Persecution of Christians in Africa – Yet Silence from Pope & International Community… Why?
Rome Newsroom, Jul 1, 2022 / 07:00 am (CNA)
Nigerian archbishop cries at gravesite of slain priest as Catholics protest violence
“We have buried a number of priests back to back. People are tired, people are frustrated, people are depressed,” Father Daniel Kyom, a priest of the Archdiocese of Kaduna, told CNA on July 1.
“People are tired of the killing. A lot of people have died as a result of this terrorism, and a good part of those who have died are priests,” he said.
Kyom said that shortly before the funeral Mass on June 30 some priests decided to print out signs to carry in protest of the violence against Christians in northern Nigeria, where two churches were attacked last week.
More than 700 people, including about 100 priests, were present at the funeral where the priests protested, according to the archdiocese.
“It is because we feel helpless that we reacted the way that we did yesterday. We wanted the world to know. We wanted to cry to the world for help,” Kyom said.
“People are suffering, especially Christians are suffering in the northern part of Nigeria, particularly Kaduna state.”
Archbishop Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso of Kaduna broke into tears as he buried Father Vitus Borogo, a 50-year-old priest of the diocese who was killed along Kaduna-Kachia Road on June 25.
“Yesterday, the emotion got to a boiling point,” Kyom said.
“The bishop was so moved with emotion that he cried at the gravesite of the priest. This is something that I have never seen before. … It was such an overwhelming emotion yesterday for everybody.”
More Christians are killed for their faith in Nigeria than in any other country worldwide — at least 4,650 in 2021, and nearly 900 in the first three months of 2022 alone, according to Open Doors.
Nigeria’s Kaduna state, in particular, has been described as “an epicenter of kidnapping and violence by non-state actors” in Nigeria by the UK-based human rights foundation Christian Solidarity Worldwide. A 2022 report by the U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom cites six attacks against churches in Kaduna State in 2021.
Kyom, who formerly served as the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Kaduna, said Christians are frustrated by the local government’s lack of response to the violence.
“The persecution is so much that we feel the government is complicit,” he said.
“If we had a governor that is a Christian in Kaduna state, I’m very sure that the reaction to the killings would have been different. I don’t think that a Christian governor would sit back and allow these terrorists to kill people.”
“A lot of communities that have been destroyed are Christian communities and the people destroying them are Muslims,” he added.
The European Union Agency for Asylum reports that the main violent actors in Kaduna state are Fulani ethnic militias and unidentified armed groups. It notes that Boko Haram has also reportedly conducted attacks in the region and that farmer-herder conflicts have intensified during the COVID-19 lockdown period in the North-West of Nigeria.
The Nigerian priest noted that it would mean a lot to Christians in Nigeria to hear more from Pope Francis on the issue.
“I think that the attention of the hierarchy should be drawn to Nigeria, to Kaduna state in particular … [because] Kaduna state is strategic to peace in Nigeria,” he said.
Kyom said that sometimes it feels like the international community does not believe that people are really dying in Nigeria.
“But this is the reality for some of us who are here… We need help in whatever way, shape or form. That’s the reality”, he said. “Now the government does not seem to have any solution, any deliberate measures to tackle the situation. There is nothing visible for us to see to be hopeful in this situation.” Source – Catholic World Report
Editor writes…
A sense of helplessness, even hopelessness, comes across strikingly in the above report. Is the silence from the Pope and the international community due to the fact that “the people destroying [a lot of the Christian communities] are Muslims”? If so, that is reprehensible. Whatever happened to the mantra “no-one is above the law”?
Your thoughts…
Martyrs of Africa, pray for our Nigerian brothers and sisters!
Comments (20)
Pray for the Traditional priests in Nigeria who remain to care for the faithful, come what may.
St. Patrick, patron of Nigeria, protect the persecuted Catholics of Nigeria!
Wurdesmythe,
I so agree with you about praying for the priests in Nigeria – they are having such suffering and yet nobody seems to be paying any attention across the world.
I didn’t know St Patrick was patron of Nigeria – I doubt if he was ever there, LOL!
I didn’t know about St Patrick either! Maybe his reputation for casting the snakes out of Ireland has gone before him!
My understanding is that the Holy Ghosts Father missionaries in Nigeria were Irish, which is why St. Patrick came to the designated the country’s patron.
Editor,
In order for no one to be above the law, you have to have a law in the first place: law, and order. Neither are present in this pontificate, which is characterized by expedience, greed and self-interest.
The Pope’s silence is not surprising, since he is too busy cultivating baby-killing “Catholic” politicians like Pelosi and Biden to care about anything else, but I would hope that at least Cardinal Sarah, who is from French Guinea, would at least condemn these terrorist acts.
It’s interesting that this should come out just as Boris Johnston is negotiating terms with Nigeria to transfer illegal migrants from the UK – migrants who will undoubtedly be largely young Muslim men. I had no idea this was going on in Nigeria right now, which really highlights that appalling silence on the part of the Vatican. If the Pope spoke out then the Nigerian government and governments thorughout the world would feel compelled to act.
I feel for those prelates and clerics in Nigeria who feel that sense of hopelessness, exacerbated by the silence of the Church’s hierarchy, it’s a terrible situation for them. God have mercy on this Pope who is so very vocal when it comes to promoting the causes of evil doers, yet so quiet when persecuted goodness looks to him for help. He is without a doubt the worst Pope the Church has ever seen.
Athanasius do you really expect Bergoglio to come out and Condemn Atrocities by Moslems, no chance.
Now if it were Traditional Catholics Bergoglio would have Cupcake over there to sort them out ASAP.
As for saying He’s the worst Pope in History, Bergoglio dresses up well but I still stick to saying that one has to be a Catholic to be a Pope and Bergoglio doesn’t qualify.
