Persecuted Christians

The Latest

Memorial tree in Mayfouk, Lebanon, in remembrance of Christians killed in the Lebanese civil war.

Red Wednesday in the Land of the Martyrs 

Nov 20, 2024

By Alberto M. Fernández

Nov. 20 marks Red Wednesday, a growing effort to show solidarity with the suffering Church.   Read more

Catholics attend Mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral, the seat of the Archdiocese of Lahore, on Aug. 20, 2023, four days after mob attacked several Pakistani churches over blasphemy allegations. More than 80 Christian homes and 19 churches were vandalized when hundreds rampaged through a Christian neighbourhood in Jaranwala in Punjab province on Aug. 16.

Church responds to mob attack on Christians in Pakistan

May 31, 2024

By Aftab Alexander Mughal

After the recent attack on Christians in Sargodha, Church officials strongly condemned the incident. Read more

Bishop Robert Pipta of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Parma, Ohio, celebrates a Divine Liturgy on Saturday, May 11, 2024, at the Byzantine chapel at Wyoming Catholic College, on the occasion of the installation and blessing of the new shrine.

Mary, Mother of Persecuted Christians gains a shrine in Wyoming

May 14, 2024

By Martin Barillas

Bishop Robert Pipta of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Parma, Ohio, dedicated a shrine and an icon at Wyoming Catholic... Read more

Gia Chacón (right), founder of March for the Martyrs, said the plight of the tens of thousands of Christian Armenians  pushed out of their homes in the disputed Artsakh or Nagorno-Karabakh region hash been "completely overlooked by the mainstream media.”

March for the Martyrs raises awareness of persecuted Armenian Christians and more

Apr 27, 2024

By Kate Quiñones

Marchers are setting out in the nation’s capital on Saturday to call attention to the plight of persecuted Christians throughout... Read more

CNA

Vatican: 20 Catholic missionaries killed in 2023

Jan 2, 2024

By Joe Bukuras

Twenty Catholic missionaries were murdered in 2023, according to a new Dec. 30 report issued by the Vatican’s Fides News... Read more

A screen grab from a video shared with ACI Africa that shows the parish house at St. Raphael Fadan Kamantan Catholic Church of the Diocese of Kafanchan in flames Sept. 7, 2023.

Here’s where Christians continued to face persecution in 2023

Dec 30, 2023

By Tyler Arnold

Christians have been persecuted by adversarial groups since the time of the apostles, and in varied parts of the world... Read more

This image made from an AFPTV video taken in the Nigerian village of Maiyanga on Dec. 27, 2023, shows families burying in a mass grave their relatives killed in deadly attacks conducted by armed groups in central Plateau State. The death toll from a series of attacks on villages in central Nigeria has climbed to almost 200, local authorities said.

Christian villages in Nigeria reeling after Christmas attacks leave nearly 200 dead

Dec 27, 2023

By Peter Pinedo

Catholic leaders and others demand government action as victims are buried in mass graves.  Read more

The Cross of San Lázaro of Seville, Spain, sculpted in the 16th century, was vandalized on the night of Oct. 21-22, 2023.

‘Anti-Christian hate crimes’ in Europe up 44% in past year, watchdog group says

Nov 17, 2023

By Daniel Payne

The spike in anti-Christian incidents is “connected to a rise in extremist motivation and a higher acceptance of the targeting... Read more

A group of women and children guarded by security forces in Mucimboa da Praia of Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province in early September 2023.

Catholic peace organization condemns sexual enslavement of Mozambican Christians

Sep 21, 2023

By Agnes Aineah

In an interview with ACI Africa, the director of the Denis Hurley Peace Institute confirmed reports of a leaked Islamic... Read more

The world’s fourth shrine of Mary, Mother of Persecuted Christians, was dedicated at the Holy Martyrs Syriac Catholic Church in Kista, Northern Stockholm, in Sweden on July 22, 2023.

There are now 4 shrines dedicated to Mary, Mother of Persecuted Christians

Sep 8, 2023

By Madeleine Teahan

On the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we highlight shrines in the United States, England, and Sweden dedicated to... Read more

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As World Youth Day kicks off, ACN champions cause of persecuted Christians worldwide

Aug 1, 2023

By AC Wimmer

The aim is to encourage pilgrims and participants to actively support the suffering Church in their own countries. Read more

Burned vehicles after Good Friday raid on April 7, 2023, in Ngban, Benue state, Nigeria.

Advocates for persecuted Christians in Nigeria question U.S. report that portrays Fulani as victims

May 2, 2023

By Jonah McKeown

Advocates for persecuted Christians in Nigeria are criticizing a new report prepared by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.   Read more

City of Tripoli, Libya.

Christians arrested in Libya on charges of preaching and apostasy from Islam

Apr 18, 2023

By ACI MENA

Last week Libya’s Internal Security Agency launched a campaign to arrest Libyan citizens and foreigners accused of apostasy from Islam... Read more

Janada Marcus, 22, was forced to flee Boko Haram with her family twice before the terrorists attacked them again, killing her father and kidnapping her.

‘My parishioners shot dead in cold blood’: Priests, lay faithful describe attacks in Nigeria

Mar 8, 2023

By Peter Pinedo

Aid to the Church in Need has released firsthand testimonies of Catholic faithful who have survived torture, kidnappings, and massacres. Read more

Syrian archbishop-elect Father Jacques Mourad.

New Syrian Catholic archbishop tells how he survived captivity by Islamic State

Jan 23, 2023

By Ana Paula Morales

The appointment of Father Jacques Mourad, a Syrian priest, as archbishop was confirmed by Pope Francis on Jan. 7. Read more

Pope Francis speaks at his general audience in Paul VI Hall on Jan. 18, 2023.

Pope Francis: Jesus is ‘the unsurpassed model of evangelization’

Jan 18, 2023

By Courtney Mares

At his weekly public audience, Pope Francis said that one of the best images to represent Jesus’ style of life... Read more

Map of Nigeria.

Nigerian musician files lawsuit with Supreme Court challenging blasphemy conviction

Dec 16, 2022

By Jonah McKeown

ADF International says the appeal has the potential to overturn Northern Nigeria’s blasphemy laws. Read more

Deacon Ebrahim Lallo, a Syriac Catholic Deacon from the town of Bartella, Iraq, painted the icon “Mary, Mother of Persecuted Christians,” which will be in the shrine in Clinton, Massachusetts.

A Marian shrine for persecuted Christians to open in Massachusetts

Oct 20, 2022

By Joe Bukuras

The installation at St. John the Guardian of Our Lady Parish in the Diocese of Worcester will be followed by... Read more

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Pastor and more than 80 others kidnapped in attacks on two Nigerian churches

Sep 23, 2022

By Zelda Caldwell

On Sept. 17, militants raided the Cherubim and Seraphim Church in Suleja in Niger state and abducted dozens of worshippers... Read more

Former Celtics player Enes Kanter Freedom will be the keynote speaker at the March for the Martyrs,

This Muslim NBA vet is marching for persecuted Christians on Saturday

Sep 23, 2022

By Joe Bukuras

Enes Kanter Freedom, a practicing Muslim from Turkey, will be speaking at the Sept. 24 March for the Martyrs in... Read more