Mother Irini, الأم إيرينى(Tamav (Coptic for Mother) Irene),(Umina (Our Mother in Arabic) Irini) (died October 31, 2006) was Abbess of St. Philopateer Mercurius (Abu Sefein) Convent in Old Cairo, Egypt. Tamav (a Coptic word for "my mother") Erini, Mother Superior of the convent of St Philopater Mercurius in Old Cairo, died on 31 October. She was consecrated head of the convent on 15 October 1962 (Babah 5th 1679 according to the Coptic Calendar). She is particularly thought to have been visited by, and to have communicated with, saints of the Old Testament St. Anthony the Great, and St. Philopateer Mercurius Tamav Erini was born on 9 February 1936 in Girga, a small town in Upper Egypt in Sohag Governorate. She was the eldest of seven children born to Coptic Orthodox Christian parents. She was baptised in the Monastery of Saint Shenoudah the Archimandrit On 6 October 1954, Mother Erini became a nun in the Monastery of Abu-Sefain at the age of 18, the youngest nun in the monastery. On 15 October 1962 at the young age of 26 mother Erini, or as she would later be called Tamav Erini [Tamav; Coptic name for mother] was ordained the abbess of the Monastery of Abu-Sefain. At the outset of her upholding the monastery's responsibility, Tamav Erini found a neglected copy of the Pachomian Koinonia in the convent's library. She restructured the nuns' life accordingly, banning all forms of personal property or segregation. Group prayers and meals were introduced. Before Tamav Erini's assumption of the monastery's responsibility, the nuns used to attend mass and communion in an adjacent church, also dedicated to St. Mercurius. Tamav Erini founded St. Mercurius' Church and subsequently founded a second church inside the convent in honor of St. Mary, on the site where the Virgin is said to have sat with her Son during the Holy Family's flight to Egypt. On Abu-Sefain's feasts—celebrating his martyrdom, the coming of his relics to Egypt, and the consecration of the first Coptic Church in his name—she would speak to the thousands who gathered about the miracles said to have occurred through the intercession of the saint. She held weekly meetings until a few years before her death. Under her tenure the number of nuns increased to over 100, and some of her daughters became mothers superior of other Cairo convents. St Syncletica and other [Desert Mothers] contributed to the extraordinary development of monasticism during the fourth and fifth centuries. They established a tradition equal to that of the desert fathers and attracted many disciples and listeners, male and female. The teachings of these mothers focus on the life of vigil, prayer, fasting and struggle, purity of heart, poverty, solitude and stillness. Tamav Erini's words tackle many of the same issues. Under her guidance the convent published a well-researched and documented book highlighting the contribution of women to monastic and ascetic life, The Angelic Life: The Virgin Mary and Other Virgins in Different Ages (Cairo: Harmony Printing House, 2002). For more than 25 years Tamav Erini suffered from ill health. In their memorial the nuns at the convent described her as their "enlightened mother, mentor, teacher, guide and the lamp whose light would remain for ever". They also expressed their gratitude "for being the daughters of the mother of monasticism in this generation, for having been watered by the fountain of her sacred life and enlightened by the torch of her monastic and spiritual teachings which will remain to guide us until we meet her in heaven". The reading of the Gospel on the day before her death was from the Gospel of Matthew 25:21 "His master replied, 'well done, good and faithful servant! you have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness". On 31 October 2006 Mother Erini died. At her funeral Bishop Raphaeil (General Bishop) spoke on behalf of Pope Shenouda III.

• published: 29 Oct 2013
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