Religious persecution

The Latest

Bishop Rolando Álvarez

Church in Nicaragua asks for continued prayers for abducted bishop and priests

Sep 27, 2022

By CNA Staff

The Diocese of Matagalpa asked for prayers for its bishop, Rolando Álvarez, and others who were arrested and abducted in... Read more

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Ortega dictatorship expels another religious congregation from Nicaragua

Sep 22, 2022

By CNA Staff

The dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua has expelled the Religious Sisters of the Cross, thus continuing its attacks... Read more

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Blessed Sacrament found intact in tabernacle of church burned by armed men in Cameroon

Sep 22, 2022

By CNA Staff

In the aftermath of the fire that gutted a church in Cameroon, Bishop Aloysius Fondong found the sacred Hosts and... Read more

A proposal to convert the Catholic chapel located in the capitol building where Colombia’s Congress meets into a “neutral place of worship” is “persecution of the Catholic Church,” said Father Raúl Ortiz.

Priest calls attempt to close Colombia Capitol building chapel ‘persecution of the Church’

Sep 20, 2022

By CNA Staff

A congressman has proposed to convert the Catholic chapel located in the capitol building where Colombia’s Congress meets into a... Read more

St. Michael the Archangel

Nicaraguan dictatorship prohibits procession for St. Michael the Archangel and St. Jerome

Sep 19, 2022

By CNA Staff

The dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, has prohibited upcoming processions in Masaya. Read more

The European Parliament building in Brussels, Belgium.

European Parliament condemns growing repression of Catholic Church in Nicaragua, calls for release of bishop

Sep 16, 2022

By AC Wimmer

The resolution, passed Sept. 15, criticized the arbitrary “arrest of Bishop Rolando Álvarez” and called “for his and others’ immediate... Read more

Formerly detained Father Oliver Opara (left) with Ummi Hassan; Bishop Matthew Kukah of the Diocese of Sokoto (not an abductee); Father Stephen Ojapah; and Hassan Fareed Hassan after the four were released from being held captive by terrorists.

Freed Nigerian priest recounts details of his kidnapping by insurgents

Sep 7, 2022

By Douglas Burton

Father Stephen Ojapah had fallen fast asleep late on May 25 after an exhausting day of parish work when two... Read more

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Crowd prays rosary at Colombia’s El Dorado airport to demand reopening of Catholic chapel

Sep 7, 2022

By CNA Staff

The private company that manages the airport closed the chapel on Aug. 26 and said it would become a “space... Read more

Bishop of Fontibón, Colombia, Juan Vicente Córdoba laments in an Aug. 29, 2022, video that the chapel of the El Dorado International Airport, located in his diocese, was forced to close despite the fact that there was an agreement until the year 2037.

Bishop: Those who closed Colombia airport chapel will ‘have to give an account to God’

Sep 1, 2022

By CNA Staff

The private company that manages El Dorado International Airport announced Aug. 26 the closure of the Catholic chapel and its... Read more

The altar of St. Augustine Catholic Church in Brooklyn, New York, was damaged by vandals in May 2022.

Republican lawmakers demand DOJ act on anti-Catholic attacks

Aug 31, 2022

By Edie Heipel

A group of Republican lawmakers sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday condemning his inaction over the... Read more

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El Chipote: The torture prison where the Nicaraguan dictatorship is holding priests

Aug 25, 2022

By CNA Staff

El Nuevo Chipote, or simply El Chipote, opened in February 2019 to replace the old prison of the same name... Read more

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega

Ortega regime shuts down another Catholic radio station in Nicaragua

Aug 24, 2022

By CNA Staff

Radio Stereo Fe of the Diocese of Estelí lamented Aug. 24 that “almost 28 years of radio evangelization on FM... Read more

President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua

Priests confront dictatorship in Nicaragua: ‘Let us work in peace!’

Aug 23, 2022

By CNA Staff

The priests of the Diocese of Estelí in Nicaragua called on the authorities of the dictatorial regime of Daniel Ortega... Read more

Faithful Catholics of the Diocese of León, Nicaragua, participate in the annual procession of the image of Our Lady of Mercy, the patroness of the diocese, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2022.

Faithful hold Marian procession in Nicaragua despite repression and persecution

Aug 23, 2022

By CNA Staff

Hundreds of faithful Catholics and the clergy of the Diocese of León, Nicaragua, took part in the annual procession of... Read more

The faithful gather for Mass behind the fence of the church as the parochial vicar celebrates Mass in the atrium of Santa Lucía Parish in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, Aug. 16, 2022.

Police harassment forces priest to celebrate Mass outside church in Nicaragua

Aug 16, 2022

By Walter Sánchez Silva

A group of police officers from the Daniel Ortega dictatorship in Nicaragua arrived at a parish Aug. 16 with the... Read more

A brief procession of the Virgin of Fatima in the atrium of the Cathedral of Managua, Nicaragua, was held on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2022, to close a Marian congress. A larger procession was scheduled but prohibited by the regime of President Daniel Ortega.

Ortega regime continues attacks on the Church in Nicaragua

Aug 15, 2022

By CNA Staff

Several acts of repression were reported in the country over the weekend. Read more

Bishop José Álvarez Lagos surrounded by police officers on Aug. 4, 2022.

Persecuted bishop in Nicaragua tells faithful to overcome evil with good

Aug 12, 2022

By Eduardo Berdejo

Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, who has been under house for eight days, called on the faithful not to... Read more

Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, is monitored by police in early August 2022.

The history behind the persecution of the Catholic Church in Nicaragua

Aug 12, 2022

By Eduardo Berdejo

How did the Central American country come to such a crisis? Read more

Bishop José Álvarez Lagos surrounded by police officers on Aug. 4, 2022.

Nicaragua’s Ortega regime blocks bishop from leaving diocesan offices to celebrate Mass

Aug 5, 2022

By Diego López Marina

A video posted Aug. 4 on social media shows a group of riot police, with batons and shields, blocking the... Read more

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Could priests in Mexico avoid being killed by wearing a cassock?

Aug 4, 2022

By Walter Sánchez Silva

Bishop Jesús González Hernández said wearing religious clothing could prevent Catholic priests from being victims of violence. Read more