On a Libyan beach in February 2015, twenty-one men in orange jumpsuits knelt before their executioners. Twenty were Egyptian Coptic Christians; one was a Ghanaian named Matthew who had chosen to stand with them. Each man's lips moved in prayer: "Ya Rabbi Yasou"—"My Lord Jesus."
Christian Workers Face Persecution
These men had traveled from poor villages in Egypt's Minya governorate to find work in Libya. They were laborers—simple men supporting families back home. When ISIS militants kidnapped them in late 2014, they were given a choice: deny Christ or die.
Not one of them wavered.
Faith Unto Death Testimony
Matthew, the Ghanaian, had not been Christian when he first met the twenty Copts. But watching their unwavering faith in the face of death, he chose to follow their God. "Their God is my God," he declared, and was baptized in the camp before his execution.
The video released by ISIS shows each man praying silently as they awaited death. Some could be heard whispering the name of Jesus in their final moments. They died as the first Christian martyr Stephen had died—calling on the Lord to receive their spirits.
Forgiveness and Recognition Follow
What happened next astonished the world. The families of the martyrs responded not with calls for vengeance but with forgiveness. "Why shouldn't I forgive?" said one father. "The Lord forgives us every second. My son is a martyr for Jesus, and that is a blessing. I pray for those who killed him—that they may see the truth."
The Coptic Church canonized all twenty-one as saints within days. Their village was renamed "Martyrs' Village," and a church was built in their honor. In 2023, Pope Francis added them to the Roman Martyrology—a profound ecumenical recognition of their witness.
