Following a heartfelt plea from a missionary and ACN’s project partner in Aleppo, the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) calls on all people of faith to unite in prayer for the safety and peace of this war-torn region.  In a voice message shared with ACN, Father Hugo Alaniz, IVE, an Argentine missionary, described the dire situation currently unfolding around Aleppo, where extremist groups have launched a surprise offensive. Several villages have been seized, and vital routes, ...

Despite the danger, a Brazilian missionary priest has stayed in Ukraine since the start of the war. Father Lucas Perozzi thanks ACN for the help it continues to provide and remains committed to spreading the Gospel.   Father Lucas Perozzi found himself in Ukraine when Russia began its full-scale assault on the country in 2022. However, rather than return to his homeland, Brazil, he remained in the country and continues to serve a flock in Kyiv, which, he says, is showing ...

In the face of rampant violence, which is paralyzing Port-au-Prince and isolating Haiti from the rest of the world, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Haiti, in a message received by ACN, calls on the government to act and appeals to every Haitian to work for peace and overcome hatred. In response to a catastrophic situation, and the continual deterioration of security in Haiti, the Bishops’ Conference of Haiti issued a “cry of alarm” for peace on November 15th, 2024, in ...

Since 2015, Burkina Faso, which is around 25 percent Christian, has become a hotbed of violent Islamist extremism. Since 2019, in particular, priests, religious, and faithful have been increasingly targeted by terrorists. The Christmas campaign of the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) will focus this year on Christians in this West African country, who are subjected to bloody violence on a daily basis, as well as the heroic work of the Catholic Church, which tirelessly ...

The YOUCAT Foundation, based in Königstein, Germany, has announced the appointment of Rafael D’Aqui to the position of Executive Director and Head of Outreach. Two additional key appointments to YOUCAT’s leadership team were also announced: Father Joachim Moernaut, FSO, the new Ecclesiastical Assistant, and Elisabeth Bauer, who will oversee communication and social media.   Rafael D’Aqui, an experienced Brazilian missionary and catechist, and a former head of section for the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), with 15 ...

Kinga Schierstaedt, project coordinator for Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in Africa, traveled to the landlocked African nation of South Sudan. Bordering the Republic of Sudan, its larger neighbor to the north, South Sudan has suffered terribly from conflict and civil war in recent years. After returning from her trip, Schierstaedt spoke about the current situation in the country and the role played there by the Church.    South Sudan only gained independence from Sudan in 2011 and has ...