By Kielce Gussie
Aid to the Church in Need has released the 2025 edition of its Religious Freedom in the World Report, bringing to light the situation of ongoing discrimination and persecution around the globe.
Looking at 196 countries, this report—covering the period of Jan 1 2023 to Dec 31 2024—stressed Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion”.
In a conference at the Patristic Institute Augustinianum, members of Aid to the Church in Need reflected on the figures and information gathered since the last report, two years ago, regarding countries facing persecution and discrimination.
Persecution is on the rise
According to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who gave the keynote address, this year’s report is the largest since ACN began publishing them in 1999, showing that the trend of religious persecution continues to rise. The report warns that 64.7% of the world’s population – almost 5.4 billion – live in countries with “serious or very serious violations of religious freedom”.
ACN breaks down the various countries in three different categories: persecution, discrimination, and under observation (countries where there is not yet persecution or discrimination but that should be monitored).
Marta Petrosillo, the editor-in-chief of the 2025 report, explained how 24 countries suffer persecution and 38 face discrimination based on religion. She also highlighted that in a number of nations, religious freedom is not guaranteed by law and others have laws where everyone is equal on paper but not in practice.
What makes the ACN report unique is that it takes on a deliberately universal approach, looking not only at Christian religions, but all. Petrosillo highlighted how this report is the only one in the world that is not tied to a government. Neither is it limited to a small number of countries, which allows the report to actually have a universal, global perspective.
Freedom of religion is essential
Executive President of ACN International Regina Lynch reflected on Pope Leo XIV’s words in an audience with members of the organization on Oct 10: “Religious freedom, therefore, is not merely a legal right or a privilege granted to us by governments. It is a foundational condition that makes authentic reconciliation possible.”
Lynch furthered this stating that “the right to live according to one’s conscience is the heartbeat of human dignity.” She stressed that where it is respected, peace and justice flourish. But where it is denied, the human spirit and society lose their very foundations.
It takes different forms
During the conference, Petrosillo pointed out the different causes of religious persecution that varies from country to country: authoritarian governments, extremism, ethno-religious nationalism, organized crime, and hybrid persecution and legalized intolerance.
Moreover, religious persecution can be seen as a result of war, even if the war is not religious. She gave Ukraine, Gaza, and Syria as examples.
In the digital age, persecution and discrimination can also be found online. Believers are tracked, censored, and even arrested for their online activity. Petrosillo argued that “authoritarian regimes and extremist groups weaponize technology to silence dissent and target minorities.”
A petition for change
Closing the morning session of the presentation of the report, Lynch invited everyone to join ACN in signing their first-ever global petition. It calls for concrete action to be taken in the form of laws to defend people’s right to religious freedom. The petition will be available to sign until November 2026 when it will be formally presented to the United Nations, European Union, representatives of democratic governments and the diplomatic community encouraging them to join the movement. – Vatican News
