The Cairo Codex (53 page)

Arriving in Egypt with the baby Jesus in their arms, the travelers crisscrossed the Nile, stopping at twenty-eight towns—now home to grand churches and monasteries that welcome thousands of pilgrims each year—as they went. The family kept moving, worried that Herod’s soldiers were pursuing them. The Holy Family is believed by Coptic Christians to have resided for a short while—perhaps six months—in a cave that is now a crypt beneath St. Sergius Church in Babylon, the ancient name for Old Cairo.

Matthew also tells us that the Angel Gabriel appeared once more to Joseph and said: “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel; for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.” By that time, Coptic Christians believe, the family had lived in Egypt for less than three years; Muslims, however, believe the Holy Family remained in the land for as long as seven years.
The Cairo Codex
proposes that the family lived in the cave in Babylon well into Jesus’ eighth year.

I
N WRITING
T
HE
C
AIRO
C
ODEX
, I
HAD THE
privilege to witness the evolving history of Egypt through my own eyes, as well as through the eyes of many Egyptian friends and colleagues. These are some of the Egyptians who made this novel possible: Ambassador Hussein and Nevine Hassouna; Dr. Kawsar Kouchok; Madam Ansaf Azziz; Hanna Ibrahim and Laurence Amin; Dr. Waguida El Bakary; Nadia El Araby and her daughters; Dr. Magda Laurence; Mary Megalli; Dr. Pam El Shayeb; Dr. Mohammed Rabei; Vice-President of Egypt Fathi Sorour; Mohammed Khattab; Hassan Osman; Supreme Director of Antiquities, Zahi Hawass; Dr. Malek Zaalouk; Baher El Awady; the staff of the Centre for Curriculum and Instructional Materials Development, the UNESCO staff, and the staff of the Alexandria Library. I especially want to thank Dr. Samira Hradsky, who served as the Director of North African Affairs for the Education Development Center when I was employed as an educational consultant in Egypt. The voices of hundreds of generous Egyptians resonate in my mind: taxi drivers and shopkeepers, teachers and boabs, priests and imams, tour guides and housemaids, professors and grocers, diplomats and artists. I thank them all.

American friends and family members graciously volunteered to read early drafts of this novel and to provide invaluable insights and feedback. I wish to thank Mary Gardner, who helped with the research as well; Bob and Barbara Blackburn; my son, Tod Green; Zane and Janet Todd, my brother and sister-in-law; Delmo Della Dora; Ellen Johnson, our daughter; Rita King; and Judy Vandergrift.

I especially want to thank my writing coaches, Susan Efros and Ida Egli. Caitlin Alexander, editor, brought
The Cairo Codex
to fruition.

Most deeply, I want to thank my husband, Morgan Lambert, whose love, patience, editorial talents, and wisdom made the writing of this work a pleasure that we shared as we spent our incredible years together in Egypt and in California.

Linda Lambert, Ed.D.

The Sea Ranch, California

www.lindalambert.com

L
INDA
L
AMBERT
, E
D
.D.
IS
P
ROFESSOR
Emeritus from California State University, East Bay, and a full time author of novels and texts on leadership. During Linda’s career she has served as social worker, teacher, principal, district and county directors of adult learning programs, as well as university professor, state department envoy to Egypt, and international consultant. Her international consultancies in leadership have taken her to the Middle East, England, Thailand, Mexico, Canada, and Malaysia. Linda is the author of dozens of articles and lead author of
The Constructivist Leader
(1995, 2002),
Who Will Save Our Schools
(1997), and
Women’s Ways of Leading
(2009); she is the author of
Building Leadership Capacity in Schools
(1998) and
Leadership Capacity for Lasting School Improvement
(2003).
The Cairo Codex
is the first novel in a trilogy. She lives with her husband, Morgan, a retired school superintendent, on the Sea Ranch, California.