WHEN AND WHERE
Before That and Now
Coptic Orthodox people started coming to Winnipeg in the early 1970’s. The first Divine Liturgy celebrated in Winnipeg was in March 1973.
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church was registered with the Government of Manitoba in 1984. The first Church building in Winnipeg was bought in 1991.
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church of Winnipeg is one of more than 50 Coptic Orthodox Churches in Canada.
The majority of the Coptic Churches are in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Toronto, Ontario (established in 1964) was the first Coptic Orthodox Church in Canada.
St. Mark Annual Coptic Festival in Winnipeg, Manitoba, started in the year of 2006 to celebrate the flight of the Holy Family (our Lord Jesus Christ, His Mother St. Mary and her fiancée St. Joseph the carpenter) to Egypt when Jesus Christ was less than two years old.
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church was registered with the Government of Manitoba in 1984. The first Church building in Winnipeg was bought in 1991.
St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church of Winnipeg is one of more than 50 Coptic Orthodox Churches in Canada.
The majority of the Coptic Churches are in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Toronto, Ontario (established in 1964) was the first Coptic Orthodox Church in Canada.
St. Mark Annual Coptic Festival in Winnipeg, Manitoba, started in the year of 2006 to celebrate the flight of the Holy Family (our Lord Jesus Christ, His Mother St. Mary and her fiancée St. Joseph the carpenter) to Egypt when Jesus Christ was less than two years old.
The Coptic Church celebrates the feast of the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt on June 1st of each year; and the annual festival takes place on the closest weekend to June 1st of every year.
The Copts of Egypt are proud that their country is the only country in the whole world (other than Jesus Christ’s homeland) to host the Holy Family for about three years.
The visit of the Holy Family to Egypt is considered the beginning of Christianity in Egypt, even before the coming of ST. Mark the Evangelist to preach Christianity there in the late 30’s and early 40’s AD.
The Church Festival is run by volunteers to celebrate the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt and to introduce the Coptic and Egyptian history, heritage, culture and, of course, cuisine to Canadians.
For the past ten years, the Festival has undergone changes and improvements in the content, nature of activities, materials presented and distributed. The increase in the number of guests who are interested in the Coptic Egyptian amazing history, culture and traditions is impressive.
More than 5000 Canadians and patrons from other nationalities, who visited the Festival, enjoyed its activities over the past nine years.
On May 30 and 31, 2015, St. Mark Church in Winnipeg will celebrate the 10th Anniversary of this Festival with its new setup, activities and materials.
