The Diocese of Brooklyn is known as the “Diocese of Immigrants.” Its international flavor means that Mass is celebrated in dozens of languages and church pews are filled with parishioners of many nationalities. With that in mind, The Tablet is taking a look at how the different cultures represented in the diocese celebrate Christmas. This week, we focus on Nigeria, Brazil, the Philippines and Vietnam.
Nigeria
Nigerian Priest Who Was Found Dead Is Most Recent to be Kidnapped, Killed
The body of a priest was discovered July 19, four days after he was abducted from a parish rectory in central Nigeria, an official with the Diocese of Kafanchan reported.
Nigerian Prelate Sees Attacks on Christians as Part of Broader Government Failures
In February 2023, Nigerians will go to the polls to elect a president. Some 15-odd candidates will be competing for the top job in Africa’s most populous nation — a nation bedeviled by crippling insecurity, lawlessness, a floundering economy, poor social service delivery, and lingering hopelessness.
Nigerian Priest Says He Shielded Parishioners Like Chicks During Massacre
Father Andrew Adeniyi Abayomi was in the sacristy of St. Francis Xavier Church after Mass when parishioners began running in different directions.
Brutal Attack on Worshippers in Nigeria Is Called Attack on ‘Entire Church’
The brutal attack on people at a Catholic church in Nigeria on Pentecost Sunday is “an attack on the entire church,” said a U.S. official of Aid to the Church in Need, an international Catholic charity.
Pope Francis Prays for Victims, Country After Church Attack Kills Dozens in Nigeria
Pope Francis expressed his concern Sunday for a deadly shooting at a Catholic church in Nigeria on the feast of Pentecost that left somewhere between 25 and 50 people dead. The pope said he was praying for “the victims and the country.”
Gunmen Storm Catholic Church in Nigeria, Kill Dozens
Dozens of people were killed when gunmen stormed a Catholic Church in southwestern Nigeria and shot into a crowd of parishioners attending Pentecost Sunday Mass on June 5, according to various media reports.
U.S. Religious Freedom Body Highlights, China, Russia, Nigeria in New Report
All five of the new countries that the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended that the State Department designate as Countries of Particular Concern (CPCs) have experienced Christian persecution in the past year.
Religious Persecution In Nigeria ‘Has Gotten Worse’: Aid Groups
Religious freedom advocates are confused over the omission of Nigeria from a U.S. State Department list of countries known for having the world’s worst attacks on Christians. “We’re baffled,” said Ed Clancy, of Brooklyn-based Aid to the Church in Need-U.S. “By every single measure, Nigeria has gotten worse.”
Only In Print: Nigerian Writer Faces Cybercrime Charge After Reporting Slaughter of Christians
Prosecutors in Nigeria claim a Catholic journalist violated cybercrime laws when he wrote about complaints that the government failed to arrest any suspects in the Oct. 29 murders of 38 Christians in southern Kaduna State.