ACN-USA News
10/15/2015
‘My father is in heaven’—Egyptian
martyrs get their church at last
By Oliver
Maksan
The gruesome images of
the 21 Christians who were beheaded in last February by Islamic State
terrorists have left a deep imprint on the memory of Christian Egyptians.
Now a new church
dedicated to the martyrs—who are formally recognized as such by Egypt’s Coptic
Orthodox Church—will honor their memory in a tangible fashion.
This week—after a long
delay—work began on laying the foundations of the new church in the
Coptic-Orthodox Diocese of Samalout, from which most of the martyrs came.
The project had been
authorized directly by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi shortly after
the tragedy, but resistance by local Muslim authorities delayed the start of
construction.
Bishop Paphnutius of
Samalout said, “We are extremely proud of our martyrs. Although they were
forced to kneel before their executioners, they were the stronger. Their
murderers were the weaker, despite their weapons.”
“Why would they have
concealed their faces otherwise? It could only have been because they were
afraid,” he insisted.
“Our sons by contrast
were very strong and called on our Lord until their very last breath.”
Bishop Paphnutius
interprets their martyrdom spiritually. “The Church has always known that the
blood of martyrs is the seed of faith. It will remain so until the end of
time,” he said.
“From Alexandria to
Aswan, throughout Egypt, Christians have been strengthened in their faith.
Muslims from all over have also told us that they are proud; they say that our
martyrs have shown that we Egyptians are very strong.”
“Their death fills all
of us, Christians and Muslims alike, with pride.”
The crime’s repercussions are still felt today. After all, the martyrs have left widows and children behind. “Thanks to generous donors, we are able to provide for the surviving dependents,” stated Bishop Paphnutius.
The martyrs’ children
are calm and composed when speaking about their fathers. Ingy Tawadros (14) is
one of the three children of Tawadros Youssef Tawadros. This victim had
experienced a lot of difficulties in Libya because of his name, which was
easily recognizable as Christian; he had often been asked to change it, but
refused, reportedly saying—according to his teenage daughter—that “if you
change your name, you are ultimately also changing your faith.”
Next to Ingy sit her
two little brothers. The younger one is six at most. “I am proud of my father,”
she said; “not just for my own sake, but because he has honored the whole
Church.”
“He did not deny his
faith. That is something wonderful. We pray for the perpetrators, that they may
be converted.”
Yet, however much the children bear the loss
of their fathers in faith, some have tears in their eyes when talking about
them.
“My father is in
heaven,” said another girl. “But I am still sad, because that is such a long
way away.”
With picture of the icon depicting the 21 martyrs, whose feast day will be Feb. 15 on
the Coptic Orthodox calendar (© ACN)
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