Catholic Church in Nigeria

The Latest

Empty beds in a student dormitory at St Mary's Catholic School in the Kontagora Diocese.on Nov. 21, 2025.

Rights group hails release of 100 children abducted from Nigerian Catholic school

Dec 10, 2025

By Agnes Aineah

Christin Solidarity Worldwide has welcomed the release of 100 school children, who were among 303 children abducted on Nov. 21... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, speaks about a sanctions plan to increase pressure on the Nigerian government amid ongoing Christian persecution on Dec. 9, 2025.

Trump to create sanctions plan for Nigeria, congressman says

Dec 10, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

President Donald Trump is crafting a sanctions plan to pressure the Nigerian government amid ongoing Christian persecution, according to a... Read more

Father Maurice Emelu, now a U.S. citizen and founder of Gratia Vobis Ministries, told EWTN Germany recently that faith in Nigeria has the extraordinary ability to blossom “in harsh soil.”

‘Persecuted and thriving’: Catholic priest on resilience of Christians in Nigeria

Dec 10, 2025

By ACI Africa

Father Maurice Emelu, founder of Gratia Vobis Ministries, told EWTN Germany that the faith in Nigeria has the extraordinary ability... Read more

A photo display of persecuted Christians in Iraq and Nigeria can be seen at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., until Feb. 8, 2026.

Nigerian, Iraqi priests tell of aiding persecuted Christians seen in photo exhibit

Dec 3, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

A photo exhibit features the “forgotten faces” of persecuted Christians in Nigeria and Iraq. Read more

Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama of the Abuja Archdiocese at St. Luke’s Parish, Kubwa, during a confirmation Mass.

Archbishop says Nigeria could be ‘saddest nation in the world,’ reflects on better days

Nov 25, 2025

By Sabrine Amboka

According to Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama, the saddest people on earth today might be in Nigeria, owing to poor governance,... Read more

A map of Nigeria.

Nigerian priest: Those responsible for killing Christians, Muslims should be held accountable

Nov 25, 2025

By Kristina Millare

Nigerian priest Father Mathias Ashinnoitian Adugba told EWTN News that more must be done to hold people accountable for the... Read more

Parishioners at a church in Akute Ogun State, Nigeria, in June 11, 2023.

Hundreds of Nigerian students remain captive; Cameroon archbishop warns of church closures

Nov 24, 2025

By Diego López Marina

In Nigeria, 265 students from a Catholic school remain captive after being kidnapped last week while an archbishop in Cameroon... Read more

Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Nigerian Diocese of Makurdi in Benue state at a breakfast at Capitol Hill organized by Aid to the Church in Need, Jan. 30, 2024.

Nigerian bishop calls for U.S. military intervention at congressional hearing

Nov 21, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

A Nigerian Catholic bishop said U.S. military intervention is warranted at a Nov. 20 hearing of the U.S. House Foreign... Read more

On Nov. 4, 2025, the Catholic Diocese of Auchi in Nigeria announced the release of two seminarians who were abducted in July during an armed attack on Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary in Ivianokpodi while confirming the death of a third victim.

2 Nigerian minor seminarians released months after kidnapping, 1 killed in captivity

Nov 5, 2025

By Jude Atemanke

The Diocese of Auchi in Nigeria has announced the release of two young seminarians who were abducted in July during... Read more

An African nun prays the rosary. On Jan. 7, 2025, two religious sisters were kidnapped in the Archdiocese of Onitsha in Nigeria.

UPDATE: Trump says he will designate Nigeria a ‘country of particular concern’

Oct 31, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

President Donald Trump said he is designating Nigeria a “country of particular concern.” Read more

Marta Petrosillo, editor-in-chief of the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Religious Freedom Report.

Author of religious freedom report weighs in on Cardinal Parolin’s Nigeria comments

Oct 24, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

The author of Aid to the Church in Need’s 2025 Religious Freedom Report, Marta Petrosillo, is coming to Vatican Secretary... Read more

Nigerian security officers during a military operation ahead of the gubernatorial elections in Benin City, Edo, Nigeria, on Sept. 17, 2020.

Ecumenical coalition urges Trump to crack down on Nigeria

Oct 16, 2025

By Madalaine Elhabbal

Christian leaders urged President Donald Trump on Oct. 15 to redesignate Nigeria as a country of particular concern. Read more

In interviews with ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa, Nigerian Catholic Church leaders shared their views on Christian persecution in the West African nation, expressing varied opinions on U.S. proposed legislation to change Nigeria's designation to a country of particular concern (CPC).

Nigerian Catholic leaders respond to call to label Nigeria ‘country of particular concern’

Oct 16, 2025

By Abah Anthony John

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, introduced legislation in September that would require the Trump administration to adopt the CPC designation for... Read more

Nigerian security officers during a military operation ahead of the gubernatorial elections in Benin City, Edo, Nigeria, on Sept. 17, 2020.

Nigeria rights groups seek release of 850 Christians held in notorious jihadist village

Oct 1, 2025

By ACI Africa

Testimonies of Nigerians kidnapped by jihadist Fulani herdsmen have revealed that hundreds of Christians are still being held by the... Read more

“Where are the kids protesting this?” Bill Maher said of the Christian genocide in Nigeria during the Sept. 26, 2025, edition of his HBO program “Real Time with Bill Maher.” 

Top U.S. political satirist draws attention to plight of Christians in Nigeria

Sep 30, 2025

By Kate Quiñones

Political satirist Bill Maher, who has often been a vocal critic of Christianity, recently called attention to the persecution of... Read more

Some of the coffins of 73 Christians from Benue State, central Nigeria, massacred by Fulani jihadists in 2018.

There is a strategy to annihilate all Christians and Islamize Nigeria, expert says

Sep 29, 2025

By Victoria Cardiel

Criminologist and researcher Emeka Umeagbalasi has spent 30 years denouncing human rights violations in his country and is clear that... Read more

Nigerian security officers during a military operation ahead of the gubernatorial elections in Benin City, Edo, Nigeria, on Sept. 17, 2020.

Christian persecution in Nigeria: 1,200 churches destroyed annually, hundreds killed

Sep 26, 2025

By Victoria Cardiel

Violence against Catholic priests and members of other Christian groups in Nigeria continues to increase, especially in the eastern part... Read more

Gunmen on motorbikes reportedly shot dead at least 22 people at a baptism ceremony in an attack on a village in western Niger. The Sept. 15, 2025, attack happened in the Tillaberi region near Burkina Faso and Mali, where jihadist groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group are active.

Gunmen on motorbikes kill 22 at baptism ceremony in Niger amid rising violence

Sep 18, 2025

By Jude Atemanke

Multiple media reports indicate that the Sept. 15 attack happened in a region near Burkina Faso and Mali, where jihadist... Read more

Nigeria is “sinking in many fronts,” the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, has said.

Nigeria bishops’ conference president: Country now full of ‘fear, flight, and funerals’

Sep 17, 2025

By Agnes Aineah

Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, said Nigerians are grappling with the many effects... Read more

Father Solomon Zaku, pictured on the right, is the national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Nigeria and has called on the country’s government to ensure justice is applied in the trial of the suspects linked to the 2022 Pentecost Sunday attack on St. Francis Xavier Owo Catholic Parish in the Ondo Diocese, which claimed at least 50 lives.

Nigeria Church official calls for justice in 2022 Pentecost Sunday attack

Aug 24, 2025

By Abah Anthony John

As the suspects push for bail, the director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Nigeria said such a move would... Read more