May God help us as Christians to see our great privilege in giving the Jews the gospel and praying for them that their blindness may depart and that they may see that the Lord Jesus is the only way, the truth, and the light.
Among Mohammedans in Egypt
EXPERIENCE NUMBER 8
Nothing is said in the New Testament about the persons who first related the story of the cross in Egypt. But there is a universal tradition that the Evangelist Mark went to Egypt and preached the gospel with great success until he was martyred for the name of Jesus Christ. His head is believed by the Copts to have been buried in the place where the Coptic Church in Alexandria now stands. From the records of history it is clear that the Christian religion was carried to Egypt a few years after the ascension of our Lord, that many in Egypt accepted the new religion before the close of the first century, and that the numbers rapidly increased until Egypt became Christian and churches filled the land. Abyssinia, too, whether through the Ethiopian's return to his country after his baptism or through others, also accepted the Christian faith, and many of her people retain the Christian name and boldly defend a form of Christian doctrine to this day.
The church in Egypt, as we learn from the pages of history, passed through the fires of persecution as other churches did in the Roman Empire, and many suffered martyrdom for their unwillingness to deny Him who redeemed them with his precious blood. The persecution in Egypt especially was severe in the reign of Diocletian. Milner says on the authority of Eusebius: "Egypt suffered extremely. Whole families were put to various kinds of death; some by fire, others by water, others by decollation, after horrible tortures. Some perished by famine, others by crucifixion, and of these, some in common manner. Others were fastened with their heads downwards and preserved alive that they might die by hunger. Sometimes ten, at other times thirty, sixty, and once a hundred men and women with their children, were murdered in one day by various torments. And there was still the appearance of joy among them. They loved Christ above all, and bravely as well as humbly met death for Christ's sake."
But as the years passed on, great importance was laid on fasting, hermitage, and image-worship, and little by little they lost sight of the merits of Christ's life, sufferings, and death. Today the majority of the Copts are far away from the gospel purity of doctrine and are bound with the chains of superstition, and need help to loosen themselves from such chains that they may enjoy the light and liberty of the gospel.
THE REAL CHARACTER OF ISLAM
The population of Egypt today is 12,000,000, of which 90 per cent are followers of Mohammed. Mohammedanism entered Egypt in 638 A. D., and from that time it has continued to be the prevailing religion. I will now mention briefly the ethics of Mohammedanism in order to give the reader some idea about the pollution, corruption, brutality, and wickedness that exist among the adherents of this false religion.