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Religious extremism and violence are at “absolutely appalling” levels in the West African country of Nigeria, the leadership of the Catholic Pontifical and charity foundation, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), has said.
The stoning and murder of Deborah Yakubu and other people who have been killed in Nigeria because of their faith should provide a foundation upon which a country that embraces religious freedom can be rebuilt anew, a Catholic Bishop in the West African nation has said.
The Archbishop of Nigeria’s Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja has called upon the people of God in the West African country to keep struggling for unity and peace despite challenges that originate from biases based on religion, ethnicity, and “other artificial categorizations”.
The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto in Nigeria has condemned the killing of a Christian student at her college, noting that the murder is “a criminal act and the law must take its cause”.
Nigeria’s Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna has announced the passing on Fr. Joseph Akete Bako who was kidnapped from the Archdiocese in March.
A Catholic Nun in Nigeria has said that the challenges the West African country is facing, including insecurity, can be addressed by eliminating illiteracy and ignorance especially among young people as well as poverty.
Victims of a recent attack on villages in Nigeria’s Zamfara State that resulted in the death of dozens and displacement of thousands are receiving “relief assistance” from the Church, a Catholic Priest ministering in the Diocese of Sokoto has told ACI Africa.
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is engaging “in political games with victims of atrocity” in Nigeria, representatives of Christian leaders in the West African nation have said.
Catholic Bishops in West Africa have, in the final communiqué of their fourth RECOWA Plenary Assembly, denounced “policies and practices” that give room to exploitation of populations and marginalization of persons.
Members of the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA) have, in their message at the end of their fourth Plenary Assembly, taken the commitment to work for a new fraternity in the West African subregion amid a wide range of challenges.
Conflicting reports have emerged describing the fate of a Catholic Priest who was kidnapped in Nigeria’s Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna, with some sources alleging that the Priest has been tortured to death in captivity.
The President of Nigeria has called upon Catholic Bishops under the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA), to “bridges across every divide” in West African nations and foster peace to safeguard the countries therein from fracturing.
The Catholic Priest of Abakaliki Diocese in Nigeria who stands accused of murder, among other acts of violence in the West African country, has been “released on bail”, the Chancellor of the Nigerian Diocese has said.
The Catholic Diocese of Zaria in Nigeria has announced “with joy” the release of Fr. Felix Zakari Fidson who has been in captivity for forty days.
The Apostolic Nuncio in Nigeria has called on Catholic Church leaders in the 16 West African countries that make up the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA) to make every effort to end “tribalism and all other forms of division” that seem to be on the rise in Catholic communities.
The challenges to peace in the countries of West Africa require that stakeholders come together “in solidarity as a human family to address them,” the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), Archbishop-elect Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji has said.
The President of the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA), the common forum of the Catholic Bishops from 16 West African countries, has called on political leaders in the African region to use their authority to foster good governance, and for the “common good”.
Bishop Emmanuel Adetoyese Badejo of Nigeria’s Oyo Diocese has directed the people of God under his pastoral care to “a more vigorous May devotion to the mother of Jesus” for an end to violent conflicts globally and in the West African nation.
Christian leaders in Nigeria’s Kaduna State have expressed disappointment at the way their country’s government seems indifferent to the plight of the victims of the March 28 Abuja-Kaduna train attack.
A stable society is a product of stable families, the Catholic Bishop of Nsukka Diocese in Nigeria has said, and called upon parents to embrace sacrifice as they bring up their children.