The Voice of the suffering in Africa

The Mercedarian Sisters were the second congregation to suffer an armed robbery in a matter of days, as the violence in northern Mozambique steadily worsens.   The Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in the Diocese of Pemba, Mozambique endured a near-death experience on June 8, when the home they run was broken into by a group of men armed with guns and machetes.  The four sisters, who care for about 30 young girls, were robbed of all their valuables and ...

The priest in Nigeria who narrowly escaped with his life following one of the country’s worst massacres of Christians has spoken of his determination to stay and help the community rise again out of the ashes of persecution. Father Ukuma Jonathan’s latest interview with Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) comes amid reports that the death toll in Yelewata, Benue State had risen to more than 200, with as many as 20 corpses recently discovered in a ...

Religious Freedom. It’s a value that was so important to the Founding Fathers that they dedicated the First Amendment to the Constitution to it. It’s a freedom, though, that many Americans tend to take for granted. Each year, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops sponsors Religious Freedom Week, to remind Americans of this precious value and to serve as a call to prayer, reflection, and action. The week begins with the feast of the martyr Saints Thomas More and ...

Four Salesian priests and four women religious serve a population of over 90,000 South Sudanese refugees in Palabek, Uganda. For World Refugee Day, June 20, we look at the education and spiritual needs they are addressing, and the ways ACN is helping.  The Salesian priest Fr. Ubaldino Andrade, or “Fr. Ube,” as he is known, laughs a lot. In fact, he laughs so much that one would not imagine that he currently lives in one of the most desolate places ...

IDPs burned alive, shot dead, and macheted Militants massacred up to 200 Christians in Nigeria’s Benue State on the evening of Friday, June 13. They targeted displaced families, set fire to their buildings as people slept, and attacked with machetes anyone who tried to flee. The IDP families were in buildings repurposed as temporary accommodation in the market square in Yelewata, in Guma Local Government Area, near Makurdi, when militants stormed in, shouting “Allahu Akhbar” (“God is great”), before killing ...

Father Luka Jomo, the parish priest in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State in Sudan, was killed during an attack on the city by paramilitary militias. The city has been under siege since April 2023, and he is believed to be the first Catholic priest killed in the conflict. “Dear fathers, sisters, and all the faithful. It is with great sorrow that I write to inform you of Father Luka Jomo’s passing to the Father’s House this morning ...