Blog

Home/Blog/

5th International Day for Victims of Violence Based on Religion or Belief: “More concrete action is needed”

22 August marks the fifth anniversary of the International Day Commemorating Victims of Violence Based on Religion or Belief, established by the UN General Assembly in 2019. Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) recently interviewed Dr Ewelina Ochab, a lawyer, human rights advocate, and author who came up with [...]

2024-08-21T12:07:22+02:00

Papua New Guinea: Christians with youthful and vibrant faith enthusiastic at forthcoming Papal visit

In September this year, Pope Francis will be making his first trip to Papua New Guinea, a country introduced to Christianity only around 70 years ago. In this corner of the world, Christians are enthusiastically preparing for his arrival with the help of missionaries such as Father Martín Prado from [...]

2024-08-21T09:42:18+02:00

PAKISTAN: Jaranwala one year later – no justice, no safety

One year on from violence described as the worst outbreak of anti-Christian persecution in Pakistan, Church leaders say people are both terrified of more attacks and furious that culprits have not been brought to justice. Leading clergy in the Diocese of Faisalabad reported that security services warned Christians in Jaranwala [...]

2024-08-21T09:30:03+02:00

NIGERIA: The Priest is the last hope for communities living in fear

Christian farming communities in parts of Benue State, in Nigeria’s Middle Belt are “living in fear” as they suffer ongoing attacks – the latest of which resulted in the murder of a man gathering food for his starving family last week. Militant Fulani herdsmen killed Christian farmer Agber Targba while [...]

2024-08-14T15:04:22+02:00

GAZA: Despite ongoing conflict, local church prioritises remedial education

Despite the ongoing conflict in Gaza, marked by uncertainty and fear, the Catholic priest Fr. Gabriel Romanelli is striving to bring a sense of normality through education. The parish priest of the Holy Family Church in Gaza City has made it a priority to ensure that children in the community [...]

2024-08-14T14:34:54+02:00

ACN supports more than 1,600 summer camps worldwide

The many holiday camps hosted in diverse regions afflicted by war and conflict offer young people temporary relief from their suffering and the opportunity to engage in carefree activities and develop their faith. ACN’s project partners report that attending one of these camps is the most eagerly anticipated event of [...]

2024-08-14T09:07:20+02:00

ISRAEL: The Church needs courage

The Holy Land’s Christians have suffered a “disturbing rise” in attacks including spitting, physical harassment, damage to property and cemeteries, and disruption of services. The findings are part of a report by the Jerusalem-based Rossing Center, called Attacks on Christians in Israel and East Jerusalem, which examined the increase in [...]

2024-08-07T11:36:52+02:00

August 6, 2014: The Pain of Iraqi Christians Has a Hundred Thousand Faces

The heat in Erbil is overwhelming, with its semi-desert surroundings and its crushing 44-degree Celsius temperatures of Iraqi summer. At first, one is struck by a deceptive air of peace in this city, the capital of Kurdistan. There is nothing to suggest that in this part of the world, at [...]

2024-08-07T16:08:57+02:00