These Christians, having willfully transgressed, were formerly made to stand at the very back of the church. Above Coptic alters hang ostrich eggs, symbolizing the Resurrection (life coming out of what seems lifeless); the ostrich egg was chosen because the mother ostrich cares for her eggs for a fairly long time, an echo of Gods eternal love and care for the Church.

Jill Kamil’s Coptic Egypt: History and Guide, Barbara Watterson’s Coptic Egypt, and Iris H. Elmasry’s Introduction to the Coptic Church, are all good introductions.