The Amazon, known as the “lungs of the planet,” due to its rich biodiversity, is also the home of inspiring and encouraging stories. One such story is centered on an old truck in a garage in Altamira, deep in the state of Pará, Brazil, which contains evergreen memories, though surrounded by rusty old scrap. “This truck was used during the Second World War, and it came from Switzerland. But over here, it was used in another kind of war, a ...

Baltimore, MD (November 12, 2024) – Today, Aid to the Church in Need USA (ACNUSA) presented the urgent needs of the persecuted Church to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) at their Plenary Assembly in Baltimore, MD.  The Assembly opened with Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, who, along with Bishop Robert Brennan, Bishop of Brooklyn, said how pleased he is to have ACNUSA in his dioceses, acknowledging the vital work of the organization and its specific ...

Early on November 2nd, an explosion aimed at the police station in Guapi, southwest Colombia, killed three people and destroyed a large part of the bishop’s residence and the offices of the Apostolic Vicariate of Guapi.   The explosion left the Church buildings “practically destroyed, tearing down walls, doors, windows, and the ceilings of the curia and the bishops’ house, leaving them in ruins,” said Father Arnulfo Moreno Quiñonez, the provicar of Guapi, who expressed his grief for the loss of ...

Terrorism in eastern Burkina Faso has shaken the Diocese of Fada N’Gourma. Attacks in the parishes of Piéla and Saatenga caused many deaths and significant material destruction, and follow a pattern of terrorist violence that the country has seen since 2015. “The attacks are multiplying. We ask for your fervent prayer. Pray for the victims and for the fearful survivors,” asked a priest from the Diocese of Fada N’Gourma, speaking to the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in ...

Kidnapping for ransom has become an industry in Nigeria, and priests are often targeted.   On Sunday, October 27th, a priest was kidnapped at the minor seminary where he worked and was taken by armed bandits into bushes.   Armed gunmen broke into the Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary, in the Diocese of Auchi, Edo State, Nigeria, at around 7:00 P.M. and fired shots into the air, causing panic among students and staff, according to a diocesan statement sent to Aid to the ...

ACN supported the construction of a new floor for a kindergarten in Enishke, allowing it to expand its services, receive more children from families in the surrounding villages, including Kurds and Yazidis, and help sow the seeds of peace and fraternity for future generations.  The Enishke village is located in the Diocese of Dohuk, in a mountainous region of Iraqi Kurdistan in northern Iraq.   Christian, Kurdish, and Yazidi families live in the many settlements around Enishke, struggling to survive in ...