The campaign, which ACN has been promoting internationally since 2015, will reach its peak on Wednesday, November 18, with Red Wednesday or Red Wednesday. It is the central day, and on it the lighting of temples and public events will multiply. The choice of color responds to a precise symbolism. Red refers to the blood of the martyrs and expresses visible communion with the Church that suffers where professing the faith means risking one’s life.
According to the foundation’s data, 413 million Christians live in countries where religious freedom is seriously violated. Authoritarian regimes, extremism, and ethno-religious nationalisms are among the main threats. They translate into attacks, imprisonments, and the forced exile of entire communities.
From the Sagrada Familia to the Colosseum
For this edition, the participation of numerous Spanish dioceses, shrines, and monuments is expected, which will join the international network coordinated by ACN. In previous editions, recognizable landmarks such as the Colosseum in Rome, the Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, or the Sagrada Familia Basilica in Barcelona have been illuminated in red. Parishes and institutions from various autonomous communities have already registered on the campaign platform, accessible at redweek.es.
The foundation emphasizes that the initiative goes beyond visual impact and rests on three pillars: information, prayer, and awareness. During the week, it will share testimonies from believers who suffer persecution firsthand. In parishes and schools, it will promote prayer vigils, Eucharistic adorations, and Masses for these communities. ACN invites citizens, parishes, communities, and local corporations to join, whether by organizing awareness events or lighting their own buildings.
A map of persecution: from Nigeria to Nicaragua
The most recent data confirm the seriousness of the phenomenon. ACN’s latest World Report on Religious Freedom covers the period from January 2023 to December 2024. According to that report, more than 5.4 billion people, two-thirds of humanity, live in countries without full religious freedom. Of the 196 countries analyzed, serious violations are recorded in 62: 24 in the persecution category and 38 in the discrimination category. Open Doors, for its part, raises to 388 million the number of Christians living in regions of intense persecution, a record figure. Its list continues to be headed by North Korea, Somalia, and Yemen, places India as the country with the most detained Christians (2,192), and records Syria’s jump from 18th to 6th place.
Nigeria continues to be the epicenter of violence. According to Open Doors, the country accounts for 72% of Christian murders worldwide, and its bishops reported to Pope Leo XIV, during his ad limina visit, the violence, insecurity, and discrimination their communities suffer. In Nicaragua, persecution takes the form of suffocating control. Researcher Martha Patricia Molina documents 1,010 episodes of persecution between April 2018 and July 2025, in addition to 28,904 restrictions on processions, popular devotional acts, and religious celebrations since 2019.
Europe is not immune to this reality either, although with a different intensity. The Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe) recorded 2,211 anti-Christian hate crimes in 2024. Among them are 94 arson attacks on churches, almost double the previous year, and 274 personal assaults, including the murder of a 76-year-old Spanish monk. France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, and Austria account for the majority of cases.