Christians in Nigeria are becoming modern-day martyrs. People of faith must raise our voices to respond to their plight.

I read the account of the horrific terror attack on June 13, where over 200 Christians were slaughtered in Yewalta, Nigeria, while I was taking a break at the local pool with my youngest son. According to one report, “the corpse of a boy, around 6 or 7 years old, lay flat on his back, his eyes wide open, his shirt covered in blood. His killer had left a giant gash across his face and head. His left hand was hanging loose at the joint; his right hand was severed completely.” My son is not that much older than the boy described in the photograph.

I was shaken to my core. I’m unsure whether the mother of the young martyr escaped the attackers. If she is among the few survivors, she will need to draw deeply on her faith in order to believe in a loving God in heaven caring for the son she had lost.

Yewalta is just one recent example of the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Sixty-eight Christians were murdered in Fulani raids two weeks earlier. One of the attacks was on the hometown of Catholic Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of Makurdi, who had recently testified before the U.S. Congress about atrocities in his diocese. Over 170 Christians in Nigeria’s Middle Belt were killed earlier this year during Lent and Holy Week. Last week, three young Catholic seminarians were kidnapped at gunpoint in their seminary,........

© The Hill