About
Mission
Coffee with Bishop Suriel is here to spread the message of an ancient Christian Tradition to every member of God’s family. The Lord Jesus Christ commanded His apostles saying, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15) This is a divine command and not an optional ministry. So, we aim to spread this apostolic teaching through the latest technological advancements available in order to reach as many people as possible across the globe. This includes as many channels of social media as achievable. As St. Paul said: “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” I humbly suggest, if he were on Earth today, I would be tuning in to “Tea with St. Paul.” I hope you would be too.
Another important part of our mission is to foster spiritual growth for each participant and to be a reliable source of information on Orthodox Christianity with an emphasis on the Coptic tradition.
Vision
The podcast’s vision is to reach a global audience, not limited to people of Coptic Orthodox faith. In fact, this podcast welcomes people of all faiths or of no faith at all or people struggling with faith. We aim to build a framework based on the family: one that is full of love, where everyone feels welcome and an important member in our weekly dialogue. This podcast is built upon mutual respect of each other, in this way we can have a stimulating dialogue that benefits the viewers and listeners. Positive criticism is always welcome, and this will assist in producing the best possible spiritual message.
Part of this vision is to have dynamic, inspiring and uplifting conversation. A dialogue that is both positive and informative at the same time that all can benefit from.
Values
To uphold the Orthodox tradition and faith of the church.
To uphold the forms of the Church’s life, namely kerygma (evangelization), didache (training), koinonia (community), diakonia (service), and liturgia (worship).
To engage, develop, and contribute to the spiritual formation of each individual who comes in contact with this podcast.
To engage with the wider community on a variety of vital and relevant topics.
To create dialogue between Christians and with other faiths on common topics of interest and concern.
To ensure mutual respect and encourage positive criticism for all viewers and listeners.
To promote an atmosphere of enthusiasm, innovation, etiquette and decorum at all times.
To encourage an atmosphere that is positive, dynamic and spiritually uplifting.
Podcast Logo
The podcast logo represents the mission, vision and values of our Coptic Orthodox Christian community. The Coptic cross represents the Christian message, as without the cross there is no death and suffering, and without death there is no resurrection. Again, St Paul is a great source who teaches, “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen.” (1 Corinthians 15:13) Using a Coptic design for the cross reflects the specific tradition where there will be a particular focus in the podcast.
The microphone depicted in the logo design reflects on the medium being used to disseminate the episodes each week. It also emphasizes a modern view in utilizing new technologies to spread the good news of Christ and His Church.
Coffee is brought into the design, as it is a social means for people to gather around their favorite beverage and engage in stimulating dialogue that is both dynamic and fresh. Looking at ancient faith with a new and enlightened perspective.
About Me
My vocational training and experience focuses on religious education and spirituality. My education in a wide variety of sacred and secular international institutions has greatly broadened my horizon that lead me to a deeper understanding of matters related to faith. This assisted me to succeed in my ministry and achieve many successful projects - not only in building infrastructure, but also institutions which were the first of their kind in the Coptic Church.
I find some of the words spoken by Pope Shenouda III of blessed memory, to be inspirational and uplifting. He taught that, “Success is not in the number of people served, but in those individuals whom you were able to change and bring closer to God.” I hope that this can be one of the main goals of our ministry on this podcast. Transforming lives one person at a time and drawing people into a personal relationship with the Savior Jesus Christ. This great patriarch also taught, “If you have nothing to give people, give them a warm smile and a kind word, give them love, give them tenderness, give them a word of encouragement; give them your heart.” I pray that this new ministry that I offer to each soul, brings them hope and a word of encouragement that is filled with the love of God.
Gallery
Honorary doctorate from the Australian Catholic University 2017
Graduation - Masters of Religious Education, 2001
Ordination of the first priest for St Mark Church, Auckland, 2000.
PhD Graduation, Fordham University, May 2014.
