The Holy Family in Egypt

"Take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word" (Matthew 2:13 - KJV)

According to the Scripture, Jesus Christ lived in Palestine, and the only other country he travelled to (as a young child) was Egypt. The Holy Family, throughout their stay in Egypt, which lasted for about three-and-half years, moved through many towns in Upper and Lower Egypt.

Many churches were built in the locations which have been blessed by the visit of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Virgin Mary, and St. Joseph the carpenter. Many miracles took place in these locations during the Holy Family visit 2000 years ago (and continue to occur to this day). Among these places is Zeitun (in Cairo), where the Holy Virgin Mary appeared in 1968, and Assiut (in Upper Egypt), where She again appeared in 2000 [1]. These churches are considered the oldest and among the holiest of all churches.

The following Web sites and resources will help the interested reader explore the journey of the Holy Family in Egypt:

• TourEgypt.net: The Holy Family in Egypt
• The Sources of Egypt's Traditions Related to The Flight of the Holy Family by Jimmy Dunn
• The Holy Family in Egypt - St. Mary Monastery (Al Sourian) Web site
• The Holy Family in Egypt - Coptic Papal Residence Web site
• The Holy Family in Egypt - Web site of the Coptic Museum in Cairo, Egypt
• The Holy Family in Egypt - Another Web site
• EgyptVoyager.com: The Holy Family in Egypt (Clickable map: [2])
• The Holy Family Journey in Egypt with Maps & Photos (freeware program - 576 Kb - for Microsoft® Windows® 9x/Me/NT/2000/XP)
• Video: The Holy Family Journey in Egypt - featuring HH Pope Shenouda III( English - RealVideo)
• The Holy Family in Egypt - English Article in Al-Ahram Weekly
• Book: Be Thou There; the Holy Family's Journey in Egypt by Gawdat Gabra, William Lyster, Cornelis Hulsman, Stephen Davis, and Norbert Schiller - Cairo: AUC Press, 2001(Related site: [3])
• Book: The Holy Family in Egypt - by Prof. Otto F.A. Meinardus - Cairo: AUC Press, 1986 (first published in 1963)
• Modern Coptic icons of the Holy Family in Egypt