Egyptian Journalist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal: President Morsi Refused to Visit a Single Church

Following are excerpts from an interview with Egyptian journalist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, which aired on CBC TV on April 12, 2013:

Mohamed Hassanein Heikal: When they say that Islam is both a religion and a political system, when they show the Muslim Brotherhood logo, with the sword and everything... I would be an idiot not to worry. So I think that many Muslims are worried, despite their devotion to Islam.

[...]

When an Islamic president came to power, I expected him to make more of an effort than his secular predecessors to reassure his [Christian] compatriots, but...

Interviewer: Dr. Morsi has not visited even a single church.

Mohamed Hassanein Heikal: Exactly. I was told by one of his former advisors that when they told him he should visit a church, he said: "Visit a church? God forbid."

Interviewer: Why hasn't Dr. Morsi visited a single church? Why didn't he congratulate Tawadros II when he became the Coptic pope? Is he worried about his constituency?

Mohamed Hassanein Heikal: Before you talk about his constituency, you should be asking about his own beliefs.

Interviewer: Do you mean that he is not ready personally to visit a church?

Mohamed Hassanein Heikal: Look, there is no room for pluralism in religion, whereas patriotism and national identity require pluralism.

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