Earlier this month a deadly church bombing in Egypt took the lives of 25 Coptic Christians during a Catholic Mass service.
In response to the devastating attack on Dec. 11, the ancient Christian sect stated that they forgive their attacker who has been identified as 22-year-old Shafik Mahmoud Mohammed Mostafa, a man that has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
ISIS has also claimed responsibility for the attack.
Egyptian MP and TV Host Sa'id Hassassin: Cairo Church Bombing Perpetrated by Intelligence Agencies of Certain Countries pic.twitter.com/smu5IWS02i
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) December 20, 2016
Some of the relatives of the twenty-five people who were killed at St. Peter and St. Paul spoke about the attack to the International Christian Concern (ICC) an organization that advocates for persecuted Christians across the world.
Wadgy An lost his wife in the attack. “I want to send a message to those that killed my wife. I forgive him, and I pray for him and the people who are like him. That God may lighten their minds and open their vision.”
Amad Saad Aziz lost his sister in the senseless slaughter. “To my martyred sister I say, ‘I love you so much and I want to be like you.’ To you who killed my sister I say, ‘we are ready for martyrdom.'”
Raymond Wadih survived the deadly attack, but the tragedy has not weakened his faith.
“On the contrary, this gives us more love for our country than before, and we will not leave Egypt. We were born here, we grew up here and we will die here.”
—
Read More: