Are Coptic 'Christians' Really Christians?

The Italian news agency ANSA reported on February 17, 2015 that Pope Francis offered up a Mass for the 21 Coptic Christians beheaded by ISIS militants on the weekend. At the end of his address to Scottish Bishops on the Pope gave this comment about the men who were so brutally killed:
“I would now like to turn to my native tongue to express feelings of profound sorrow. Today I read about the execution of those twenty-one or twenty-two Coptic Christians. Their only words were: “Jesus, help me!” They were killed simply for the fact that they were Christians. You, my brother, in your words referred to what is happening in the land of Jesus. The blood of our Christian brothers and sisters is a testimony which cries out to be heard. It makes no difference whether they be Catholics, Orthodox, Copts or Protestants. They are Christians! Their blood is one and the same. Their blood confesses Christ. As we recall these brothers and sisters who died only because they confessed Christ, I ask that we encourage each another to go forward with this ecumenism which is giving us strength, the ecumenism of blood. The martyrs belong to all Christians”.
From an article on Catholic World Report by Catherine Harmon

Christians of all denominations from many countries tweeted their outrage at the actions of ISIS and their support of those fellow Christians who were suffering.
Then comments by a Southern Baptist (or was it many) surfaced. He (or they) said that it is fine to sympathize with and pray for the families of those killed but the men who were killed could not be considered Christian because the Coptic Church believes (along with Roman Catholics) in salvation by works and not by faith in Christ. I don’t know the origin of this claim but this article about it can be read at Pen and Pulpit. (see http://pulpitandpen.org/2015/02/16/coptic-christians-not-christians-southern-baptist-leaders-need-reminded/) .
Just a minute here - you mean to say that someone who dies rather than denounce his faith in Jesus Christ is not a Christian? Someone who dies with ‘Jesus, help me’ on this lips is not a Christian?
Some lone individual has the audacity to say what a Christian is? Just what is his authority? He, of course, would answer, that Scripture is his sole authority. And so probably would those members from any of the 33,000 denominations of Christianity that exist today- all affirming that the Holy Spirit has led them to the truth in Scripture! How then do we know who is right? What does Scripture give as the criteria for salvation? And what does the Bible say about who and who is not a Christian?
There are many references that do say ‘faith’ is what has saved a person. Most of these passages are those in which Jesus (or one of the Apostles) has healed someone. For example, Jesus says to the woman who touched the hem of his garment ‘Courage, my daughter, your faith has saved you.” (Matthew 9:22) The healing or forgiveness of sins has come about because of the individual’s faith. In most cases, their faith is outwardly expressed by an act (or a work?) such as the woman touching the hem of Jesus’ garment or the crippled man taking up his bed and walking.
Here are some other similar passages:
"They brought a paralyzed man to him, lying on a bed. Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, ‘Courage, my son! Your sins are forgiven.’" Matthew 9,2

In this case, Jesus sees not the faith of the paralyzed man himself but of his friends who have brought him. Can the faith of our friends save us?

"Then Jesus said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has saved you; go in peace and be free of this illness.’"
Mark 5,34

Many well-known passages about faith are in the letter from St. Paul to the Romans:

"God makes us righteous by means of faith in Jesus Christ, and this is applied to all who believe, without distinction of persons." Romans 3,22
"By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips you are saved." Romans 10,10
"By faith we have received true righteousness, and we are at peace with God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord." Romans 5,1

There are even passages which say that it is faith that saves but not our ‘works’:

“...he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5

But there are other passages that seem to give other criteria for salvation (belief in Jesus, calling on the name of the Lord, washing of regeneration, enduring to the end, obedience).
And it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:21 (Peter speaking on the Day of Pentecost)
“...he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5
Some would say that ‘the washing of regeneration’ refers to baptism.
Acts 16:31 “’What must I do to be saved?’ And they (Paul and Silas) said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’”
Does this mean that they must believe that Jesus is God? Or just that he has been sent by God? Ot that he was the Messiah for whom the Jews waited.
Matt 10:22 “And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake, But he who endures till the end will be saved.”
We must ‘endure till the end’ - it is not automatic.
Hebrews 5:8 “Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered, and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him”.
And there is a dire warning for those who say, ‘Lord, Lord’, perhaps those who are smug about their salvation but are not doing God’s will
Matthew 7:21 “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
There are passages of Scripture that indicate the role of baptism: it goes along with belief and with repentance.
The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; the one who refuses to believe will be condemned."
Mark 16,16

Peter answered: "Each of you must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2,38

“And now, why delay? Get up and be baptized and have your sins washed away by calling upon his Name." Acts 22,16

We see that there is a relationship between faith or belief and obedience or works. It is in the letter of James that we especially read about this relationship. We cannot ‘see’ or ‘know’ the faith of someone - we only know it by the outward things he or she does. Jesus could see into the soul of a person to see if he had faith in God or not but we can’t. And so James, said that faith without works is dead. The ‘works’ or ‘deeds’ a person does are proof of his faith.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only.” James 1: 22
“So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But some will say, “You have faith and I have works’. Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith....Do you want to be shown, you foolish fellow, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, and the scripture was fulfilled, which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.” James 2: 17ff
Martin Luther did not want to include the letter of James in the Bible because it did not ‘agree’ with his interpretation of Romans and the emphasis on faith.
But it is not only in James that we read about this relationship. We also see the relationship between obedience or works with faith in the Epistles of John.
“He who says, ‘I know him’ but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps his words, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him; he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” I John 1:4
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God ... By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.” I John 5:1


And there are other passages in the New Testament that refer to ‘works’ and ‘good works’ and their role in our salvation.

