Vatican City, May 11: The Vatican is formally recognising 21 Coptic Orthodox workers who were beheaded by Islamic militants in Libya as martyrs with their own feast day, in a significant new ecumenical gesture aimed at forging unity between Catholic and Orthodox churches. During the audience, Francis kissed relics of the 21 young men that Tawadros offered him as a gift. The inscription of the Coptic Orthodox martyrs in the Catholic liturgical calendar, Francis said, “is a sign of the spiritual communion that unites our two churches". The Vatican will likely designate February 15 as their feast day, the same day the Coptic Orthodox Church honours them, officials said. Tawadros is scheduled to celebrate a liturgy for the Coptic Orthodox faithful on Sunday at Francis' cathedral, St. John Lateran.
