Red Week 2026: Hundreds of churches and monuments around the world to be illuminated in red for persecuted Christians
More than 125,000 people, 130 cathedrals and a thousand churches and buildings across different continents will take part in Red Week and Red Wednesday 2026.
Red Week, an initiative launched by the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in 2015 and known in several countries as Red Wednesday, combines the illumination of buildings with prayer vigils, testimonies, public events, school initiatives and meetings with Christians from countries affected by persecution.
According to the latest figures provided by ACN, 413 million Christians live in countries where serious violations of religious freedom occur, and around 220 million Christians worldwide are directly exposed to persecution.
“Faced with this reality, the pontifical foundation is once again promoting the Red Week this November, an international mobilisation of prayer, witness and awareness-raising to draw attention to the deterioration of religious freedom and remember the millions of Christians who suffer discrimination and persecution because of their faith,” recalls Regina Lynch, Executive President of ACN International.
More than 125,000 participants are expected, along with at least 130 cathedrals and thousands of churches and buildings, according to data collected by the foundation so far.
Among the sites that will be illuminated in red in 2026 are the seat of Austria’s Federal Presidency, the statue of Christ the King in Almada, which overlooks Lisbon, Portugal, the Basilica of Knock in Ireland, and St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney.
On 23 November, the buildings of the European Parliament in Strasbourg are scheduled to be illuminated in red, bringing the call for religious freedom to one of Europe’s principal political institutions.
In Austria, around 350 parishes and buildings are expected to take part; in the Netherlands, more than 200 churches, including all the cathedrals; and in Germany, around 200 churches. In Ireland, all 26 diocesan cathedrals will participate.
On the other side of the world, Australia and New Zealand are planning around 100 events, including Masses, prayer vigils and initiatives in parishes and schools, with an estimated 20,000 participants.
Red Wednesday has also become particularly well established in the life of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. Inspired by ACN’s initiative, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines declared the Wednesday following the Solemnity of Christ the King to be Red Wednesday. This year, it will therefore take place on 25 November, with all 87 dioceses in the country participating and a second collection at Masses in support of Christians who are suffering.
Red is more than just a colour
According to ACN’s Religious Freedom in the World Report 2025, more than 5.4 billion people — almost two-thirds of humanity — live in countries where religious freedom is not fully guaranteed.
The report, which analyses 196 countries, identifies serious violations of religious freedom in 62 countries: 24 are classified as countries of persecution and 38 as countries of discrimination. ACN’s research also reveals the many forms this pressure can take.
Red recalls the blood of the martyrs and of all those who suffer because of their faith. In 68 countries, damage to or destruction of Christian property with a clear religious component has been recorded, with churches being the main targets in 62 of them. In 57 countries, Christians have suffered physical violence or detention because of their faith, while in 33 they have been forced to leave their homes because of religious persecution.
“Every church or monument illuminated in red represents people who cannot freely practise their faith. Through Red Week, we want those suffering persecution to know that they have not been forgotten, and to remind the world that religious freedom is not a privilege but a fundamental human right. That is why, this year, we are also inviting people around the world to add their voices through a petition defending this right,” says Lynch.
This reality continues to have very tangible human consequences. ACN documented the killing of 19 priests and religious in 2025, while another 28 were detained or deprived of their freedom for reasons related to persecution.
Giving a voice to those experiencing persecution
Red Week 2026 does not aim merely to make persecution visible, but also to give a voice to those who experience it first-hand. Christians from the countries most severely affected will therefore share their testimonies and recount their personal experiences.
In Austria, Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil, Iraq, will take part in various events, including a Mass, meetings with young people and a prayer march through Vienna, which is expected to attract between 1,000 and 2,000 participants.
In Germany, Archbishop Benny Mario Travas of Karachi, Pakistan, will participate in the main events planned in Balderschwang, Leipzig and Berlin. More than a hundred parish events are scheduled throughout the country.
Another representative of the Pakistani Church, Bishop Samson Shukardin, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan, will take part in Red Week activities in the Netherlands and in a conference on religious freedom at the European Parliament in Brussels on 18 November, organised in collaboration with the European Parliament Intergroup on Freedom of Religion or Belief.
In Switzerland, representatives and witnesses from Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Iraq will participate in around 40–45 events organised in different parts of the country.
In Portugal, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja, Nigeria, will take part in a week of Masses, meetings with the media, conferences, prayer vigils and a Night of Witnesses. The country will also organise a seven-day spiritual journey, 7 days to light up the world, in collaboration with the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.
Masses, prayer vigils, marches, conferences, meetings with young people, school activities and public events in dozens of countries are all part of a campaign that takes different forms and dates depending on the country, but shares a common goal: to make visible those who suffer because of their faith and defend the fundamental right to religious freedom throughout November.
Sign ACN’s Petition for Religious Freedom
Add your voice to those of millions of people calling for the right to live their faith freely.
Sign here: https://acninternational.org/petition/
Recommended
