Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I take this opportunity to congratulate the new Coptic Orthodox church in the suburb of Wanneroo within the electorate of Cowan. The St Mark and St George Coptic Orthodox Church has recently come into full operation. On Saturday I was honoured to be invited to the ordination of the parish priest, Father Luke. The ordination was undertaken by Bishop Suriel of the Melbourne dioceses. It was a great event. Although the service took place over several hours, there were hundreds of worshippers at the church.

We do not have a whole lot of Orthodox churches in Perth but this is literally a brand new church. It is truly a beautiful church. At the end of the ordination, the bishop said it was the best of the churches of the whole dioceses within Australia. That is a great testament to the members of the church. The church was planned about 10 years ago. Land was bought in the semirural area of Wanneroo and they had the vision to see it through with many years of hard work, lots of planning and many donations. The church has turned the original building, which were stables, into a temporary church with a number of facilities for children to worship at Sunday school with the Coptic Orthodox community. Finally, they built the brand new church. With its icons and its architecture, it is a great testament to faith and the courage of the Coptic Orthodox people.

As we know, these are people who have suffered greatly. Ten million Coptic Orthodox worshippers live in Egypt and are constantly on the receiving end of much persecution, particularly by organisations such as the Muslim Brotherhood. From those harsh origins in Egypt, it is great to have the Coptic Orthodox community within the electorate of Cowan as they add such value. I wish them all the best for the future and I hope the persecution their people suffer in Egypt comes to an end as soon as possible.

Question agreed to.