"Our people must learn to be outstanding in good works and to face urgent needs, instead of remaining idle and useless." Titus 3,14

"Do not neglect good works and common life, for these are sacrifices pleasing to God." Hebrews 13,16

“I know your works, your difficulties and your patient suffering. I know you cannot tolerate evildoers but have tested those who call themselves apostles and have proved them to be liars."
Revelation 2,2

"I know your works: your love, faith, service, patient endurance and your later works, greater than the first." Revelation 2,19

"Wake up and strengthen that which is not already dead. For I have found your works to be imperfect in the sight of my God." Revelation 3,2

"I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot!" Revelation 3,15

"Fine linen, bright and clean, is given her to wear. This linen stands for the good works of the holy ones."
Revelation 19,8


The Italian news agency ANSA reported on February 17, 2015 that Pope Francis offered up a Mass for the 21 Coptic Christians beheaded by ISIS militants on the weekend. At the end of his address to Scottish Bishops on the Pope gave this comment about the men who were so brutally killed:
“I would now like to turn to my native tongue to express feelings of profound sorrow. Today I read about the execution of those twenty-one or twenty-two Coptic Christians. Their only words were: “Jesus, help me!” They were killed simply for the fact that they were Christians. You, my brother, in your words referred to what is happening in the land of Jesus. The blood of our Christian brothers and sisters is a testimony which cries out to be heard. It makes no difference whether they be Catholics, Orthodox, Copts or Protestants. They are Christians! Their blood is one and the same. Their blood confesses Christ. As we recall these brothers and sisters who died only because they confessed Christ, I ask that we encourage each another to go forward with this ecumenism which is giving us strength, the ecumenism of blood. The martyrs belong to all Christians”.
From an article on Catholic World Report by Catherine Harmon

Christians of all denominations from many countries tweeted their outrage at the actions of ISIS and their support of those fellow Christians who were suffering.
Then comments by a Southern Baptist (or was it many) surfaced. He (or they) said that it is fine to sympathize with and pray for the families of those killed but the men who were killed could not be considered Christian because the Coptic Church believes (along with Roman Catholics) in salvation by works and not by faith in Christ. I don’t know the origin of this claim but this article about it can be read at Pen and Pulpit. (see http://pulpitandpen.org/2015/02/16/coptic-christians-not-christians-southern-baptist-leaders-need-reminded/) .
Just a minute here - you mean to say that someone who dies rather than denounce his faith in Jesus Christ is not a Christian? Someone who dies with ‘Jesus, help me’ on this lips is not a Christian?
Some lone individual has the audacity to say what a Christian is? Just what is his authority? He, of course, would answer, that Scripture is his sole authority. And so probably would those members from any of the 33,000 denominations of Christianity that exist today- all affirming that the Holy Spirit has led them to the truth in Scripture! How then do we know who is right? What does Scripture give as the criteria for salvation? And what does the Bible say about who and who is not a Christian?
There are many references that do say ‘faith’ is what has saved a person. Most of these passages are those in which Jesus (or one of the Apostles) has healed someone. For example, Jesus says to the woman who touched the hem of his garment ‘Courage, my daughter, your faith has saved you.” (Matthew 9:22) The healing or forgiveness of sins has come about because of the individual’s faith. In most cases, their faith is outwardly expressed by an act (or a work?) such as the woman touching the hem of Jesus’ garment or the crippled man taking up his bed and walking.
Here are some other similar passages:
"They brought a paralyzed man to him, lying on a bed. Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, ‘Courage, my son! Your sins are forgiven.’" Matthew 9,2

In this case, Jesus sees not the faith of the paralyzed man himself but of his friends who have brought him. Can the faith of our friends save us?

"Then Jesus said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has saved you; go in peace and be free of this illness.’"
Mark 5,34

Many well-known passages about faith are in the letter from St. Paul to the Romans:

"God makes us righteous by means of faith in Jesus Christ, and this is applied to all who believe, without distinction of persons." Romans 3,22
"By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips you are saved." Romans 10,10
"By faith we have received true righteousness, and we are at peace with God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord." Romans 5,1

There are even passages which say that it is faith that saves but not our ‘works’:

