Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States

The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States is a diocese of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria located in the United States of America and encompassing the states of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.

Diocese of the Southern United States
Location
CountryUnited States
TerritoryAlabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas
SubdivisionsWestern Region, Central Region, Florida Region
Statistics
Parishes38
Churches64
Schools1
Information
Denomination Oriental Orthodox
Rite Coptic (Alexandrian) Orthodox
Established1993
Secular priests88
Current leadership
Pope Pope Tawadros II
BishopMetropolitan Youssef
Auxiliary BishopsBishop Basil, Bishop Gregory
Website
suscopts.org

History

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The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States was established in 1993 by Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria in response to the growing number of Coptic Orthodox Churches abroad, especially concentrated in the South. It was the first Coptic Orthodox Diocese to be established in the United States.[1]

Scandals

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Child sexual abuse

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On July 14, 2020, after public declarations by a victim, Priest Reweis Aziz Khalil (Now: Yousef Aziz Khalil) was exposed as a pedophile and later defrocked. Khalil was an Egyptian Priest sent to assist the service in several churches. Reports show that he was reported repeatedly throughout the years for assaulting several girls and women in the diocese under the guise of the sacrament of confession. Khalil was moved to another diocese following the discovery. He was also investigated in an interior investigation within the Church, and was removed from the priesthood in 2014; however he managed to continue working as a priest.[2][3][4][5]

Statistics

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Year Membership Priests Parishes
Hegumen Presbyters Total Churches Communities Total
1993 0 5 5 6* - 6*
1994 0 6 6 6* - 6*
1995 0 7 7 6* - 6*
1996 0 8 8 7* - 7*
1997 1 10 11 7* - 7*
1998 1 11 12 7* - 7*
1999 1 13 14 7* - 7*
2000 2 15 17 7* - 7*
2001 3 17 20 7* - 7*
2002 3 19 22 7* - 7*
2003 3 20 23 7* - 7*
2004 3 20 23 7* 1* 8*
2005 6 20 26 9* 1* 10*
2006 6 21 27 9* 1* 10*
2007 9 22 31 10* 1* 11*
2008 9 24 33 10* 1* 11*
2009 9 26 35 12* 1* 13*
2010 10 29 39 12* 1* 13*
2011 10 28 38 16* 1* 17*
2012 10 36 46 18* 4* 22*
2013 9 38 47 19* 4* 23*
2014 9 38 47 19* 4* 23*
2015 9 40 49 38 28 64
*Number of confirmed churches; actual number of churches in any given year could have

and probably was much larger.

Parishes and schools

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As of 2023, the Diocese of the Southern United States operates 64 parishes. However, only 38 of these of formal churches, the other 26 are categorized as communities, which means that they are congregations, and usually possess a church building, but are not full churches yet in that they are not large enough by diocesan standards to be recognized as churches. Communities are served by a visiting priest from a recognized church.[citation needed]

Schools

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The diocese currently operates one school, and religious education is provided to children in the form of Sunday School classes at local Coptic churches.[6]

Publications

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The Diocese of the Southern United States publishes three magazines.[citation needed]

Bishops

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References

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  1. ^ "About the Diocese". St Athanasius American Coptic Orthodox Church. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  2. ^ "Egyptian Coptic Priest Defrocked Following Allegations of Sexual Abuse, Paedophilia". Egyptian Streets. 2020-07-19. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
  3. ^ "Egyptian Coptic Priest Defrocked Following Allegations of Sexual Abuse, Paedophilia". Egyptian Streets. 2020-07-19. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
  4. ^ "Coptic Church strips alleged paedophile priest of clerical status". The National. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
  5. ^ "Coptic pope defrocks US-linked priest accused of paedophilia". Arab News. 2020-07-18. Retrieved 2020-07-28.
  6. ^ "Home - Saint Clement Coptic Orthodox Christian Academy". www.stclementacademy.com. Retrieved 2015-10-22.
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