How a Coptic Orthodox Priest Sees Science and Faith

Before joining the priesthood, Fr. Morkos Fakhry Gamil was a medical software engineer and surgeon in London. Now a Coptic Orthodox priest, he has served as the parish priest of St. Mary and Pope Kyrillos VI in Greater London since its foundation in 2014. Coptic Orthodoxy is an early branch of Christianity established in Alexandria by St Mark the Evangelist and built on a legacy of ancient Egyptian civilization.

I first met Fr. Morkos in January when I visited his congregation to hear presentations from participants in its project “The Skies Proclaim the Works of His Hands”. This Scientists in Congregations project invited young people from the parish to explore significant questions about the universe and their faith, and it included workshops that introduced the teens to scientific concepts through the lens of their Coptic Christian heritage. It concluded with an exciting trip to Egypt, where this learning came to life with visits to ancient astronomical sites, observatories, and sites of religious significance.

Young people from Fr Morkos’ congregation on their trip to Egypt.

I recently sat down with Fr. Morkos to continue our conversation about science and faith, aiming to learn more about how he perceives the relationship between them. Before we began, Fr. Morkos emphasised that he does not have a mandate to speak on behalf of the entire Coptic Orthodox community, but rather as one member of the Coptic Orthodox faithful and a priest from his congregation. 

“Studying science is, to a certain extent, a theological study as well because you are studying the work of God.”

Although many in the West still subscribe to the conflict narrative between faith and science, Fr. Morkos challenged this notion from the outset, saying: “studying science is, to a certain extent, a theological study as well, because you are studying the work of God.” He asserted that faith and science are not at odds within the Coptic Orthodox tradition, but rather represent two ways of knowing — two lenses through which we perceive the world that God has created. 

“There isn’t much of a feeling of conflict. It’s not like if you are more scientific, you will be less faith-oriented, because the more you look at science, the more you’ll  see the beauty of God through nature.” 

Fr. Morkos emphasised that the Church Fathers saw no contradiction between faith and reason, using numerous analogies from the natural world to discuss God. When I questioned him further on this harmonious picture and asked how Coptic Orthodox Christians experience tensions between biblical narratives and scientific accounts of the real, he elaborated: “There is sometimes tension, but it never reaches a breaking point. There is acceptance between the parties who have different opinions.”

“There is sometimes tension, but it never reaches a breaking point.”

Citing the Genesis creation narratives, Fr. Morkos said that Coptic Orthodox Christians have a long-standing tradition of interpreting these texts in a way which extends beyond mere literalism without rejecting it. What matters is not the “how” of creation but the “why”. 

Nevertheless, Fr. Morkos was keen to point out that the order of creation seems to be logical with evolution: “God loves the human being and therefore prepares everything before creating that person.” He also explained that the Coptic Church believes that Adam and Eve were literal individuals, a belief for which he finds some support in science through discoveries related to mitochondrial DNA in the 1990s. For him, this exemplifies how “some scientific discoveries allow people who think traditionally to remain comfortable without changing their opinions.”

Regarding evolution, Fr. Morkos told me that microevolution — the small-scale changes within a population over shorter periods — is broadly accepted among Coptic Orthodox Christians. In contrast, macroevolution — the larger-scale evolutionary changes that lead to the emergence of new species and families — remains contentious and is rejected by most of the Coptic faithful. Fr. Morkos acknowledged that the young people in his parish have many questions about the biblical creation narrative,  but he noted that his congregation have a high threshold for accepting tensions, something he attributes to the centrality of mystery in the Coptic faith.

“What we see now is still not everything, and knowledge will continue to increase. Opinions can change from time to time. Maybe that’s the point.”

Father Morkos (back row, third from right) with members of his church on their way to Egypt.

“In fact, it could be that the more scientific you are, the more you are Coptic Orthodox.”

As the ECLAS Programme Associate for Scientists in Congregations, I am curious about the role of scientists within the Coptic Orthodox Church. Fr. Morkos said, “We are very proud of all scientists who are Coptic. It’s actually very good to be a scientist, and this is something praised by the church.” He mentioned the high number of Coptic Orthodox Christians working in psychiatry and mental health, including in his congregation, and noted its importance to human flourishing alongside spiritual and physical health. He also mentioned Sir Magdi Yacoub, a pioneering Egyptian-British cardiothoracic surgeon who was recently interviewed by Jim Al-Khalili on the BBC programme The Life Scientific. 

Finally, Fr Morkos told me, “Most of the people who are icons in the Coptic Orthodox clergy are also very good in science or education in general. In fact, it could be that the more scientific you are, the more you are Coptic Orthodox.”