Pope Francis Prays For Nigerian Catholic Priest Burnt Alive By Terrorists, Persecuted Christians
January 19,2023
SaharaReporters had reported that Achi was found amid the ashes of St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church parish building after terrorists attacked the church on Sunday.
Pope Francis on Wednesday at the end of his audience offered a prayer for the Nigerian Catholic priest, Father Isaac Achi, burnt alive by terrorists who attacked and set his parish rectory ablaze
SaharaReporters had reported that Achi was found amid the ashes of St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church parish building after terrorists attacked the church on Sunday.
It was gathered that the terrorists attacked the church located in Kafin Koro community at 3 a.m. However, another priest at the rectory, Father Collins Omeh, escaped the building with gunshot wounds
On Wednesday, the National Catholic Register reports that at the end of his audience, Pope Francis offered a prayer for the murdered priest and asked for people to join him in praying for persecuted Christians around the world.
According to the report, Pope Francis while speaking to pilgrims in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall said, “I ask all of you to join me in praying for Father Isaac Achi, of the Diocese of Minna in northern Nigeria, who was killed last Sunday in an attack on his rectory.
“So many Christians continue to be the target of violence: let us remember them in our prayers!”
The Pope also extended a special greeting to French-speaking pilgrims from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where he will be visiting at the end of this month.
The National Catholic Register also reports that on the same day that Achi was killed in Nigeria, members of the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) bombed a Pentecostal church in the eastern Congolese town of Kasindi, killing at least 14 people and injuring more than 60.
Pope Francis was said to have in a message of condolence after the bombing, expressed his “compassion and closeness to all the families so hard hit by this tragedy.”
It was therefore reported that the Pope’s upcoming trip to Africa will provide an opportunity for him to further highlight the ongoing violence against Christians in the region. On his second day in Kinshasa, he is scheduled to meet with victims of violence from the eastern region of the DRC, where more than 5.5 million people have been displaced from their homes.
