Christianity's oldest monastery re-opens

(February 12, 2010) After eight years of renovation, Christianity’s oldest monastery has opened its doors to pilgrims. Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox monastery of St. Anthony was built around 356 at the burial site of St. Antony of Egypt, also known as St. Anthony the Great, at the foot of the Red Sea mountains near the town of Al-Zaafarana. Last week, a $14.5 million renovation project was completed, and the monastery, which still has monks living in it, was opened to pilgrims as well. The project restored a wall surrounding the monastery, two of the seven churches, the monks' living quarters and a tower that was used as a fortress during times of attack in the Middle Ages. The American Research Center in Egypt worked along with the Supreme Council of Antiquities to restore paintings dating back to the 7th century. The renovations uncovered monks' cells from the 4th century, the oldest discovered to date. Born in the year 251, St. Antony is recognized as the first known ascetic who went into the desert in order to pursue a deeper living of his Christian faith. His lifestyle attracted many followers, who built the monastery on his burial site immediately after his death. Pope John Paul II in the Jubilee Year 2000 made visited Egypt and the Holy Land to retrace the Biblical sites related to the Christian history of salvation.