The Knights of Columbus will support a new project to fight religious persecution in Nigeria, Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly announced during his annual report, continuing the Order’s legacy of aid to persecuted Christians that began over 10 years ago in the Middle East.
More than 4,000 Nigerian Christians were killed for their faith from October 2022 to September 2023 — more than everywhere else in the world combined — according to the organization Open Doors.
“This crisis is a call to action. So we asked Nigeria’s bishops how we can help,” the supreme knight said. “Their answer was unequivocal. They need us to help their people stand strong in the face of persecution — by spreading the hope that comes from faith.”
The Knights’ response includes funding a collaboration of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria and Franciscan University of Steubenville that will establish a catechetical institute in the country’s capital of Abuja, and train priests, religious and lay leaders in catechetics and evangelization. The first cohort of students from Nigeria began a master’s degree program at Franciscan in September.
In announcing the project, Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly acknowledged Bishop Stephen Dami Mamza of Yola and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto, who attended the convention as representatives of the bishops’ conference, and he pledged the Order’s continued support.







