In one of the most important legislative steps in modern Egyptian history, the Christian community, in all its denominations, stands on the threshold of a new legal era with the completion of all features of the "Unified Personal Status Law for Christians." This draft law, which represents the culmination of many years of arduous negotiations and intensive meetings between representatives of the six major churches in Egypt, has officially been transferred to the Ministry of Justice in preparation for its presentation in Parliament. More than just a set of legal texts, the draft law is a "citizenship document" that seeks to unpick the complex entanglements between doctrinal issues and the civil implications of marriage. Its principal aim is to protect the Egyptian Christian family unit from disintegration resulting from legal loopholes that have been exploited for many years.