Two Young Egyptian Students' Declaration of Faith in Christ Gets Global Attention

WND Staff/TN : Aug 1, 2007
WorldNetDaily

"The boys already are serving as deacons in their Christian church, and have gone on Egyptian talk programs to express their dedication to Christianity."

(Egypt)-Egyptian schoolboys, Mario Medhat Ramses and Andrew Medhat Ramses, face a future without educational opportunities even though they had been classified as "brilliant" students at the French Lycee school of Alexandria. Why? Because when they were ordered to take a school test that would result in their conversion to Islam, they wrote, "I am Christian." The boys knew in advance that by declaring their faith on the exam paper they would lose their education.

"What brought the case to the public's attention is the categorical refusal of the two kids to pass the Islamic exams and convert to Islam, stating, 'they will not deny their Christianity and convert to Islam no matter what it would cost them,' said Sam Grace, a spokesman for Coptic News. (Photo: WND)

"We need all human rights organizations to try to force Egypt to respect the human rights conventions, and Egypt is a signatory for all these human rights conventions. Our aim is really that we want to call on all human rights groups in the civilized world, and all freedom-loving people. We want to incite them into action, to call Egyptian embassies, letting them know that [this] cannot happen in the 21st Century."

According to a WorldNetDaily report, Grace said the boys already are serving as deacons in their Christian church, and have gone on Egyptian talk programs to express their dedication to Christianity. "The whole Egyptian Coptic Christian people are praying and pleading with the conscience of all the human rights organizations, governments and public opinions of all the civilized world to contact...the Egyptian embassies...and demand that the Egyptian government stop torturing those two kids and their mother," he added.

As a result of this incident, the report notes that a U.S.-based organization is lobbying for international pressure on Egypt to quit forcing Christians into such no-win situations.