The Diocese of Broken Bay has joined the global Church in praying for persecuted Christians, as it commemorated Red Wednesday.
Bishop Anthony Randazzo celebrated Mass at Our Lady of Dolours Church, Chatswood, as the church was flooded with red light both inside and out.
Red Wednesday is an initiative of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) to pray for, and draw attention to, Christians who suffer and are persecuted for their faith. Across the globe, churches and building are illuminated in red, symbolising the martyrdom and blood shed experienced by many Christians across the world.
At the end of the Mass, Bishop Anthony reflected on the persecution faced by millions of Catholics around the globe every single year.
“The number of people in the world who cannot freely exercise their faith, who are oppressed, persecuted, suffer violence, and even death, is truly horrifying,” he said.
“As Pope Francis has said, one in every seven Christians around the world suffer some form of persecution. We must remember that human beings are much more than statistics alone. With each number reported in the news, or in the research, there is a human person, a child of God.
“We know religious freedom is a basic human right, which we can sometimes take for granted in Australia. However, many of our brothers and sisters face incredible physical, mental, and spiritual battles as they strive to practice their faith.
“While these numbers are sadly growing each year, we must never lose hope. Our Christian faith will never be extinguished.”
Sandra Doueihi, Diocesan Outreach Assistant for Aid to the Church in Need also spoke on the night to speak more about the charity’s mission.
“Just last week, armed gunmen stormed into a seminary in Nigeria, firing gunshots into the air. They were abducting two seminarians when Father Thomas, the seminary rector, stepped in to save them. Fr Thomas bargained his capture for theirs. The gunmen let the seminarians go and took Fr Thomas captive, back to an unknown location. He is still being held for ransom,” she said.
“I could tell you more, harrowing accounts. Forced marriages and conversions of women and girls. Abducted priests and bishops. Economic oppression and being treated as second-class citizens. Losing homes and livelihoods fleeing from violence. In their worsening conditions, in their desperation, they look to Christ on the Cross. Their faith, for which they suffer, is the faith that ACN supports in these times.
“ACN’s mission is to “keep the faith alive” in places, communities that are under attack from violence, persecution, or poverty. We support the Church in places where she is unable to support herself - where the faith is at risk of being extinguished. Our focus is not on material aid but rather to strengthen the Church in its spiritual and pastoral care for its people.”
Aid to the Church in Need is the only international charity dedicated to the suffering of Christians wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need.
Read Bishop Anthony Randazzo's homily for the Mass here.