OXFORD, England (CNS) – French Catholics have urged church support for a campaign to stop Western companies from buying oil from Islamic State, in effect funding the mass killing of Christians. “Our brothers and sisters are being massacred, women and children taken into slavery – and while Christians are suffering most, so are Muslims and […]
Christian persecution
Preserving Our Freedoms
My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, On June 14, 1777, the Stars and Stripes were adopted as our Nation’s flag. This national symbol was the subject of Francis Scott Key’s hymn during the War of 1812 that would later become our national anthem. On this Flag Day, perhaps we might consider how best […]
Syrian Prelate: Christians Are Being Forced to Flee
By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) – Ties to the land stretching back two millennia keep Syria’s Christian population from fleeing en masse, said Melkite Catholic Archbishop Jean-Clement Jeanbart of Aleppo, Syria. He said people come to him for counsel on whether they should stay or leave in the middle of a protracted civil war among […]
Pope Mourns Beheaded Christians
Pope Francis sent his condolences to Patriarch Mathias of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church for the execution of more than 20 Ethiopian Christians at the hands of Islamic State militants in Libya.
‘Genocide’ Continues
Pope Francis has shown brave witness at the Mass he celebrated in the Armenian Rite when he called the systematic slaughter of Armenian Christians “the first genocide of the twentieth century” and connected the Armenian genocide to the persecutions and murders of Christians today throughout the Middle East.
Kenyan Bishops Deplore Massacre of Christians
The president of the Kenyan bishops’ conference called on Easter worshippers to commit themselves to praying for peace and security after militants attacked a college campus.
Pope Prays for Defense of Christians
Christians live the joy of the Resurrection when they share a smile with someone, weep with those who mourn and defend the rights of those persecuted for their faith, Pope Francis said.
Papal Preacher: Persecutions Being Ignored
Widespread indifference to the violent persecution of Christians and other communities suggests the world is full of Pontius Pilates who eagerly wash their hands of all responsibility, said Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the papal household.
Recognizing Evil
This coming Sunday, April 12, on the feast of the Divine Mercy, Pope Francis, is scheduled to preside at an Armenian Catholic rite Divine Liturgy at St. Peter’s. The main reason why he is choosing to celebrate this Armenian liturgy on this day is to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the massacre of Armenians by the Turkish Ottoman Empire, a Sunni Islamic state, in 1915.
Pleas for Help as ISIS Steps Up Attacks
Christian leaders again called for help for Assyrian Christians in northern Syria, who have been targeted by Islamic State militants.