WS, RCA Victor, Athanasius
I am in complete accord with all your thoughts etc regarding this absolute tradgedy.
The political situation there is bad enough with political chicanery, and widespread corruption running rife etc but for the Church and her clergy to be abandoned whilst enduring this blatant and brazen persecution. This is a scandalous situation that beggars belief and words.
Shame on this Pope and his insidious cohorts. He is very quick to promote Fr James Martin and his evil filth, turn a blind eye to Pelosi and Biden who approve of children being murdered in the womb and the list goes.
Athanasius as you rightly point out “the worst Pope the Church has ever seen” and been saddled with.
Ave Maria!
Every blessing
Michael 🙏
Michael,
I agree – this is a scandalous situation and it beggars belief and words, as you say. So unbelievably shocking that the Pope is not condemning this barbarism against his own priests. God forgive him, because I’m finding it hard to do so.
Very surprised at [Pope Francis] not speaking out re killings in Nigeria. I saw other headline yesterday or two days ago in the media saying [Pope Francis] dropped his African trip as he opted for Canada trip instead. The message that I got from seeing that headline, was that Africa is not really important to him or quite at the bottom of [his] important priorities. Its unbelievable in this day and age of any Pope who did that. [Pope Francis] is getting more and more exposed for who he really is. I knew a very old family friend priest still working there as he’s quite close to his retirement back home here or UK cos he used to be ex provincial for a very short time. Africa was his 1st love as he gave up his provincial job, went back there ever since.
Francis,
I’m never surprised at anything Pope Francis does or doesn’t do. He’s just plain terrible. I believe he’d be just as uncaring if this was happening in his own homeland of Argentina. He doesn’t care about Catholics, full stop.
Exactly M.M Bergoglio doesn’t care about CATHOLICS full stop.
But why should He ? After all that He’s doing to destroy the Catholic Church.
Sometimes — especially when I see such tragic situations as that of Nigerian and Middle Eastern Catholics — I wonder if the progressive hierarchy of our Church even cares. Do they find it difficult to transfer their focus from the issues for which they are currently beating the drum (e.g., squashing the TLM, LGBTQ promotion, and climate change propaganda) to the truly pressing matters of our brothers and sisters in need?
It is interesting that Francis refers to these Third World countries as being “on the periphery”. Perhaps his peripheral vision is indeed affected by his mono-focus of the issues that seem to have more popular appeal. That may sound jaded; but think about this: perhaps the world’s generally nonchalant attitude toward Catholics being persecuted and murdered in Nigeria, Pakistan, and India, for example, is the real reason that Francis and the Church hierarchy believe they can get more “mileage” out of the Leftist agenda. If no one really cares about these poor Africans being abducted, tortured and murdered, why should the publicity-loving Francis and his clones raise the issue?
We saw this just the other day when the Vatican announced that Francis’ bad knee would prevent him from going to the Congo as planned — another “periphery” country by his own description. He even issued a bleating apology to the nations of Africa that he just wouldn’t be able to visit for health reasons. But he still intends to travel a much greater distance to Canada, apparently, to apologize for all the horrible things the Church did to the “First Nations” children in their care — even though the entire matter is a huge scam. The difference between the Congo and Canada is that the Left/MSM have driven a false narrative of Catholic orphanage schools from scores of years ago that has the attention of much of the world, while the Congo is a big global yawn.
Does that sound too cynical?
Marinaio,
Our posts went up at the same time, so I’ve just finished reading yours and no, your thoughts do not sound too cynical – they sound about right to me. I’ve no time for Francis, don’t trust him at all and he is shameless to cancel a visit to Africa on health grounds and then travel much further to Canada – that den of iniquity under Trudeau. He is beyond belief.
Josephine
I don’t think anyone trusts Francis any more. I definitely don’t.
That is totally horrendous news, that these priests are being persecuted and murdered. God help and strengthen our Nigerian brothers and sisters at this time of great trial. Eternal rest grant unto Father Vitus Borogo. May he rest in peace.
Shame on Pope Francis for his neglectful silence. He is leaving the Nigerian Catholics to the same deadly fate as our Chinese Catholic brothers and sisters. What a terrible pope he is. Just terrible. And yes, I think he’d do the exact same thing if the people in his own country of Argentina were being persecuted. He’s got no conscience.
I agree with the poster the priest is carrying – those who take the lives of others, lose their right to life. I was listening to an American priest talking to some laymen on a podcast recently, and he said that capital punishment is always wrong in every case, and he says this is Catholic teaching. Well, I don’t believe that at all. The Church has always allowed the state to carry out capital punishment, so he is wrong on that and I would hunt down those guilty of the murder of those poor Nigerian priests and people and put them to death, once they are proven guilty, without missing a heartbeat.
I agree that it is shocking that the Nigerian Catholic community is being neglected at this terrible time of trials for them.
Here is a brave African priest calling out Francis
https://www.complicitclergy.com/2022/07/03/african-priest-responds-to-pope-francis-you-have-scandalized-the-whole-world-several-times-by-contradicting-christian-tradition/
Well done, Father!
Lily,
Thank you for posting that – God bless that brave priest.
Lily, Editor
Amen, amen
If only we had more clergy at all levels in the Church like this wonderful priest what a difference it would make to the life of the Church, our global Catholic family and a great witness to Christ and the world regarding our beautiful Catholic Faith and Christ’s authentic vision for all humanity.
Every blessing
Michael 🙏
I remember the question about Christians being persecuted in Africa being raised in Parliament but I can’t remember the name of the MP who raised it. It’s well past time there was an international outcry about this, but the weak-kneed world “leaders” (what a misnomer) are too terrified of Islamist extremists to say anything at all.
We must pray to Our Lady for the poor priests (and people) being murdered in Nigeria. RIP.