Saint Simon the Tanner (
fl. 10th century; distinct from
Simon the Tanner from the New Testament, 1st century), also known as Saint Simon the Shoemaker ( cop , Ⲫⲏⲉⲑⲟⲩⲁⲃ Ⲥⲓⲙⲱⲛ Ⲡⲓⲃⲁⲕϣⲁⲣ (Ⲡⲓϩⲟⲙ, Ϧⲁⲣⲣⲁⲍ); ar , سمعان الخراز ''Sam'ān al-Kharrāz'') is the
Coptic Orthodox
The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي ...
saint associated with the story of the moving the
Mokattam Mountain in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, during the rule of the Muslim
Fatimid
The Fatimid Caliphate was an Ismaili Shi'a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries AD. Spanning a large area of North Africa, it ranged from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Red Sea in the east. The Fatimids, a dy ...
Caliph
A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...
al-Muizz Lideenillah
Abu Tamim Ma'ad al-Muizz li-Din Allah ( ar, ابو تميم معد المعزّ لدين الله, Abū Tamīm Maʿad al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh, Glorifier of the Religion of God; 26 September 932 – 19 December 975) was the fourth Fatimid calip ...
(953–975) while
Abraham the Syrian was the
Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria
The Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ, translit=Papa; ar, البابا, translit=al-Bābā), also known as the Bishop of Alexandria, is the leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, with ancient Christian roots in Egypt. The ...
.
Life
Simon the Tanner lived toward the end of the tenth century and many Coptic
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
in Egypt were engaged in handicrafts. Saint Simon worked in tanning, a craft known there till this day. This profession involved other crafts that depend on the process, from whence Simon carried several titles related to skins: Tanner, Cobbler, Shoemaker.
The miracle of moving the mountain
According to a traditional story, Caliph
al-Muizz
Abu Tamim Ma'ad al-Muizz li-Din Allah ( ar, ابو تميم معد المعزّ لدين الله, Abū Tamīm Maʿad al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh, Glorifier of the Religion of God; 26 September 932 – 19 December 975) was the fourth Fatimid calip ...
, who reigned during AD 972–975,
[.] used to invite religious leaders to debate in his presence. In one of those meetings in which the patriarch Abraham, also known as Pope Abraam, and a Jew named
Yaqub ibn Killis Abu'l-Faraj Ya'qub ibn Yusuf ibn Killis ( ar, يعقوب ابن كلس, Abu’l-Faraj Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn Killis, he, יעקוב אבן כיליס), (930 in Baghdad – 991), commonly known simply by his patronymic surname as Ibn Killis, was ...
(in another account of this story he was referred to as Moses) were present, Abraham got the upper hand in the debate. Plotting to take revenge, Ibn Killis quoted the verse where
Jesus Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
said in the
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...
: "He replied, "Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."" (), and demanded that the Pope prove that his religion is right by means of this. After hearing ibn Killis say this, the caliph asked Abraham "What sayest thou concerning this word? Is it your gospel or not?"
[ The patriarch answered "Yes, it is in it." After hearing Abraham answer, the caliph demanded that this very miracle be performed by Abraham's hand or else he and all the Copts would be killed by the sword. The patriarch asked for three days to complete the miracle.][
Abraham put together a group of monks, priests and elders. He told them stay in the church for three days for a penance. On the morning of the third day, Abraham was praying in ]the Hanging Church
Virgin Mary's Coptic Orthodox Church ( ''Church of Mother of God Saint Mary in Egyptian Babylon''), also known as the Hanging Church ( ar, الكنيسة المعلقة, al-Kanīsa al-Muʿallaqa, ), is one of the oldest churches in Egypt which ...
, when he saw Mary, mother of Jesus
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...
. The Holy Virgin told him to go to the great market. She said to him, "There thou wilt find a one-eyed man carrying on his shoulder a jar full of water; seize him, for he it is at whose hands this miracle shall be manifested."[ Abraham listened to Mary and went to the market where he met the man the Holy Virgin spoke of. The man was Simon the tanner, who had plucked out his eye because of a passage from the Bible: "If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell." ()
Simon told Abraham to go out with his priests and all his people to the mountain with the Caliph and all his soldiers. Simon then told Abraham to cry out "O Lord, have mercy" three times and each time to make the sign of the cross over the mountain.][ The patriarch followed the words of Simon and the mountain was lifted. After the miracle was performed in the presence of the Caliph, the Pope turned left and right looking for Simon, but he had disappeared and no one could find him. The Caliph turned to Abraham and said "O Patriarch, I have recognized the correctness of your faith."
Shortly after the miracle took place, Al-Muizz decided to convert to Christianity, abdicated in favour of his son and entered a monastery. A baptismal font, large enough for the immersion of a grown man, was built for him in the Church of Saint Mercurius. This font still exists today at the site where Al-Muizz has converted and is known as "Maamoudiat Al-Sultan", 'Baptistery of the Sultan'.] This story is rejected by influential Muslim historians such as Ahmad Zaki Pasha
Ahmad Zaki Pasha (, ; 26 May 1867 – 5 July 1934) was an Egyptian philologist, sometimes called the '' "Dean of Arabism" '' () or "''Shaikh al-Orouba "'', and longtime secretary of the Egyptian Cabinet.
