By Charles Igwe
In a positive development, the six sisters of the Congregation of Saint Anne, who were kidnapped in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 19, have been released along with two laypersons—a bus driver and a niece of one of the nuns. The unidentified armed men had halted the bus, demanding a ransom of $3.5 million. The President of Haiti’s Bishops Conference, Archbishop Max Leroy Mésidor, confirmed their release, expressing joy and gratitude for the support received.
Pope Francis, during his Sunday Angelus, had made a heartfelt appeal for the nuns’ release, praying for social concord in Haiti and urging an end to the violence causing suffering. The Catholic Church in Haiti organized a day of prayer, meditation, and Eucharistic Adoration for the kidnapped individuals.
Earlier, the Catholic Church in Haiti, represented by the Haitian Conference of Religious (CHR) and the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince, orchestrated a day of prayer, meditation and Eucharistic adoration on January 24, fervently seeking divine attention for the release of the individuals who had been abducted. Hence, the news of their release comes as an immense relief to the entire Church in Haiti.
Vice-President of Haiti’s Bishops’ Conference, Bishop Pierre-André Dumas of Anse-à-Veau-Miragoâne, also expressed gratitude for the release, acknowledging the strength of faith during this testing time. In a recent statement, he mentioned their cries to God and emphasized the unshakable nature of their faith. Earlier, Bishop Dumas had offered himself as a hostage in exchange for the nuns, condemning the act of kidnapping women dedicated to serving the poor and the young as an action that would face God’s judgment.
