Copts "starving" exchange student

emidesu

I'm American, but this story offends me:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23375427/

The depiction of the host family is so unlike any Copts I have ever known.  I don't like to see a big news story that distorts the truth about fasting.  I guess I can only pray that the truth comes out and American people learn the wonderful things about Coptic Orthodox.

kerestina

yeah im australian and this story reallii hit me lol its realli full on....
we r a unique church and very traditional
in saying that based on wat i have read n heard we CANT force someone who is not orthodox or does not understand the essence of fasting to fast.....
we cant be blind tho....to those who arent coptic 200 days of fasting out of 365 is like WOW lol.....
instead of being offended by this...lets learn from it in order to enhance our awareness and recognise how uniquely different we are

God bless n take care

Doogie

[quote author=kerestina link=topic=6317.msg83395#msg83395 date=1204626006]
yeah im australian too....


lol... im also Australian!... what a coincidence!

and as for that guys story...

lets pray to God that he gets better!

Unknown

Somthing about the story seems a bit suspicious. I mean if it was true then that family should have been more generous. I have seen his photos and I can't believe he can change that much in a few months. What if he actually suffered from anerexia and wasn't due to the lack of food? I still don't get how someone can get that skinny from not eating meat as he claims. I mean I am very skinny but even when I fast I don't feel a difference and I don't feel tired or unhealthy of weaker than I am. It's very suspicious.

ilovesaintmark

Some questions not covered by the liberal (unfair) press in the USA:

1.  Food is found everywhere in Egypt, how come he did not buy his own snacks and fill in food?

2.  How come he did not make contact with his parents?

3.  How come the teachers did not intervene?

4.  What happened to all of his pocket money?

5.  Was he doing anything improper or incorrect with his time in Egypt?

6.  Did he ever voice his concerns to the host family?

7.  Did he have diarrhea?

8.  Was he drinking the tap water?

9.  Has he been treated for any psychological problems in the past?

10.  Was he physically abused?

11.  Did his classmates ever offer him any food seeing his wasted appearance?

12.  Was he given fish during the fasting season?  I presume it was Advent fast relative to the time frame mentioned.

13.  Did he know of the customs relative to the culture and the fasting season prior to arriving?

14.  Was there a repulsion to some of the vegan foods?

15.  Was he held captive? (I don't think so because he went to school).

16.  Has his medical record been released relative to details?

17.  Is there a substance abuse issue?

After all these issues are answered, then one can make judgment.

kokiie

This is absolutely ridiculous... The article outlines what he ate on an average day and it's hardly starvation.. ? In fact, he must've been living with a relatively rich family... The majority of copts in Egypt eat one meal of nothing but bread a day!

The guys probably got bulimia or somethingor something of the sort and used this to cover it up.

Unknown

You guys are forgetting the most important thing of all, we say that fasting doesn't effect us physically, probably because we've been doing it for so long, but this is an american boy who is 17 years of age, it is more likely and practical for him to lose weight, I mean yes it's the Christmas fast and all, but 43 days of fasting for a person who is non-coptic, that's kind of tough. We assume it would be easy, but we aren't him to say that it was easy, because he lost like what 58 pounds!! If for anything I would have the parents of his to be held responsible, what do they mean "we weren't well aware of fasting" I mean, you check his facebook, but you don't do research on the family's lifestyles, every egyptian fasts, whether they are Coptic Christian or Muslim, doesn't matter they still fast, although ramadan is different the our fasts it's still is one!! I would doubt that the family didn't offer him regular meals, although I'm not them to speak, but just saying that his family hasn't gotten anybody to blame for it, I don't see the egyptian family to be held responsible for this act!!

Forever,
Coptic Servent

ilovesaintmark

Coptic Servant,

You are making judgment without all of the facts.  You are passing blame on the host family without knowing all of the facts.  There appears to be a lot more to this story.

You make assumptions in support of this boy:

1.  he was bound to the full fasting regimen;
2.  you forget that fish/seafood is allowed;
3.  you did not read my previous post as thought points;
4.  everyone in Egypt fasts

every egyptian fasts, whether they are Coptic Christian or Muslim, doesn't matter they still fast, although ramadan is different the our fasts it's still is one!!

I still do not see a lawsuit filed by the boy's family against the agency that placed him.  Why? 

Unknown

ilovestmark
You've said it. All these points need to be put into consideration. Logically the story isn't accurate and doesn't make sense. A lof of healthy people are completely vegans and that doesn't happen to them. I think that he acctually had anorexia and was depressed maybe a bit homesick. You could see in his photos that he looked as if he had previously suffered from a physicological problem. You can tell that his hosts were particulary rich people. They wont do that.
+ Again this article goes to show how the press can be so ignorant and how they can accuse a host family that  is from a less advanced country.
+ Could this have happened if the host family was british or he went to England instead of Egypt?

ilovesaintmark

Lost,

I usually watch the BBC in the morning in the United States to find out what is going on in the world.  To watch CNN, MSNBC, or FOX is an entry into the dark world of the illiterate, culturally insensitive, and geographically ignorant press folk.

Unknown

Coptic Servant,

You are making judgment without all of the facts.  You are passing blame on the host family without knowing all of the facts.  There appears to be a lot more to this story.

You make assumptions in support of this boy

Please don't judge me, I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but my post was directly aimed to the previous posters above!! Let me straighten out what might have been miscommunicated. If I said anything that's incorrect please don't just answer saying no you're wrong, I actually want to see where I have gone wrong!!

