St Luke's Church Eccleshill - Articles from "The Link"

Coptic / Egyptian Harvest

The scenery of the Egyptian landscape is among the most extraordinary in the world. A narrow strip of fertile valley spreads out into the Delta, north of Cairo, and to the south the river cuts through the endless expanse of the Sahara. Beni Suef (Bani Suwayf), where Chris and Angela Chorlton (our CMS mission partners) are due to join St Mark's Coptic Church, is about 70 miles south of Cairo in the Nile valley.

The fertility of the valley does not depend on its rainfall. In fact, rainfall has been very light ever since the end of the Neolithic wet phase in Upper Egypt and Nubia, when it virtually came to a stop. Instead, regular floods bring about the Nile valley's annual miracle, when nature is reborn and the fields turn green and then gradually golden with the harvest.

So harvest in Egypt is very different from harvest in England. Here, harvest is in the autumn, summer is the growing season as winter is too cold. We don't lack rainfall at any time of year.

By contrast, harvest in Egypt is traditionally in spring. In history, the Nile usually began flooding its banks in June, and the waters receded in September. From October to February crops were planted. In Ancient Egypt, harvest time took place from March through May. Nowadays there is some variation in this pattern, as damming of the river has interfered with the pattern of flooding, and there has been some irrigation of the desert areas.

It has been traditional in many churches to focus on the wider world during our harvest celebrations. This year, on October 5th, we hope to use the chance of getting to know a bit more about the life of the country and the church which we'll be helping to support through our partners there.

John Hartley

	*St Luke's Church, Eccleshill - The Link* magazine** The Link is published monthly at 40p (Senior Citizens 35p), and we deliver free within the parish and post copies (at the reader's expense) to those who request it. Please contact us if you would like a free copy for a trial period. October 2003, Page 4.
Home Page. Index of articles. Missionaries: index, African Time, Shifting, Short Break, Copts in Egypt, Egyptian Harvest, Arrests in Egypt. CMS, Chorltons. In this issue: (October 2003) Alpha, In the news, Egyptian Harvest, Conditional Aid? Finances, Poem.	Coptic / Egyptian Harvest The scenery of the Egyptian landscape is among the most extraordinary in the world. A narrow strip of fertile valley spreads out into the Delta, north of Cairo, and to the south the river cuts through the endless expanse of the Sahara. Beni Suef (Bani Suwayf), where Chris and Angela Chorlton (our CMS mission partners) are due to join St Mark's Coptic Church, is about 70 miles south of Cairo in the Nile valley. The fertility of the valley does not depend on its rainfall. In fact, rainfall has been very light ever since the end of the Neolithic wet phase in Upper Egypt and Nubia, when it virtually came to a stop. Instead, regular floods bring about the Nile valley's annual miracle, when nature is reborn and the fields turn green and then gradually golden with the harvest. So harvest in Egypt is very different from harvest in England. Here, harvest is in the autumn, summer is the growing season as winter is too cold. We don't lack rainfall at any time of year. By contrast, harvest in Egypt is traditionally in spring. In history, the Nile usually began flooding its banks in June, and the waters receded in September. From October to February crops were planted. In Ancient Egypt, harvest time took place from March through May. Nowadays there is some variation in this pattern, as damming of the river has interfered with the pattern of flooding, and there has been some irrigation of the desert areas. It has been traditional in many churches to focus on the wider world during our harvest celebrations. This year, on October 5th, we hope to use the chance of getting to know a bit more about the life of the country and the church which we'll be helping to support through our partners there. John Hartley
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