It is a pressing duty for every baptized person to turn their gaze towards the suffering of their brethren, for to ignore the torments of the Holy Church throughout the world would be a fault against charity. In a video interview with Cyprien, Damien Delgrossi, delegate to the diocese of Corsica for the pontifical foundation "Aid to the Church in Need" (ACN), explains that the defense of the faith and the freedom to believe constitutes perhaps, in this century, "one of the most major battles of the coming and ongoing century." This foundation, established in 1947 in Germany and still active today, shines its light across the entire earth to bring aid to souls suffering infringements on their religious freedom.
The situation described is of a gravity that must seize the heart of every faithful. A precise report on religious freedom in the world, published by ACN and released "at the end of October 2025," paints a devastating picture. This concise document, accessible to all, highlights that the Christian religion is today "the most persecuted, the most discriminated against religion." This scourge concerns a staggering potential of "4 billion people across five continents." The persecutions are multiple and varied, ranging from bloody martyrdom to insidious oppression.
The most visible attacks, which sometimes make headlines, are of an unheard-of violence. These are massacres, like those seen in Nigeria or the Democratic Republic of Congo, where assailants enter churches to sow death. The horror is also manifested by the use of rape as a weapon of war, affecting women and children on a scale that "defies comprehension." We keep in memory the tragedy that occurred in Syria, in the Greek Orthodox church in Damascus, where an explosion caused the death of "26 people." These are the open wounds of the Body of Christ, significant and grave persecutions.
However, the demon also acts in a more insidious manner through a less visible but equally pernicious persecution. This involves economic and social discrimination. In Egypt, for example, the simple fact of being identified as a Copt on one's identity card can bar access to civil service competitions. In Pakistan, discrimination extends even to the manner of eating. The case of Asia Bibi is a painful illustration: this Christian woman paid with "10 years in prison" for the simple act of drinking a glass of water from a well reserved for another caste. For a simple glass of water, she was condemned because she was a Christian.
Faced with these iniquities, ACN offers a true lesson in citizenship and faith, articulated around three axes: pray, inform, and give. Prayer is the first rampart. It is fitting to organize vigils in our parishes and to participate in the "Red Week," during which churches are illuminated in red to recall the blood of the martyrs. This event, which also sees the illumination of public buildings like the French Embassy to the Holy See, allows for spiritual communion with the martyred Church.
Information is necessary to raise awareness about this Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which must not be a privilege but a fundamental right. Finally, material giving is essential for the survival of the foundation. It allows for the support of material distress, notably by funding orphanages run by religious sisters and brothers who take in children who are victims of war. It is the universal Church which, through these gifts, cares for her children.
For those who wish to commit further, it is possible to go on a mission in the field or, more simply, to become a delegate within one's own diocese. One must not worry about one's own limitations, for acting at the local level is already a great work. As the Gospel reminds us, the evil done to the least is done to Christ Himself. Thus, what happens in Burundi, India, or the Philippines, we live in our flesh as Catholics. It is the entire body of Christ that suffers, and it is through the "persecution of Christians" that we are called to carry this cross all together, in hope and charity.