LYNNWOOD — People at a church here are mourning the beheadings of fellow Egyptian Christians at the hands of Islamic extremists.
The news that Egypt on Monday dropped bombs on Islamic State targets in Libya, in retaliation for the execution of 21 Christian men from Egypt, hit close to home for many in the congregation at St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church.
The slain had gone to work in oil-rich Libya as laborers. They were beheaded on a beach, apparently after being taken hostage. A recording of the killings was posted online Sunday by a faction of the Islamic State.
“This is not new to us. The Coptic church is a church of martyrs,” said Father Arsanios Hanna, St. Mary’s spiritual leader. “It’s hard, especially for the families.”
Hanna, a native of Shoubra, a suburb of Cairo, serves a congregation of more than 500 families, many of whom are Egyptian immigrants. The gleaming-gold Lynnwood sanctuary is one of about 120 Orthodox Coptic churches in the U.S.
Hanna said his congregation “vigorously condemns” the beheadings of the 21 Egyptians and counts them among the martyrs of the church.
“Killing peaceful people based on their nationality and religion is a barbaric, unhuman behavior returning us to past centuries of ignorance,” he said, “and it is a shame and big challenge for all nations to let the evil lead the world.”
Hanna said his congregation will pray not only for those who were killed but their murderers. Beyond that, he said, they’ll let politicians work to solve the problems plaguing the Middle East.
Nabil Girgis, an Edmonds accountant who attends St. Mary, said the retaliation sent a message to the extremists “to let them know Egypt cares about their people,” he said. “Those 21 people belong to the same denomination as our church.”
Girgis, who is from Zagazig, Egypt, said fighters from the Islamic State target Christians, and stable governments need to intervene.
While he doesn’t condone more violence, Girgis hopes the U.S. will help save Egypt, Europe and the Middle East from radical Islamists.
Father Takala Azmy, a priest at St. Mary, said he believes the U.S. should use intelligence against the Islamic State group instead of military force.
The Alexandria native said Christians have been persecuted many times throughout the centuries. Today, Azmy said, Muslim extremists are discriminating against the Egyptian Copts, which is the largest Christian denomination in the Middle East and also the region’s largest religious minority.
After the video of the Copts being killed was released Sunday, the Egyptian president proclaimed seven days of national mourning.
“We share that feeling,” Azmy said. The congregation also is grieving the loss. “They need help from God. They need support from Heaven. We pray for this reason.”
Because Egypt has been through so much in the past four years, Azmy said, it is important to end the fighting.
“We should always work on peace,” he said.
In Lynnwood, the Orthodox Copts started observing Lent this week. Members fast until sundown and take daily Communion. They give up eating animal products. During services, women cover their hair with white scarves. They pray for their fellow Copts who died and the extremists who killed them.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Amy Nile: 425-339-3192; anile@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @AmyNileReports.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
