“We are asking all leaders and all those with influence to calm the situation. God forbid that this war goes beyond what we have already seen. The settling of old scores would endanger the social cohesion of the whole region."

"Each dead person, wounded person, and hostage is a source of great pain and a tremendous injustice. You can only imagine the people’s state of mind. "

“As Catholics, we are there for all Mauritanians. Through our activities and the way we live together, we want to show that God loves all people.”

In a conflict-ridden world, Christian persecution, and the erosion of the right to religious freedom can go unnoticed. The goal of ACN’s initiative, which includes lighting in red monuments and buildings around the world, is to raise awareness of Christian suffering.

“Our work is sustained by the pain of victims. We want to let them know that they are not alone, that there is sufficient energy, generosity, and intelligence in Mexico to transform our reality and overcome this dark period which has done such damage to us all,” says Bishop Ramón Castro of Cuernavaca, the secretary general of the Mexican bishops’ conference and a participant in the recently held National Dialogue for Peace.  The initiative is a response to the violence ...

“We are very thankful for the many children's hands joined in prayer around the world. It is impressive to see how many children asked for Our Lady's intercession for peace. The overwhelming participation in the initiative shows the great concern and longing for peace, and a great willingness to pray for it."