Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.
What this teaches
The saints teach the Church how to repent, suffer, forgive, pray, serve, and confess Christ. The martyrs especially remind the Coptic Church that faith is a life offered to God. Bishops, monastics, mothers, fathers, servants, and hidden saints show different forms of the same holiness.
Reading about the saints during the Liturgy also teaches that the Church’s history continues after the book of Acts. The apostolic faith did not remain only in the first century. It became visible in Egypt, in the desert, in martyrdom, in monasteries, in parish life, and in the quiet repentance of the faithful.
Worship and honor
The Church worships God alone. She honors the saints because God has been glorified in them. Reading the Synaxarium during the Liturgy places the faithful within the wider communion of the Church, across generations and places.
That communion matters at the altar. The Church does not approach Christ as isolated individuals. She stands with the apostles, martyrs, confessors, monastics, and all who have pleased the Lord from the beginning. Their memory calls the faithful to repentance and gives courage to follow Christ with the same faith.