The Church Under Race Ownership
The founders of the Race community in Hove were refugees from the Second Sudanese Civil War, and many of the worshippers are from Sudan. Many Copts of Egyptian origin also attend the church. In 2000, there were believed to be around 4,000 Sudanese worshippers, with two priests.
The former leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Shenouda III, travelled to Hove and performed a dedication ceremony to consecrate the church on 23 September 1994. The church has been licensed for worship under its new identity in accordance with the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855 and has the registration number 79284; and in 1995 it was licensed to perform marriage ceremonies. An extension to the building was approved in 1998.
The church has some noteworthy interior features. An enormous mahogany and oak iconostasis was installed in 2000: at 7.5 metres (25 ft) tall, it is said to be the tallest such structure in the world. Small pieces were individually carved in Egypt; they were taken to Hove and assembled in six hours by a team of volunteers in time for the Easter celebrations at the end of April (in Eastern Christianity, Easter is celebrated according to a different calendar calculation than in Western Christianity). Pope Shenouda III returned to the church on 13 August 2000 to dedicate the iconostasis, which depicts the Last Supper, Jesus Christ and several other holy figures across 24 icons. Father Zakaria Henein, an Egyptian priest who was in charge of the church at that time, also painted a large icon of Christ above the altar, despite having no formal art training.
Father Henein's departure from the church in 2003 caused hundreds of members of the congregation to protest against what they believed to be his forced removal. Some protestors occupied the church and went on hunger strike, and Pope Shenouda III had to intervene by speaking to hundreds of churchgoers via a mobile phone link from Egypt.
Read more about this topic: St Mary And St Abraam Coptic Orthodox Church, Hove
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