The Church facing Covid 19 - Despite the coronavirus pandemic: Copts celebrate the sixth anniversary of the massacre of Coptic martyrs in Libya

Source: coptstoday

Samalut (Agenzia Fides) - The social distancing measures also planned in Egypt to fight against the Covid-19 pandemic did not prevent celebrating, even if in a sober and limited way, the 6th anniversary of the massacre of 20 Copts in Libya in the company of their Ghanaian workmates from jihadist terrorists linked to the so-called "Islamic State" in February 2015.

On the evening of Sunday 14 February, in the village of al-Awarm in Minya province, a vigil took place in the shrine dedicated to the Martyrs of the Faith and of the Fatherland, where their mortal remains are kept. The liturgical commemoration, presided over by Anba Pavnotios, Coptic Archbishop of Samalut, was attended by various priests and a consistent representation of the martyrs' families, among others.

In the past few days, a TV report by the journalist Hamdi Rizk entitled "From Minya via Libya to Paradise" had reconstructed the vicissitudes of Coptic Orthodox martyrs massacred by jihadists . Thanks to interviews with different members of the families of the martyrs, this story of martyrdom emerged in its aspects of a fruitful and consoling experience for the faith of many baptized Egyptians. Last year, the 5th anniversary of the massacre of the Coptic Orthodox martyrs of Libya was solemnly celebrated at al-Awar shrine from February 1 to 16 (see Fides, 7/2/2020) through liturgical celebrations, lectures, guided tours of the museum and prayer meetings. This year, however, large crowds had to be avoided as a result of the pandemic.

The 20 Egyptian Copts and one of their Ghanaian work colleagues were kidnapped in Libya in early January 2015 …

This article was originally published on Agenzia Fides website. Please click here to read the full text.