By the beginning of 2011, Christianity has been described as the world's most persecuted religion. Yet despite the growing problems faced by many Christians, media coverage of their plight remains scarce.

Describing the situation in 33 countries, Persecuted and Forgotten? Shows how in some places Christians are denied their basic rights. This includes places in the Middle East where Pope Benedict XVI has said that churches are "threatened in their very existence".

Drawing on the latest Christian persecution reports available and first-hand testimony, Persecuted and Forgotten? describes the struggles faced by Christian communities who are prevented from practicing their faith and living normal lives. It is for these people that Catholic charities like Aid to the Church in Need exist.

Religious liberty as a fundamental human right is being neglected by world public opinion, above all by politicians and the media. And yet religious liberty is one of the most vital preconditions for democracy.

You will find no better summary about your fellow Christian brothers and sisters in Christ who are persecuted for their faith. Please pray for them.

* Please note that some of the reports make for unavoidably distressing reading and hence the book may be judged inappropriate for very young children and other vulnerable people.

Religious Freedom in the World - Report 2010

The massacre of Syrian Catholic Christians in Baghdad on October 31 2010, sharply recalled a reality that is sadly growing all over the world: religious freedom is more and more under threat. While terrorists blasted through the group of faithful gathered for Mass, witnesses of the attack reported a child, three years of age, crying out: "Enough, enough!" He was shot at point blank range by the assailants, just as were 44 other people and two priests.

This child's cry demands that attention is given to all those who, every day, all over the world, are persecuted because of their religious beliefs. The international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has released its 2010 detailed report on the attacks on religious freedom encountered by various religious minorities throughout the world.

Since the last report was released in 2008 the overall picture indicates that the situation has deteriorated further. In addition to the existing forms of persecution, there is also a growing intolerance towards Christianity, especially in countries of the so-called "first world", where the term "Christianophobia" has now come into use in the media.

In a majority of the 194 countries covered in the report there are restrictions on religious freedom in some way. Countries with severe restrictions and/or many episodes of social or legal intolerance related to religion are: Bangladesh, China, Cuba, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Laos, Maldives, Burma, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Yemen.

While the Report concerns all suffering or oppressed religious minorities there is no doubt that all the reports on the subject, including those provided by international organisations, show that the Christians are the group most exposed to persecution. According to the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community (COMECE) (source: Agenzia Fides 30/09/2010), at least 75% of religious persecution is directed at people of the Christian faith.

Please click here to read a summary of the report. The full report is only available on CD-Rom. Produced in six languages, the CD-Rom can be obtained via our On Line store for a donation of $5.00.

The Situation of Christians in Syria

“Syria, a country of plains, mountains and deserts, is home to a diversity of ethnic and religious groups. Of the nearly 23 million people in Syria, around 90% is ethnic Arab with Kurds and Armenians making up a sizable majority of the remainder. Syria has a large Sunni majority (74%) and significant minorities (10% each) of Christians and Alawites - the Shia sect to which the President, Mr Bashar al-Assad, belongs.

Five decades of Arab Socialist Ba'athist rule under the Al-Assad family have resulted in claims of corruption and nepotism throughout the Syrian government, military and business elite, particularly from among the excluded Sunni majority. The ‘Arab Spring’ demonstrations throughout the Middle East moved tens of thousands to the streets in January of 2011 demanding freedom and reform and calling on the president to step down. Christians face a particularly difficult situation. Mr. Assad has promoted a secular identity for the Syrian state, in an attempt to unify diverse communities in a region where sectarian conflict is rife. In guaranteeing religious minorities' rights, Christians are allowed to worship and churches are protected.

Though Syrian Christians have not openly joined the opposition, they do not condone the violence being perpetrated by the government against innocent people appealing to the international community to step up action to bring Syria’s Assad regime and rebel forces to the negotiating table. Archbishop Samir Nassar of Damascus emphasized that the Syrian people were being “subjected to enormous pressures” with economic disaster and conflict spread to almost every town. He also reported how young people in particular felt abandoned to their fate by the outside world, which they felt was not doing enough to help them.”

Please click here to view the short film.

Christians in Egypt between hope and fear

For both Christian and Muslim youth the Arab Spring fostered hopes for greater democracy and respect for human rights. Recently, however, increasing sectarian violence and a rise in fundamentalist voices calling to establish Egypt as an Islamic state are dimming these hopes and isolating Christians. This new political shift combined with Islamist militant violence, opens a dark new chapter on Egypt's post revolution future.

Should Egypt become a full-fledged religious state governed by Shar'ia law, Egyptian Christians would confront a stark choice: submission to ever-greater religious persecution or emigration. The question facing the world's political leaders, however, is another: with Egyptian Christians numbering eight million, the risk of aggression begetting aggression could engender a spiral of sectarian violence destabilizing Egypt and the whole of the Middle East.

For Christians in the Middle East, the prophecy of Jesus Christ is lived out every day: 'If anyone wants to follow me, let him take up his Cross'. And this Cross is heavy, because it touches not only the individuals, but entire families.”