Civil service
Though he was Alexandria ...
and Muhammad Abdullah Enan.
In commemoration of this miracle, the Coptic Orthodox Church observes three extra days of fasting before the beginning of the Nativity Fast
In Christianity, the Nativity Fast—or Fast of the Prophets in Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church—is a period of abstinence and penance practiced by the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church ...
.
Many more details of the story are found on a Coptic website, which claims that the miracle occurred on November 27, 979 AD.
Discovery of Saint Simon's relics
During the years of 1989–91, Coptic clergymen and archaeologists searched for the relics of the 10th century tanner and saint, Simon. Simon was apparently buried in the cemetery of al-Habash in Old Cairo
Old Cairo (Arabic: مصر القديمة , Miṣr al-Qadīma, Egyptian pronunciation: Maṣr El-ʾAdīma) is a historic area in Cairo, Egypt, which includes the site of a Roman-era fortress and of Islamic-era settlements pre-dating the founding of ...
; however, while searching for Simon's relics, his skeleton was discovered in the Coptic Orthodox Church of the Holy Virgin at Babylon El-Darag[ during its restoration.][ Simon's skeleton was discovered on August 4, 1991, about one meter below the surface of the church. What was of particular interest when finding his skeleton was that the hair on his head was still intact and had not disintegrated. The hair that was intact was only on the back of his skull and it was deduced that the man was bald in front and had thick hair on the back of his head.][
In the church where Simon's skeleton was found there was a painting that depicted the Coptic Pope Abraham and a bald-headed tanner carrying two water jars. The bald-headed man is most likely Simon because he was known for carrying water jars to the poor. The painting further depicted some of the characteristics of the discovered skeleton. In a church nearby a pot was discovered and was dated to be more than 1000 years old. It is believed that this clay pot was the vessel that Simon used to carry water to the poor. The jar is now kept in the new Church of Saint Simon on Muquattam, Cairo.][
]
Dedicated places of worship
Virgin Mary and St. Simon the Tanner Cathedral, Cairo
Coordinates:
Virgin Mary and St. Simon the Tanner Cathedral in th
Saint Samaan The Tanner Monastery
is on the east bank of the Nile[Meinardus, Otto F.A (1965). "Christian Egypt Ancient and Modern", p.328. French Institute of Oriental Archeology, Cairo.] behind the Zabbaleen village. The Zabbaleen village where the garbage collectors of Cairo live. In 1969 the governor of Cairo decided to move all of the garbage collectors to the Mokattam. In 1987 there were approximately 15,000 people living in the Zabbaleen village.[
Reaching the monastery is not an easy feat; it is difficult to get to, due to having to wind through the Zabbaleen village.
]
The Monastery of Saint Simon, Aswan
The Monastery of Saint Simon, Aswan does not seem have any direct connection with St Simeon. It is accessible by either crossing the desert from Qubbet el-Hawa
Qubbet el-Hawa or "Dome of the Wind" is a site on the western bank of the Nile, opposite Aswan, that serves as the resting place of ancient nobles and priests from the Old and Middle Kingdoms of ancient Egypt. The necropolis in use from the F ...
or by sailing across the Nile from Aswan
Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate.
Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...
and then walking up the Wadi
Wadi ( ar, وَادِي, wādī), alternatively ''wād'' ( ar, وَاد), North African Arabic Oued, is the Arabic term traditionally referring to a valley. In some instances, it may refer to a wet (ephemeral) riverbed that contains water onl ...
al-Qurqur.[ The monastery, which was originally dedicated to Anbâ Hadra of Aswân, was later renamed to Saint Simon.
It was built in the 7th century and reconstructed in the 10th century. By the 13th century, however, the monastery was in ruin; there was an inscription found there that said that a Mutammar Ali had visited in 1295 A.D. Although though the monastery was ruined, its main features were preserved.][Meinardus (1965), p.329. French Institute of Oriental Archeology, Cairo.]
One of the churches in the monastery had numerous Coptic inscriptions inside and there were slabs of stones giving the history of many of the monks that had lived there.[
]
See also
*Al-Muizz Lideenillah
Abu Tamim Ma'ad al-Muizz li-Din Allah ( ar, ابو تميم معد المعزّ لدين الله, Abū Tamīm Maʿad al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh, Glorifier of the Religion of God; 26 September 932 – 19 December 975) was the fourth Fatimid calip ...
*Coptic Cairo
Coptic Cairo is a part of Old Cairo which encompasses the Babylon Fortress, the Coptic Museum, the Hanging Church, the Greek Church of St. George and many other Coptic churches and historical sites. It is believed in Christian tradition that th ...
*Coptic saints
Early church historians, writers, and fathers testified to the numerous Copt martyrs. Tertullian, 3rd century North African lawyer wrote "If the martyrs of the whole world were put on one arm of the balance and the martyrs of Egypt on the other, ...
*
References
External links
Saint Samaan The Tanner Monastery
Simon the Shoemaker
Orthodoxwiki.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon the Tanner
10th-century births
10th-century deaths
Coptic Orthodox saints
Burials at the Church of the Holy Virgin (Babylon El-Darag)
10th-century Christian saints
Christian saints