Could you stand firm in your faith when faced with the ultimate test?
On this deeply moving episode of "The Catholic Talk Show," Ryan Scheel, Ryan DellaCrosse, and Father Matt King discuss the incredible courage of the 21 Coptic Martyrs of Libya with "Son Of The 11th Hour" film director Raouf Zaki.
The 21 Coptic Martyrs of Libya were a group of simple laborers, mostly in their twenties, who traveled to Libya to support their families back in Egypt.
In 2015, they were captured and brutally martyred by ISIS for refusing to renounce their Christian faith. Their ultimate sacrifice led Pope Francis to include them in the Roman Catholic martyrology.
Zaki says "The pope canonized them because their last words were 'Jesus Christ be with me.’”
What gave these young men the strength to refuse to renounce their faith?
“The martyrs were poor, simple men who kept their faith strong. They prayed every day, even though they were so poor."
Zaki says this gave them the resilience to stand firm in the face of unimaginable torture and death.
What role did their community and prayer life play in their unwavering faith?
Despite immense grief, their families found solace in their loved ones' faith. Zaki shares that “one of the widows said she was praying every day that her husband would not lose his faith."
He says this collective support in prayer reinforced their resolve.
How can we cultivate similar resilience in our own spiritual lives?
The martyrs' found strength as a close-knit community with constant prayer. Zaki tells how one of the martyrs, a farmer, would "sing the Psalms late at night, even in captivity, inspiring others despite the torture." Their steadfast devotion, even under dire circumstances, is a model for how we can build our own spiritual resilience.
This episode is such a powerful story of faith!