Aid to the Church in Need (ACN)

(OSV News) — The following is the full text of Pope Leo XIV’s Angelus address given Oct. 4 at St. Peter’s Square. Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday! The Gospel …

“Tonight and in these coming days, we are not alone in prayer. Across the globe, one million children are praying with us,” Pope Leo told the children. 

Archbishop Inácio Saúre of Nampula, president of the Mozambique bishops’ conference, said he received the news “with profound sorrow.”

“Christians stay and live in a kind of constant siege,” with many refusing to leave because they fear departure would mean permanent exile.

Archbishop Iskandar said the region was awakened at midnight “to the sound of intense airstrikes” by Israel in “an abrupt escalation that civilians did not anticipate.”

As 2025 draws to a close, the plight of persecuted Christians around the world remains dire — and in many places, deeply forgotten.

As night falls across continents on Nov. 19, more than 600 churches and landmarks will light up in red, reminding the world that Christian persecution remains a stark global reality.

“Despite the fear, despite the loss, our people still come to church,” the bishop said. “Our faith is alive — maybe more alive than ever.”

“Almost two-thirds of the world’s population lives in countries where serious violations of religious freedom take place,” the cardinal said.

This October, over a million children around the world will lift their voices in prayer as pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need marks the 20th anniversary of its …