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 ...

ACN’s accounts for 2024 once again reflect the generosity of the foundation’s benefactors from all over the world, to help suffering Christians and the Church in Need. Ukraine, Lebanon, and India were the countries that received the most aid in 2024, while Africa was the continent that received the most support.   The international pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) received a total of $150.4 million in donations and legacies in 2024 – a sign of the ...

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 ...

The UK’s leading member of Parliament has released a book of poetry drawing on Mass readings and pledged to give half the proceeds to Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).   Sir Edward Leigh, the “Father of the House” – so named as the longest-serving member of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament – conceived of “Another Country” at the height of the COVID-19 lockdown five years ago.  The book of verse takes the reader through ...