (Retrieved 08-04-2008)

## External links[edit]

* The official website of St. Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church
* The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of New York & New England
* The Coptic Orthodox Archdiocese of North America
* The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles
* The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States
* The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Damietta
* The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Port Said