Bishop Laurent Birfuoré Dabiré of Dori, President of Burkina Faso’s Bishops’ Conference, emphasized a message of peace and hope amid the recent terror attacks on places of worship.
“To those who offer us bullets, we extend peace, faith, and hope,” said the prelate in a Vatican News interview.
Burkina Faso has been experiencing a series of attacks, including a horrific incident a week ago where 170 people were killed in the villages of Komsilga, Nodin, and Soroe in Yatenga province.
The attackers, whose affiliations remain unknown, have caused widespread grief.
On February 25, terrorists targeted worshippers from different faiths in two separate incidents. A mosque in Natiaboani and a Catholic church in Essakane were attacked, leaving many dead and injured.
These attacks highlight the indiscriminate nature of the violence affecting both Muslims and Christians.
Bishop Dabiré discussed the difficulty of promoting peace in such a context. He pointed out that the violence is not confined to Christians, as evidenced by the attack against Muslims.
He said, “The terrorists’ strategy is to instrumentalize religions to create confusion in the nation and pit different communities against each other, to give the impression that there is a religious war underway.”
He clarified, “I can assert with certainty that there is no ongoing persecution of Christians.”
The Bishop stressed the importance of responding to violence with peace, faith, and hope, aligning with Christian values.
“We must avoid it being said that we belong to a religion that meditates revenge,” he said, calling for a peaceful response to aggression.
He also expressed gratitude for Pope Francis’s support, noting, “The closeness of the Holy Father gives us courage and strength and invites us to persevere.”
