From the streets of Tanta to the churches of Deir Mawas and Delga: more than 35 years of priesthood since 11 February 1991, and church service that began in his youth. Here the story is read in chapters: photos, recordings and documents, every item tied to its source.
«يلي كنيستك جوه قلبك، يلي عشت وياك»
Featured recording: the hymn "Qalb El-Raai" (Heart of the Shepherd) - a tribute for 35 years of priesthood (YouTube)Samir Sobhy was born on 4 December 1956 in the El-Hekma district of Tanta. He grew up in the Church of the Archangel Michael under Fr. Suryal Abdo and graduated from the Faculty of Commerce at Tanta University in 1980.
In 1988, the year Anba Agabius was consecrated bishop of Deir Mawas and Delga, he moved to Deir Mawas to serve with his teacher in preparation for ordination as a priest.
On 11 February 1991 he was ordained a priest as "Fr. Wissa Sobhy" by the laying on of hands of Anba Agabius and Anba Thomas, Bishop of El-Qusiya. He spent the forty days at the Monastery of the Virgin in Al-Muharraq, received the sacrifice there on 1 March, returned on 21 March and began serving in the Diocese of Deir Mawas and Delga.
On 22 June 1997 he was raised to hegumen. According to his family, he served as deputy of the Deir Mawas Metropolitanate from that date until 5 February 2025. Today he is priest of the Church of the Virgin Mary in Deir Mawas.
The newspaper Sada El-Balad (April 2026) credits him, in these years, with founding the Metropolitanate's documentation and marriage office in 1991, and with overseeing the rebuilding of St George's Church in Deir Mawas and other churches in Muharram, Nazlet El-Badraman, Rahmaniya and Toukh, as well as the services building and the Deir Dalga wall.
In 2016 his jubilee was held at the Archangel Michael Cathedral in Tanta, with well-wishers and the fathers of the Diocese of Tanta. In April 2026 the Diocese of Deir Mawas marked 35 years since his ordination.
Sources: family statement (birth, childhood church, 1988, the March 1991 dates, the deputyship, the 2016 jubilee). St-Takla.org (ordination and hegumen dates). Sada El-Balad, 8 April 2026 (Tanta, Anba Thomas, the forty days, the works credited to him). Sada El-Balad says he became deputy right after receiving the sacrifice; the deputyship dates here are as the family gave them.
This archive gathers what has been documented of Father Wissa Sobhy Tadros's life and of the history of Deir Mawas and Delga, and every new documented addition joins it. Each item here is linked to its source on the References page, for anyone who wishes to consult the originals.