Acknowledgements
For several years, even before studying Orthodox theology and History of Christianity/Coptic Studies at St. Vladimirâs Orthodox Seminary and Claremont Graduate University, respectively, I have been searching for the development of the rite of auricular confession, particularly in the Coptic milieu. Neither could I find answers in the Greek patristic tradition nor in the Coptic literature, yet I was transferred to the medieval Copto-Arabic literature. While reading the book titled The Coptic Papacy in Islamic Egypt (641â1517), the following note struck me: âThe Book of Confession has not yet been properly studied, despite its popularity (witnessed to by its presence in dozens of manuscripts).â This small note by Mark Swanson was the catalyst that triggered the present research; I thank him for his gentleness, expertise, and erudition. The Book of Confession by the 75th patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church was the text that somehow unfolded the whole history of penance in the Coptic rite. When I met the Coptic Patriarch, Tawadros the Second, to get written approval to access the monastic libraries, he was astonished by my choice to study the works of such an irreputable figure. Ironically, I am indebted to Cyril ibn Laqlaq for having a not-so-bright reputation, which gave me a substantial opportunity to study a pivotal treatise that had never been published in full, nor translated, nor studied before in academia.
For the success of this project, I am indebted to those who have in various ways supported my research. First, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my PhD supervisor, Gawdat Gabra, for his invaluable advice and generous guidance throughout the formation of my project. I am also immensely thankful to Ugo Zanneti, who provided me with a provisional draft of the yet-to-be-published edition of The Master and the Disciple in eight chapters, attributed to Marqus ibn Qunbar (â â¯1208). My sincere thanks go to my friends Maged Mikhail and Lisa Agaiby who at different stages read, commented on, and discussed various parts of my work. I would also like to convey my gratitude to Ken Parry for welcoming the present study to the Brill series of Texts and Studies in Eastern Christianity. My research has also been greatly aided by several distinguished scholars and leaders of prestigious institutions; I am grateful to Hany Takla, president of the St. Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society; Wadi Awad, noted Coptic scholar of the Franciscan Centre of Christian Oriental Studies; and Columba Stewart, Executive Director of the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library.