Violence

The Latest

Pope Francis presides over Mass for the Sunday of the Word of God in St. Peter’s Basilica on Jan. 21, 2024.

Pope Francis calls for release of 6 religious sisters taken hostage in Haiti

Jan 21, 2024

By Courtney Mares

Armed gunmen took the religious sisters hostage in Port-au-Prince on Friday during a bus hijacking. Read more

Bishop Cristobal Ascencio with pilgrims from the diocese of Apatzingán, Mexico, Nov. 8, 2023.

Bishop from area plagued by violence in Mexico prays for peace at Guadalupe shrine

Nov 10, 2023

By Ana Paula Morales

Bishop Cristóbal Ascencio García of Apatzingán located in the Mexican state of Michoacán, led the annual diocesan pilgrimage to the... Read more

Pope Francis at his general audience in St. Peter's Square on May 17, 2023.

Pope Francis: It’s our duty to give a voice to women who are victims of abuse

Nov 9, 2023

By Courtney Mares

The pope said that violence against women must be “eliminated from its roots” — namely prejudiced ideas that see people... Read more

Sts. Peter and Paul Church in North Beach, California.

Assault at San Francisco Catholic church leads to police pursuit, reported pipe bomb

Oct 30, 2023

By Daniel Payne

The incident began after an individual received Communion but did not consume the host. Read more

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Monk shot, body thrown in river following kidnapping at Nigerian monastery

Oct 24, 2023

By Agnes Aineah

A diocese in Nigeria announced that Brother Godwin Eze, a monk who was kidnapped with two others from a Benedictine... Read more

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Bishop calls for intense day of prayer and fasting for end of violence in Mexico

Oct 3, 2023

By David Ramos

Bishop Cristóbal Ascencio García encouraged dedicating a day of prayer to “begging the Lord for the conversion of all for... Read more

Seminarian David Igba during a pastoral visit at Scared Heart Udei of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, Nigeria.

Seminarian in Nigeria narrowly escapes shooting by Islamist Fulani attackers

Aug 24, 2023

By Agnes Aineah

David Igba was traveling with two others when their car was sprayed with bullets by a group of gun-wielding Fulani... Read more

A weapon is seen in the house where allegedly five young men were murdered in Lagos de Moreno, Jalisco State, Mexico, on Aug. 17, 2023.

Bishops of Mexico call for prayers for peace: ‘We live surrounded by violence’

Aug 18, 2023

By Diego López Colín

Since President Andrés Manuel López Obrador took office on Dec. 1, 2018, 131,507 first-degree murders have been recorded in Mexico... Read more

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Arrest made in murder of Kentucky teacher on Catholic University of America campus

Jul 13, 2023

By Daniel Payne

On July 5, 25-year-old Maxwell Emerson was shot and killed on the university’s Washington, D.C., campus. Read more

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Church in Honduras calls on government to consider changing strategy amid wave of violence

Jul 1, 2023

By Ana Paula Morales

The bishops also lamented that the violence in the country has been going on for years. Read more

Members of the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO).

Violence, emergence of new militia among Democratic Republic of Congo bishops’ concerns

Jun 27, 2023

By Magdalene Kahiu

“We are witnessing the persistence and worsening of insecurity, especially in the eastern part of our country,” the bishops stated... Read more

CNA

Priest calls to conversion criminals who shot up church in Mexico

Jun 9, 2023

By David Ramos

The confrontation caused destruction both outside and inside the church, with images of Christ, the Virgin Mary and St. Anne... Read more

The Mexican platform Actívate (Get Active) delivered 10,400 signatures to the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) on June 6, 2023.

Petition in Mexico demands religious freedom, protection of priests and churches

Jun 8, 2023

By David Ramos

The Mexican platform Actívate (Get Active) delivered 10,400 signatures to the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH). Read more

CNA

Parents of priest in Cuba attacked with machetes in home invasion

Jun 8, 2023

By Diego López Marina

The priest posted an update on Facebook on his parents’ health, stating that his mother “only received minor blows” but... Read more

Archbishop Faustino Armendáriz Jiménez at a press conference on May 21, 2023.

80-year-old man tries to kill archbishop after Mass in cathedral in Mexico

May 23, 2023

By David Ramos

An 80-year-old man wielding a knife tried to kill Archbishop Faustino Armendáriz of Durango, Mexico, on May 21. Read more

JMJ Pregnancy Center in Orlando, Florida

Mutilated animals left on pro-life pregnancy center’s property in Orlando

May 16, 2023

By Joe Bukuras

Staff at the center, which offers free pregnancy services to mostly minority women, discovered the deceased animals in front of... Read more

Ruins after a militia attack in Benue state, Nigeria, during the last week of February 2023.

Waves of attacks displace Catholic natives in central Nigeria

Mar 15, 2023

By Douglas Burton

Recent terrorist raids in Benue, a predominantly Catholic state in north-central Nigeria, are getting scant mention in Nigeria news. Read more

Feminist groups attacked the metropolitan cathedral in Mexico on March 8, 2023.

Feminists in Latin America attack Catholic churches on International Women’s Day

Mar 10, 2023

By Abel Camasca

Some feminist groups used International Women’s Day to vandalize Catholic churches and public buildings in Latin American countries. Read more

Riot policemen clash with demonstrators during a protest in Lima on Jan. 24, 2023.

Five things to know about the violence racking Peru

Jan 26, 2023

By CNA Staff

Violent protests have been taking place for more than a month in different regions of Peru and have claimed at... Read more

Representatives of the Ombudsman's Office arrive to dissuade the protesters in Peru, December 2022.

Bishops lament deaths in protests in Peru, call for dialogue to restore peace

Dec 13, 2022

By CNA Staff

The confrontations began after President Pedro Castillo on Dec. 7 declared a state of emergency, dissolved Congress, and said he... Read more