Father Douglas May grew up in a small town near Buffalo, New York, but now serves as a Maryknoll missionary in Cairo. From time to time he will offer his insights and perspectives “on the ground” from Egypt. Here, he offers a brief introduction to the work he does.
After working with Maryknoll in Kenya for four years, I returned to Egypt in late January of 2012. As the only native-born American, English-speaking priest in Egypt, I provide pastoral services for several communities in the Cairo area. On occasion, I also say the Coptic Catholic Divine Liturgy in both Arabic and English, as the need arises.
In many ways, it’s been a kind of homecoming. I have spent 18 of the last 30 years working in Egypt and was part of the formation-education team at St. Leo the Great Coptic Catholic Seminary for ten of those years.
When I first returned, my original intention was to provide pastoral support for Catholics who speak English as a first, second or third language. It was also to be “Uncle Douglas” for many of my former seminarians who are now priests scattered throughout Egypt. But with the encouragement of the Holy See’s nuncio, Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, I applied for and got the position of “International Coordinator” for the Center for Intercultural Dialogue and Translation and the Center for Arab-West Understanding (a nongovernmental organization, or NGO).
The Center for Arab-West Understanding (CAWU) and its company, The Center for Intercultural Dialogue and Translation (C.I.D.T.) in Cairo, are some of the few “on-site” organizations fostering Muslim-Christian dialogue and sociopolitical pluralism in Egypt and in the Middle East. It supports forums and workshops among religious and political leaders; reviews and critiques media information on the internet, TV and in the press; runs an intern program for students from Arab and Western countries; provides an internet library; and offers translation services. The Arab-West Report is run by C.I.D.T. It is the largest English-language website in the world concerning Christian-Muslim relations and reviews Arab and Western media reports on TV, the internet and in the printed media. It has become a reliable source of information for many writers and reporters.
While my focus over my first four months has been finances and fundraising, I hope eventually to do some “on-site” work in villages where many of my former seminarians are now priests. I want to do whatever I can to help promote interreligious and interdenominational relations, along with sociopolitical and religious pluralism among Egyptians. Being a “foreigner,” I need the help of local leaders, at least on the Catholic side, to do this. Right now, we’re still in the planning stages. In the current environment, it is obvious that efforts have to be made or the sociopolitical and religious situation will only get worse.
Having a labor-relations background and some hotel management experience in the U.A.E. before becoming a priest, I hope that maybe a team approach can facilitate some positive change. I also worked for two years back in the late 80’s with the Palestine Red Crescent Society in Cairo, where I was the only Christian and only American teaching at a nursing school that was run by the society. Looking back on that experience, I realize I learned much more than I taught.
I hope to write occasionally for ONE-TO-ONE, as well as for the A.W.R. website. While I am not an academian nor an expert, I believe that my various experiences and contacts give me the ability to view things differently and offer personal reflections.