Fr. Luka Wassif

“Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.”

Matthew 25:21

Life and Ministry

Fr. Luka was born Medhat Edward Awadallah Wassif in Toukh Dalakah, Menofia, Egypt, on December 7, 1950. After graduating from medical school and working as a General Practitioner, Fr. Luka was ordained as a priest on November 27th, 1981, by His Grace Bishop Youanes, Bishop of El Gharbia, of blessed memory. He spent his 40 days after ordination in the Monastery of St. Mina the Wonderworker in Alexandria where he received the rites of the liturgy from Fr. Raphael Abba Mina. He then went on to serve as the first permanent priest for the newly constructed St. Paul Cathedral in Tanta, Egypt until 1993 when he was asked to immigrate to the United States to serve the Coptic community of the metropolitan Atlanta area. Fr. Luka first arrived in Atlanta on January 4^th, 1993, where he began his new ministry as the priest of St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church. Throughout his ministry at St. Mary, Fr. Luka oversaw the expansion of the church and the growth of the congregation into an active, close-knit spiritual community. In 1996, the construction of a larger church to accommodate the growing congregation was completed. His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, of blessed memory, along with His Grace Bishop Youssef, Bishop of the Southern United States, and a delegation of honorable bishops consecrated the newly constructed church on December 15^th, 1996. The iconostasis of the church as well as the icons written by Drs. Bedour Latif and Youssef Nassief were completed in 1999. On December 10, 2000, Fr. Luka was elevated to the rank of Hegumen by His Grace Bishop Youssef.

Communities Served

Fr. Luka’s ministry included frequent travel to serve neighboring Coptic communities that did not have a residing priest including communities in Augusta, GA, Chattanooga, TN, and Tallahassee, FL. In addition to Coptic communities, Fr. Luka also worked diligently to forge relationships with other Oriental Orthodox church communities in the Atlanta area. He participated in committees that met regularly to maintain lines of communication between the churches. He also organized and participated in joint liturgical services as well as conventions that gathered the local youth groups of the sister churches.

Theological Education

Fr. Luka enrolled in the Theological Seminary in Tanta, Egypt in October 1979 and graduated from the seminary in October 1982 subsequent to his ordination as a priest. He went on to become an instructor in the same Theological Seminary from 1983 to 1987 and again from 1990 to 1991. After he began his service in the United States, he would go on to teach in the Theological Seminary in the Diocese of the Southern United States as well other seminaries in the United States and Canada. Among his areas of focus were New Testament Theology with a particular interest in the life and ministry of St. Paul.

Departure

After faithfully enduring many years of illness as well as the departure of his wife, Nadia, on April 26, 2018, after a long battle with cancer, Fr. Luka departed in peace on October 30^th, 2021. The Divine Liturgy followed by funeral prayers led by His Grace Bishop Youssef took place on November 4^th, 2021.

The blessing of his prayers be with us all, and glory be to our God forever. Amen.