Prayer Appeal for Catholic Nun Kidnapped in DR Congo on Her Way to the Market

The Catholic charity notes that for years, the Eastern Provinces of DRC have been besieged by militia groups.

The Pontifical foundation identifies ethnic conflicts, demographic displacement and access to raw materials as some of the factors that characterize the situation in DRC, adding, “Over the last few years, the situation has been exacerbated by a powerful radical Islamist element.”

Representatives of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of DRC (CENCO) and the Association of Ecclesiastical Conferences of Central Africa (ACEAC) that visited the Provinces of North Kivu and Ituri in January concluded that there is “the Islamization of the region as a sort of deeper strategy for a long-term negative influence on the general political situation of the country.”

The Catholic Bishops informed ACN that prisoners who escaped the Islamist militia Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) confirmed “that they had been compelled to convert to Islam.”

The charity organization which supports a number of projects in Eastern DRC, providing funding for the building of rectories and places of worship as well as Priestly formation programs reports that members of the Daughters of the Resurrection have written to the entity, appealing for prayers and support.

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The Religious Order of African Sisters found in Brazil, Cameroon, France and Italy has been hard-hit by violence in the past decade, ACN reports, and adds, “A number of convents were forced to close, and several Sisters were killed.”

Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.