Please click here to view the short film. (Please note that some viewers may find scenes in this film clip disturbing)

The Situation of the Church in the Holy Land

World religious leaders have called on Churches in the West to help Christians in the Holy Land who are threatened by religious intolerance and deepening poverty. Emigration is such a serious problem that if it continues at current levels Christians will all but disappear. According to some senior clergy, Christians now make up more than 20% of emigrants. It is an alarming statistic given that Christians number about 160,000. In 2008, the year that the state of Israel celebrated its 60th anniversary, reports showed that in the years following the foundation of the state, Christians in Bethlehem declined from 85% to 12% of the population. In Jerusalem, the situation is just as serious. There, Christians have fallen from 20% to just 1.1%. Abandoning the Holy Land is for many a very painful decision. They know that the more people leave, the worse it becomes for those left behind.

What would Christmas Day at the birth place of Christ be like if the faithful were no longer there to gather, worship and celebrate? The 'living stones' - the faithful themselves - who walk the lands Christ knew so well, are in need of help, otherwise Christianity runs the risk of losing this first-hand witness and the Holy Places simply become museums for tourists to visit. To view the video please click here.

The video also features the support the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need is providing beleaguered Christian families in Bethlehem by the distribution of olive wood rosaries and other handmade carvings to Christians in the Western world. To see the range of handmade olive wood devotional items please click here.

Burkina Faso: A chapel for the village of Kombengo

People praying in the existing chapel in the village of Kombengo

 “Burkina Faso” means “Fatherland of the honourable people”. Despite its beautiful name, however, this West African country is one of the poorest in the world. On the UN's Human Development Index, which measures the wealth /poverty of the world's countries, Burkina Faso stands in place 181 out of 187. Happily though, in contrast to many other countries, the various different tribes with their differing languages and cultures generally live here peaceably together.
 Roughly half the population are Muslims, while nearly 30% still belong to traditional tribal religions and 20% are Christians of various different denominations. The Catholic Church has only been present in the country for about 112 years, and today almost two million of the over 16 million inhabitants of the country are Catholics.
  The diocese of Fada N’Gourma is situated in the east of Burkina Faso, in a largely rural region where there are no major cities. People generally live from agriculture, but the climate is extremely dry so that the soil yields very little. It is also an area still inhabited by various nomadic tribes.
  Of the close on 1.3 million people living in the territory of the diocese, no more than about 97,000 are Catholics. At around 46,681 km² the diocese is bigger than many European countries like Switzerland or Belgium. Yet there are just 13 parishes here in which 39 priests minister to the widely scattered Catholic faithful. The Church does everything she can to help the people, caring in particular for the poorest and weakest. The diocesan bursar, Abbè Blaise Kiema, reports that "The biggest victims of the traditional lifestyle here are the women. They are trapped in a system that places them on the very lowest rung of the social ladder. Schools are extremely important for the liberation and advancement of these women. The Catholic Church is quite active in this struggle to raise awareness within society of the role of women and to establish a place for them in society."
  The last time Abbé Blaise was travelling through the bush in order to visit some of the parishes, he experienced what is a pretty regular occurrence in Africa, given the poor road conditions - his car broke down. It was already late in the evening and the parish centre in Diabo, which he was hoping to visit next, was still over 30 kms away. So he found somewhere to stay in Kombengo, the nearest village, in the house of the local catechist. Next morning the catechist showed him the village chapel. Since in many cases the nearest parish church is too far away, many of the villages have their own very modest chapels where the people gather together with their village catechist to pray - and for Holy Mass with the parish priest, when he is able to visit,. The parish of Diabo, to which Kombengo belongs, covers an area of nearly 500 km². There are 22,491 Catholics in the parish, and another 3,199 people preparing for baptism. Yet there are just three priests, a few religious sisters and 10 catechists to care for them. In Kombengo the people also gather to pray together, but when Abbé Blaise saw their "chapel", he was greatly dismayed. Thick, curved branches supporting a roof covered with twigs. In fact it looks more like a shelter for cattle, not even a stable. A crumbling mud wall struggles to give the whole thing the appearance of a building. It is something of a miracle that the structure has not completely collapsed by now. "Please take a photo!" the catechist appealed. "If you show it to the bishop, then perhaps he will help us." Abbé Blaise did not need to be asked twice. He wants to help the 300 Catholics in the village and so he showed Bishop Séraphin Soubeiga the photos as soon as he had returned. Unfortunately, even the bishop could not afford the cost of building a new chapel, so he advised Abbé Blaise to write to the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) for assistance. ACN felt they could see the hand of Providence behind his car breakdown, and that the Catholic faithful in Kombengo should finally be granted their desire for a fitting place of worship, and so had no hesitation in promising Abbé Blaise a grant of $19,500.
  The vital work of Catholic charities like Aid to the Church In Need provide a lifeline to the Church wherever she is poor, persecuted or threatened. Please help our work by donating online or send your donation to Aid to the Church in Need, PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148. Ph: (02) 9679-1929

Click here for past weeks' featured projects

Reports for you to read about the work of Aid to the Church in Need

ACN is unique from other Catholic Charities as it offers pastoral assistance to the Church wherever she is poor or suffering under Christian persecution.