The Catholic Church has added to its martyrology and officially honored the memory of 21 Coptic martyrs from Libya who were killed in 2015.
On February 15, 2024, the Vatican celebrated for the first time the memory of Coptic Christians who were beheaded by ISIS Islamists in 2015 (* an organization banned in Russia).
The Catholic Church has added to its martyrology and officially honored the memory of 21 Coptic martyrs from Libya who were killed in 2015. The Pope announced his decision to glorify them as holy martyrs of the Church in May 2023.
During the first divine service in their honor, Cardinal Kurt Koch, who heads the Dicasterium for Christian Unity, noted that "these young people, along with many other modern martyrs, are examples that inspire our faith and remind us of the words of Christ: "There is no greater love than laying down your soul for your friends."
"On this day, we Christians of the East and West have the joy to glorify together the 21 Coptic martyrs of Libya, who professed their faith by giving their lives to the Lord on February 15, 2015, and whose names are now recorded in the Roman martyrology: Milad, Avanub, Maged, Youssef, Kirollos, Bishoy, Samuel, Malak, Tawadros, Gerges, Mina, Hani, Samuel, Ezzat, Luke, Gaber, Essam, Malak, Sameh, Gerges and Matthew," the cardinal said.
The group, consisting of 21 Christians, was abducted in Libya in early 2015.
Already on February 15, the jihadists published a video on the Internet with the execution of the kidnapped Copts – they were beheaded.
Patriarch Tawadros II included the names of the dead in the synaxary of the martyrs of the Coptic Church. Several chapels have already been built in Egypt in their honor.