Egypt Wants To Turn St. Catherine’s Of Sinai Into A Tourist Mega-Project

PHOTO: This is how the “Great Transfiguration” project in Sinai will look

EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis). As the hours pass, the situation regarding the oldest Christian monastery, St. Catherine’s of Sinai, becomes clearer:

1) The Appeals Court order was clear; the monks can stay, but they will be “tenants” and not owners.

2) According to the website egypttoday.com, a mega-project is planned for the area surrounding the monastery (look at our main photo).  It became known that the Egyptians had recently asked them to accept 10,000 tourists a day!!

3) PM Mitsotakis spoke with El-Sisi, and they agreed to implement the decision they had made a few weeks ago during the Egyptian President’s visit to Athens.

4) However, it is clear that the situation remains critical: A diplomatic team from Greece will visit Egypt on Monday, June 2nd, to resolve the issue in a manner that does justice to the historic Monastery.

5) In the meantime, the monks have locked down the monastery in protest, and they stay inside in prayer.

One of the best analyses of the whole project is presented by Mr. Stathakopoulos in an interview with the most trustworthy journalistic voice in Greece, George Sahinis (link here – English subtitles).  Mr. Stathakopoulos pointed out that a few years ago, at the beginning of the infamous scandal surrounding the Vatopedi Monastery of Mt. Athos, several Greek Law professors wrote articles supporting the fact that Byzantine “Emperor’s Stamps” cannot establish ownership of lands by the monastery. In essence, Greece shot itself in the foot: how can we now support that ownership of lands by St. Catherine’s of Sinai is valid because Prophet Mohammed stamped it?

We must be prepared to rise up and act if we want St. Catherine’s to be saved.

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source – newsbreak.gr

Barbaric project for Mount Sinai: They want to make the site a tourist hotspot with hotels!

The attempt to desecrate one of the holiest sites of Christianity, which has been preserved intact over the centuries and was even protected by … Muhammad , is causing outrage . While the government is attempting to reassure people about the court decision confiscating the property of the Greek Orthodox Monastery of St. Catherine of Sinai , the Egyptian media is revealing what the plan is.

The Egyptian presidency’s assurances about preserving the religious character of the Monastery constitute obvious diplomatic hypocrisy, as the facts demonstrate the opposite, with the Mitsotakis government demonstrating inaction.

The court decision is part of the disastrous “Great Transformation” project , a repulsive plan that aims to transform the holy site into a mass-consumption tourist destination . This barbaric project aims to completely alter the character of the Monastery.

Commercialization of the area

According to egypttoday.com , the project, which began on July 21, 2020, envisages the construction of hotels , tourist resorts and the creation of shopping malls around one of the oldest Christian monastic sites. This is an unprecedented desecration that turns Mount Sinai into a theme park!

The plans include 21 hotel complexes that will destroy the tranquility of the place, 546 new residences that will transform the sacred landscape, 16 traditional bazaars that will commercialize the spiritual experience, and a visitor center with a cafeteria and planetarium that will transform the Monastery into a tourist attraction!

The Mitsotakis government, which proclaims the protection of Greek interests, has proven incapable of reacting effectively and protecting the Greek Orthodox heritage.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis bears overwhelming responsibility for this national defeat as he failed to protect the Monastery , with his government remaining silent in the face of the destructive plans that threaten Orthodoxy and Hellenism.

It is worth noting that the project invokes “special care for the environment “, a reference that is essentially a cynical irony, since this particular project will destroy the spiritual and cultural dimension of the area. The transformation of the Sacred Valley into a tourist reception center with “camel routes” and “3D film screenings” constitutes an act of vandalism against Christian history.

If this plan ultimately goes ahead, then the Mitsotakis government will go down in history as the one that allowed the destruction of one of the most important Greek Orthodox sites.

Mitsotakis contacted Sisi – Greek delegation in Egypt June 2

After the national defeat on the Sinai Monastery issue and the decision of the Egyptian judiciary to transform it from a beacon of Orthodoxy into a religious theme park , the prime minister is running and not getting there.

K. Mitsotakis had a telephone conversation with the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah Al Sisi , on Friday regarding the Holy Monastery of Saint Catherine of Sinai. He stressed the importance of preserving its pilgrimage and Greek Orthodox character and resolving the issue in an institutional manner.

The two leaders agreed that the solution lies in the already recorded common understanding of the two sides and in what was agreed upon during Al-Sisi’s visit to Athens on May 7.

Furthermore, on Monday, June 2, a Greek delegation will travel to Cairo to further process the agreement with a view to its rapid completion.

See also:

• Ecumenical Patriarchate on the Sinai Monastery: Disappointment and sadness
• Egypt’s Presidency on Mount Sinai: “Full commitment to maintaining religious status”
• Sinai Monastery: The court decision does not fully recognize the ownership status! Didn’t Mr. Gerapetritis know this?