In many parts of Africa, including northern Ghana, children who are born with mental or physical disabilities are considered bewitched, or “evil,” and they are often left to die, if not outright killed. This is where Sister Therese steps in: she takes custody of the children and gives them a home where they are loved and cared for.

On August 6, 2014, the world watched in horror as ISIS jihadists poured into Iraq’s Nineveh Plains, forcing hundreds of thousands of Christians to flee their ancestral land to save their lives.

The laypeople keep the Church alive. They are true heroes, the guardians of the faith in their communities, because there are hardly any priests or religious around.

"I have never encountered a charity that is so professionally organized on the one hand, and on the other, has so many people who are burning for the Kingdom of God. "

“Despite the fact that we are experiencing a moment of joy, faith, and sharing, we must not forget the places where the Church is persecuted,” said Catarina Martins de Bettencourt, director of ACN Portugal."

Sanctions in addition to the mass emigration of young people facing low salaries and few jobs, make it increasingly likely that the political and military events of recent years will lead to the gradual disappearance of Christians in the Middle East.