1.  he was bound to the full fasting regimen;

1. directly taken from the article:
"Parents: We weren't told of fasting
Jonathan McCullum's parents said the exchange program should have warned them that students placed with Coptic families would be subject to dietary restrictions."

2.  you forget that fish/seafood is allowed;

2. Even if seafood is allowed, maybe he doesn't like seafood or has allergic reactions in which he's incapable of eating, so you're saying that just because it is available his option is seafood?? yes he has other choices, but it's hard to go directly to a different place and eat what they eat

3.  you did not read my previous post as thought points;

3. Actually I did and I agreed with some, but not all

4.  everyone in Egypt fasts

every egyptian fasts, whether they are Coptic Christian or Muslim, doesn't matter they still fast, although ramadan is different the our fasts it's still is one!! I still do not see a lawsuit filed by the boy's family against the agency that placed him.  Why?

4. also directly taken from the article:
"The McCullums are considering a lawsuit. David McCullum expressed concern about the long-term physical and psychological effects on his son. "Someone needs to be held accountable, and I would like someone to say, 'I'm sorry.'"

Clearly, I stated what needs to be said, from my opinion anyway, but to the point, I have pointed out the false accusations taken against me and tried my best to base them off of the facts from the story. Hope I haven't upset you in anyway, or made you mad!!

Forever,
Coptic Servent

PopeKyrillos

I believe that both parties are wrong in this. Both of them are at fault. First, the coptic family is lying if what they said to the media is true. Nobody is going to eat at the ammount 6 people do and be this skinny. That's ridiculous. Next, the boy is also at fault. He should have gone back home. Wanting to stay in Egypt was a stupid decision on his part. If he wanted to go back but couldn't, then he can't be blamed. Also, anyone who was in this situation would never want to go out of their house ever again at least without his parents. Saying he still wants to go to Zimbabwe is clearly showing that he knows he is somewhat at fault. Again, I still think the coptic family is at fault but not completely. Also, his parents saw the facebook pictures. Once they saw those pictures, they should have brought him back no matter how much the cost. At least that's what any normal parents would have done. But again, the coptic family is clearly lying. He didn't eat at the rate 6 people would have eaten. That's clearly a lie. I also doubt he is bulimic or anorexic because when they throw up, stomach acids eat away at their teeth. Doctors would have noticed that. They're not stupid

abkarino22

It was sad to see this on the front page of my local newspaper. :(

minatasgeel

[quote author=abkarino22 link=topic=6317.msg83472#msg83472 date=1204771722]
It was sad to see this on the front page of my local newspaper. :(

newspaper kaman... wow. it's very stupid how they said that we fast about more than 200 days a year.
we fast from around 186-208 days.

and i don't think he was there for a whole year!!!

PopeKyrillos

Unknown

It's disappointing to see that we are basically being fought against, I mean the kid lost weight, but he was only there for a couple of months, and if the family of the boy files a lawsuit and the coptic family loses, we might end up having a bad reputation!!

Forever,
Coptic Servent

ilovesaintmark

Do not worry Coptic Servant, they cannot raise a lawsuit on the people in Egypt.  It would be too difficult.  Any lawsuit would be against the agency that placed the boy in Egypt.

I have a feeling there will not be a suit, since there are a lot of questions to be answered.

nadera

Yes, something is "off" here.
http://sneakersandbooks.blogspot.com/2008/03/something-fishy-here.html

Unknown

[quote author=ilovesaintmark link=topic=6317.msg83491#msg83491 date=1204825104]
Do not worry Coptic Servant, they cannot raise a lawsuit on the people in Egypt.  It would be too difficult.  Any lawsuit would be against the agency that placed the boy in Egypt.

I have a feeling there will not be a suit, since there are a lot of questions to be answered.


Actually, I was referring to the boy's family, again taken from the article.. "The McCullums are considering a lawsuit. David McCullum expressed concern about the long-term physical and psychological effects on his son. "Someone needs to be held accountable, and I would like someone to say, 'I'm sorry.'"

Forever,
Coptic Servent

elepti

This is just some rookie journalist trying to make thier way as a mainstream journalist.

Unknown

http://suscopts.org/resources/literature/531/coptic-orthodox-church-response-to-starvation-alle/

Unknown

[quote author=emidesu link=topic=6317.msg83393#msg83393 date=1204623856]
I'm American, but this story offends me:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23375427/

The depiction of the host family is so unlike any Copts I have ever known.  I don't like to see a big news story that distorts the truth about fasting.  I guess I can only pray that the truth comes out and American people learn the wonderful things about Coptic Orthodox.


To be totally honest with you, i think this kid was stupid. I mean, if he's hungry and his host family are fasting.. EVEN if he fasted with them he'd not have been in that condition. But apparently, they were fasting and made for him food.

Perhaps he didnt like the food?? I know I lose weight when going to Egypt, and its not because I fast, its because i'm so careful about what I eat.

Also, i have to say this: I live in the heart of Paris. Right opposite the Eiffel Tower in fact. I met these 4 American college students on the metro, and they asked me which stop they had to get off to go and see the Sistine Chapel.

I said that this is not in France, its in Italy. I mean... i'm not saying all americans are stupid, not at all, but they have their moments.

kokiie

I like the links. :)
Hehe.