Forty Coptic Orthodox children from Eritrea and Ethiopia celebrated their First Holy Communion this morning in a ceremony which packed St James Church in Valletta with clapping migrants who danced in the pews to traditional music.

The ceremony was performed by a Coptic orthodox Abba - Keshi Hayldab Keshi Kahsay - who came to Malta for the occasion. Because the ceremony is so rare, it grouped all Coptic Orthodox children currently in Malta. Their age varied from two months to 10 years.

The ceremony was followed by the marriage of an an Eritrean couple, who first met in Eritrea but have been living in Malta for four years. At the end of the ceremony the couple led their singing guests in a happy celebration up Merchants' Street , round Castille and back to Merchants' Street where they left in a vintage open top car.

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