Since 2015, Burkina Faso, which is around 25% Christian, has become a hotbed of violent Islamist extremism. Since 2019, in particular, priests, religious and faithful have been increasingly targeted by terrorists. The Christmas campaign of the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) will focus this year on Christians in this West African country, who are subjected to bloody violence on a daily basis, as well as the heroic work of the Catholic Church, which tirelessly works for traumatized and internally displaced people.
“We cannot be indifferent to the immeasurable suffering of these Christians. With this year’s Christmas campaign, we want to help the local Church to provide emergency aid and trauma management programmes for the internally displaced, as well as to carry out its pastoral and educational mission,” says Marco Mencaglia, Director of Projects for ACN International.
“The terrorists are trying to cause division among a population which, until now, has been an example of harmony. The Catholic Church is doing what it can to maintain good relations between Muslims and Christians. ACN is trying to contribute to a more peaceful future in the country through projects that help to promote interreligious dialogue, such as diocesan radio programmes and school-based initiatives,” he adds.
With the exception of the central region, based around the capital Uagadugu, the whole country, with its approximately 20 million inhabitants, is now affected by the violence. The ongoing terrorism has led to one of the fastest growing displacement crises in the world, with over two million people forced from their homes. Anybody who does not follow the radical Islamist ideology is a potential victim.
ACN’s Christmas campaign for 2024 is aimed at encouraging people all over the world to pray for the persecuted Christians in Burkina Faso and to support them through donations, which will allow the foundation to fund approximately 50 projects in the seven dioceses affected by terrorism and violence, on the borders with Niger and Mali.
For the internally displaced, forced to flee their towns and villages due to the unfolding terror, this aid is more than necessary. One woman who had to leave Kandaga, in the Diocese of Tenkodogo, with her husband and eight children, told ACN: “We have no work, no food, no money to buy water or firewood. If one of our children gets sick, we have no way to get him to hospital. We have no dishes, no clothes, not even soap.”
ACN’s emergency response will ensure a supply of food, medicine and hygiene products to needy internally displaced families, and guarantee that children receive education. There will also be aid for the generous families that have taken in those seeking shelter, since they are also living in precarious conditions.
Trauma care projects are also crucially important for the Church in Burkina Faso. “We have children who witnessed their parents having their throats cut. Women who saw their husbands murdered in cold blood and others who were raped by terrorists. Many had to leave everything they owned in a matter of hours: their loved ones, their homes, even their country,” Marco Mencaglia explains.
“ACN will be providing training in psycho-spiritual support and trauma healing to hundreds of priests, religious and catechists, so that they can offer quality help to the thousands of people who have suffered serious trauma,” the Director of Projects says.
According to Justin Kientega, the Bishop of Ouahigouya in the north of the country, despite the devastating situation the country is in, faith has actually been strengthened. Christians are refusing to remove external displays of faith, such as crucifixes, despite the danger that could put them in. For some, including many catechists, it could be enough to get them killed.
One of ACN’s project partners on the ground highlights the need for pastoral projects in Burkina Faso: “In such a difficult context, the challenge is to preserve our identity in such a way that we shine some light on the situation. Christ has given us a mission, which is also our identity: you are the salt, light and leaven of this earth. It is not a question of enduring this crisis, but of living it in the spirit of Christ, so that it becomes an opportunity to bear witness to the Faith. A disciple of Jesus has to see everything that happens through the eyes of Christ.”
In this vein, ACN also supports the local Church through the provision of Bibles and other religious books, which offer spiritual solace and hope to many faithful. The foundation also helps with projects that strengthen the presence and service of priests and religious in crisis areas through the purchase of vehicles, provision of Mass stipends or the opportunity to participate in spiritual formation sessions.
ACN has been supporting Burkina Faso for almost 30 years, though it has increased its aid over the past years, due to the rise in terrorism.
By Sina Hartert.
