The Voice of the suffering in Middle East

Regina Lynch, executive president of Aid to the Church in Need International (ACN), and a delegation from ACN recently visited the Holy Land. In this interview, she speaks about the challenges facing local Christian communities, the importance of supporting their livelihood and faith, and why Christians around the world should not forget the land where the faith was born. You returned from Holy Land just a few days ago. What made the strongest impression on you during your visit? What ...

An attack by armed criminals on a Church in Jordan has left at least nine people dead and over 30 wounded. The attack took place on Friday, October 23, in Karak, southern Jordan. Around 250 Christians were gathered in and outside the church for a funeral when armed men arrived and began shooting at parishioners, according to the testimony of survivors. In a statement sent to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Fr. Rif’at, a Jordanian Catholic priest, said ...

Church leaders in Jerusalem have condemned “heinous” attacks by masked Israeli settlers against residents of the West Bank’s last entirely Christian village, as well as foreign diplomats visiting the area.  The Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem (PHCJ) issued the statement following attacks in and around Taybeh on October 16 and 17, when local residents were gathering olives during the annual harvest. In their statement, the Church leaders said: “In the past weeks, the Palestinian villages of the ...

An argument between young people from two villages led to terror that could have ended with tragedy. Pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has received reports of a violent incident in a predominantly Christian village in Syria, during which an Orthodox priest narrowly escaped being shot. According to local sources in direct contact with ACN, violence broke out on the night of October 3, following an altercation between young people from the Christian village of Al-Suqaylabiyah and ...

As the olive harvest approaches, the residents of Alma el-Chaab hope to obtain permission to work their land. In testimony collected by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), their parish priest, Maronite Chorbishop Maroun Ghafari, describes the daily reality of a dispersed community trying to prepare for its return. More than six months after their forced displacement from Alma el-Chaab, the residents of this village in southern Lebanon remain deeply attached to their land. In September, around ten farmers ...

The rector of a seminary in the West Bank warns of growing pressure. The Christian presence in the Holy Land is under threat, according to Father Bernard Poggi, rector of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s seminary in Beit Jala, near Bethlehem. At the same time, hope among Christians remains strong and the communities are still vibrant. Fr. Poggi made these remarks during a Day of Prayer for Christians in the Middle East, organized by Aid to the Church in Need ...