Bishop Macarius " The Coptic Confessors"[ around us now, not any more from the 4th century only]

The Coptic Confessors (1)

Article Written by HG Bishop Macarius, The General Bishop of Our Coptic Orthodox Church in the Upper Egypt Governorate of Al Minya and Abu Korkas  on August 29, 2013, translated by Fr. Bishoy Lamie , edited by Phoebe Farag

Scanned from El-Keraza (The Preaching) magazine, official newspaper of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate, Aug. 30, 2013
pictures from top left: Burning the diocese of Coptic Orthodox Dioceses Church in Sohag, St. Mary in El -Fayoum , Friends of The Holy Bible Association in El-Fayoum, The ancient (4th century) monastery of St. Mary in Dalga - Dair Mawas- Al Minya, Bottom one: girl is praying in the burned Church of St. Tadros in Al Minya

The Confessor in the consciousness of the Church is the living Martyr, the difference between Martyr and confessor that both were tormented, except that the body of one was tortured while the body of the other departed life. In Al Minya we have in many places martyrs and large numbers of confessors, who were tortured or killed for no other reason than that they are Christians.


Between here and there, I am trying to remember here a story from the stories of martyrdom for Christ in the midst of the bloody events which we were exposed to in Al Minya and Abu Kurkas, and this story is about a lady counted as one of the Confessors. The house of K.Y. and also the store that belonged to the family was subjected to a brutal attack, starting from looting to destroying to igniting fire not with gasoline but with a burning powder material, the fire broke out in the house and store, the residents of the house rushed outside, outside, and there was no way out but to the main door of the house, where there was gathered a large number of heavily armed aggressors with multiple types of weapons. Once they saw them they attacked them and took from them what they were carrying in their hands, then they kidnapped this lady with her child. They threatened to kill him (her child), however her child returned to his family in a miraculous way, neither the child, nor his relatives knew how he returned safely.

As for her, they took her ring, her earrings, then they cut her hair in a brutal way, and fed her with slaps harshly on her face (till now she is still being treated from that), and even they took off her shoes and forced her to walk on pieces of broken glass on the ground till her feet bled, later on the physician discovered that the nerves on the soles of her feet were affected as a result. After that they carried her forcibly to a deserted place with intention to assault her. Their number was large, and she continued to resist their barbarity, requested to be killed rather than to be raped by them. But God sent people to save her in a miraculous way from their hands; they rescued her and carried her far, while the aggressors followed, them hoping to get her back.

When I spoke with her, I found her proud, feeling comfort in her heart. She said that she suffered because she is Christian and she is happy for that, and she did not despair, and she was thanking God who saved her son and saved her purity and her life, and she sees that God granted her new life so that she may live in more holiness. So I beatified her as she was found worthy to go through this experience and to gain this honour.

“Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.” Luke 6:22

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The original Arabic Article 
Thanks To Rasha The Admin at The Coptic Orthodox Church Diocese of Al Minya and Abu Korkas for sending the original Arabic text.

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