Nigeria: the Secretary for State Relations celebrates 50 years of diplomatic relations

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher concludes an official visit to Abuja as massacres of Christians intensify in the Middle Belt.

The Fact

According to Vatican News (French and Portuguese editions, July 6, 2026), Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, concluded an official visit to Nigeria, marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Abuja. The program included a meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and a solemn mass. The visit comes amid escalating violence against Christians: 28 worshippers were massacred in Plateau State on the night of June 22, 2026, including Pastor Markus Nyam of the Church of Nations.

Our Analysis

We opened the nigeria-middle-belt-2026 thread in issue 2 following the June 22 attack and the publication of the six-year study (2020-2026) by the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa, which established that Christians have borne a disproportionate burden of violence in Nigeria. Archbishop Gallagher's visit is not merely a courtesy call: it expresses, discreetly but firmly, the Holy See's concern over the silent persecution of one of Africa's largest Catholic Churches. The Compendium of Social Doctrine (no. 505) reminds us that the right to religious freedom is the foundation of all other rights. The visit aims to remind Abuja of its duties without breaking the dialogue. Aid to the Church in Need, in its annual report, ranks Nigeria among the most deadly countries in the world for Christians.

Food for Thought

Let us pray for the Church in Nigeria and its faithful. Support AED and Open Doors, which fund aid to bereaved families. May the memory of the martyrs of Plateau remind us that the blood of Christians remains, as in the time of Tertullian (Apologetic 50, 13), the seed of Christians.