Maggie Gobran

Maggie Gobran (2019)

Magda "Maggie" Gobran , called Mama Maggie , also Magda Gobran-Gorgi (* 1949 in Cairo , Egypt ) is an Egyptian Coptic nun and founder of the Stephen's Children organization . She is a lecturer at the University of Cairo. For her outstanding commitment, she was honored with the International Women of Courage Award by the United States Department of State in 2019 .

Live and act

Gobran grew up in an affluent area of Cairo , shielded from the misery and poverty in their area. In 1989 the computer science professor gave up her academic career and founded the charity Stephen's Children, which works for the inhabitants of the Cairo slums . Gobran's focus is primarily on the Coptic families who live in impoverished areas in the increasingly rural Upper Egypt . Around 32,000 families receive food, medical help and training there every day. The work is supported by, among others, Aid for Brothers and the Märtyrerkirche relief campaign .

Gobran's work became more difficult in the wake of the Arab Spring , as the Coptic minority in Egypt increasingly faces reprisals from the Muslim majority. The fact that the 2012 film Innocence of Muslims against Mohammed was produced by a Coptic exile made the Copts' lives worse.

Honors

Gobran, also venerated as " Mother Teresa of Cairo", was nominated in 2012 for the Nobel Peace Prize. The nominations were made by Republican Congressmen Frank Wolf , Bill Huizenga , Joseph R. Pitts , Robert Aderholt, and John Carter .

In May 2017 in Dubai she was awarded the “Arab Hope Maker” prize, worth around 250,000 euros, from the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates for her Christian work with children in need in Cairo, Egypt.

In 2019, Gobran was one of ten women from around the world to be honored by the US State Department with the International Women of Courage Award (IWOC) for their outstanding commitment . The award ceremony took place on March 7, 2019 at a ceremony at the US State Department in Washington .

literature

• David Alton : Signs of Contradiction: People Who Changed Our World , Hodder & Stoughton Religious 1996, ISBN 978-0-34065164-3 .
• Judith Kubitscheck and Judith Kühl: Maggie Gobran: the Mother Teresa of Cairo , adeo Verlag, Asslar 2015, ISBN 978-3-86334-046-9 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Maggie Gobran in the catalog of the German National Library
• Works by and about Maggie Gobran  in the German Digital Library

Individual evidence

1. ↑ “Up now, Maggie Gobran,” whatsbestnext.com August 2011
2. ↑ Biographies of the Finalists for the 2019 International Women of Courage Awards. In: US Department of State. Retrieved June 12, 2020 . 
3. ↑ Martin Haar: In Mother Teresa's footsteps in Cairo , stuttgarter-nachrichten.de, article from May 31, 2015.
4. ↑ Arab world: Islamic ruler honors "Mother Teresa of Cairo"  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , German Evangelical Alliance , article from May 23, 2017.  
5. ↑ “Mama Maggie” at christianitytoday.com, fall 2011
6. ↑ "Mama Maggie leder Nobel kampen" at aftenposten.no
7. ↑ “Koptin proposed for 2012 Nobel Peace Prize” at jesus.ch
8. ↑ Nobel Peace Prize nominee Maggie 'Mama' Gobran was awarded the prize for her work in Cairo , emirateswoman.com, article from May 21, 2017.
9. ^ Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo at the International Women of Courage Awards Ceremony. In: state.gov. United States Department of State, May 9, 2019, accessed June 12, 2020 .