“...he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5

But there are other passages that seem to give other criteria for salvation (belief in Jesus, calling on the name of the Lord, washing of regeneration, enduring to the end, obedience).
"And it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Acts 2:21 (Peter speaking on the Day of Pentecost)
“...he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5
Some would say that ‘the washing of regeneration’ refers to baptism.
Acts 16:31 “’What must I do to be saved?’ And they (Paul and Silas) said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’”
Does this mean that they must believe that Jesus is God? Or just that he has been sent by God? Ot that he was the Messiah for whom the Jews waited.
Matt 10:22 “And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake, But he who endures till the end will be saved.”
We must ‘endure till the end’ - it is not automatic.
Hebrews 5:8 “Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered, and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him”.
And there is a dire warning for those who say, ‘Lord, Lord’, perhaps those who are smug about their salvation but are not doing God’s will
Matthew 7:21 “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
There are passages of Scripture that indicate the role of baptism: it goes along with belief and with repentance.
"The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; the one who refuses to believe will be condemned."
Mark 16,16

Peter answered: "Each of you must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2,38

“And now, why delay? Get up and be baptized and have your sins washed away by calling upon his Name." Acts 22,16

We see that there is a relationship between faith or belief and obedience or works. It is in the letter of James that we especially read about this relationship. We cannot ‘see’ or ‘know’ the faith of someone - we only know it by the outward things he or she does. Jesus could see into the soul of a person to see if he had faith in God or not but we can’t. And so James, said that faith without works is dead. The ‘works’ or ‘deeds’ a person does are proof of his faith.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only.” James 1: 22
“So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But some will say, “You have faith and I have works’. Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith....Do you want to be shown, you foolish fellow, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, and the scripture was fulfilled, which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness; and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.” James 2: 17ff
Martin Luther did not want to include the letter of James in the Bible because it did not ‘agree’ with his interpretation of Romans and the emphasis on faith.
But it is not only in James that we read about this relationship. We also see the relationship between obedience or works with faith in the Epistles of John.
“He who says, ‘I know him’ but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps his words, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him; he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” I John 1:4
“Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God ... By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.” I John 5:1


And there are other passages in the New Testament that refer to ‘works’ and ‘good works’ and their role in our salvation.

"Our people must learn to be outstanding in good works and to face urgent needs, instead of remaining idle and useless." Titus 3,14

"Do not neglect good works and common life, for these are sacrifices pleasing to God." Hebrews 13,16

“I know your works, your difficulties and your patient suffering. I know you cannot tolerate evildoers but have tested those who call themselves apostles and have proved them to be liars."
Revelation 2,2

"I know your works: your love, faith, service, patient endurance and your later works, greater than the first." Revelation 2,19

"Wake up and strengthen that which is not already dead. For I have found your works to be imperfect in the sight of my God." Revelation 3,2

"I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot!" Revelation 3,15

"Fine linen, bright and clean, is given her to wear. This linen stands for the good works of the holy ones."
Revelation 19,8


Of course, someone could be very good at doing ‘good works’ and not really know God or even belief that Jesus is truly God. Atheists claim that they also do good works but these good works will not save them it they do not believe that Jesus is God. And those who merely do good works but do not know and obey Jesus will hear Jesus say, “I never knew you.”

“Not every one who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not cast out demons and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you: depart from me, you evildoers.’" Matthew 7:22

Here Jesus is not condemning all works done in his name but only those that were done by those who had no relationship with him or did not know him.

The writer of the article being discussed claims that the Coptic Church and the Roman Catholic Church do not believe that salvation is through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

“Is it embracing a meritorious, works-based salvation nearly identical to that of the Roman Catholic church? Is it in aggressively denying salvation by a personal, saving relationship with Jesus Christ? We ask because that’s what Coptic ‘Christians’ believe. This really isn’t new, and we have to wonder why our leaders don’t know what Coptics believe and if they do, what on Earth makes them think they should be categorized as Christians”. (Pulpit and Pen.org see link above).

Perhaps the writer of the article doesn’t know what the Roman Catholic Church believes about salvation. All he would have to do is pick up the Catechism of the Catholic Church and read what it says.

“Believing in Jesus Christ and in the One who sent him for our salvation is necessary for obtaining that salvation. Since ‘without faith it is impossible to please God and to attain to the fellowship of his sons, therefore without faith no one has ever attained justification, nor will anyone attain eternal life ‘but he who endures to the end.’” C of the CC 161

“Faith is necessary for salvation. The Lord himself affirms: ‘He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” ( Matthew 16:16) C of the CC 183.

There is a Coptic Orthodox Church and a Coptic Catholic Church in Egypt. The Coptic Catholic Church believes the same as that expressed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church quoted above. The Coptic Orthodox Church would be similar if not identical.

The 21 men who were killed by ISIS were members of the Coptic Orthodox Church which traces its origin to St, Mark whom they believe went to Egypt to evangelize. We do not know the personal lives of the men. What we do know is that rather than change their faith to Islam they did not deny that Jesus is truly God. Muslims believe that Jesus is only a prophet but is not divine.

In any case, it is not for us to judge for only God knows the condition of their souls. Since they, like the early martyrs, were killed for their faith rather than deny Christ, I think we can safely say that the men were Christians. They died calling out for Jesus to help them and I’m sure he met them at the gate of heaven. Instead of putting our own spin on who is a Christian and who is not perhaps we should pray to God that in the same circumstances we would make the right choice, too.