Pope Francis urged interreligious dialogue in Burkina Faso as ongoing violence by jihadist groups has killed more than 750 people in the West African country this year. “I address a special thought to dear Burkina Faso, who for some time has been tried by recurrent violence,” Pope Francis said in St. Peter’s Square recently. At...
Siham is a Syrian woman who had to give birth to her baby, by caesarean delivery, amid the war her country is going through. Aid to the Church in Need made it possible, both for mother and son, to be safe today. Siham dreamed of preparing everything for her baby’s birth. But the conditions were...
A Nigerian pastor who was abducted by the Boko Haram Islamic terrorist group seven months ago was finally freed last Sunday and said his captors demanded that he convert to Islam. Pastor Moses Oyeleke of Living Faith Church was released along with a young female named Ndagilaya Ibrahim Umar of the government science secondary school...
In a region that has been so torn by warfare and crisis, and by hatred and violence, the Saint John Paul II Youth Pastoral Centre supported by Aid to the Church in Need is often the first place where they hear the message of love. This centre in Sarajevo, Bosnia’s capital remains faithful to its...
Pope Francis has announced that he will be embarking on an Apostolic Visit to war-torn South Sudan next year. His first visit to the African nation was scheduled for 2017 but was put off due to political instability and security reasons. Speaking at his weekly Audience in the Vatican, the Pope urged the leaders of...
“The war in Syria is not yet over. We continue to feel the presence of ISIS”. This was the view expressed by Armenian Catholic Archbishop Boutros Marayati of Aleppo, in a telephone conversation with the international Catholic pastoral charity and pontifical foundation ACN International, following the tragic murder of Father Hovsep Hanna Bedoyan, parish priest...
A new report about the recent spate of Christian persecution around the world is set to be launched in Malta at the Corinthia Palace Hotel, Attard on Friday, 29th November at 5:00pm. Entitled, “Persecuted and Forgotten? A Report on Christians oppressed for their Faith 2017-19”, the report produced by Aid to the Church in Need...
For many years now, Sister Christine of the Merciful Sisters of the Cross has been serving the poor and downtrodden in the East Indian province of her congregation. In the region where she is working this includes above all the members of the indigenous tribal peoples, for whom she is caring. She has a great...
The massacre lasted for five hours. Esther listened from the makeshift outhouse as she hid behind the door. “Convert or be killed!” shouted Boko Haram militants. Their commands were followed by screams, the popping of machine guns, and the smell of burning flesh and hair as they made their way through the village. Esther, whose...
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have taken to the streets in recent days to protest the country’s challenges and problems. The protests have been violent in Baghdad and several other cities. Mosul residents told Aid to the Church in Need that after three years of war, people are tired of violence and “do not want...
