Persecution of Christians

Despite the veil of silence surrounding the longtime persecution of Christians in Nigeria lifting in recent weeks, oppressive bandits and militant groups continue their rampage of terror.

During the Nov. 23 Angelus prayer, Pope Leo XIV appealed for the release of over 300 children and teachers abducted from a Catholic school in central Nigeria.

St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica is set to be illuminated red later this week as Aid to the Church in Need Canada’s Red Wednesday Mass is commemorated in downtown Toronto, signalling the church as a visual testament of support for millions of persecuted Christians around the world.

The Diocese of Auchi, Nigeria, announced the death of a young seminarian who, along with two fellow seminarians, was kidnapped by bandits in July.

Persecuted Nigerian Christians are embracing U.S. President Donald Trump's designation of their homeland a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) as a long-desired answer to their anguished prayers.

In a world marked by instability, political polarization, violence and economic hardship, religious persecution is on the rise in scale and intensity, and Canada is not immune, says the latest report from the pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

Fr. Oliver Ortese has a message for Catholics and Christians around the world who stand in solidarity with persecuted Nigerian Christians.

The Church in Nigeria, ravaged by kidnappings of clergy, is mourning Fr. Mathew Eya, killed Sept. 19 as he was returning to his parish of St. Charles in Eha-Ndiagu, in Enugu state.

The pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need expressed its "deep concern and solidarity" with the families of the victims of a brutal attack carried out on the night of Sept. 8-9 in Ntoyo in the area of St. Joseph of Manguredjipa Catholic Parish, which is in the Congolese province of North Kivu.

As of Sept. 5, Open Doors International’s “Arise Africa” petition has garnered a striking 225,000 signatures, almost a quarter way to its goal in a groundswell of support for oppressed Christians in sub-Saharan Africa.