"We hope with all our hearts that the war will end," said Sr. Camille Fermina Herraiz Martinez, 80. "We have to continue to live and to give war its own meaning. Life does not stop because of the war."
Catholic sisters in South Africa are protecting girls, accompanying survivors and challenging the culture of violence that turns homes into danger zones.
With decades of experience protesting war and nuclear weapons, Catholic sisters in peace activism said they see an ally in Pope Leo XIV, just a year into his papacy.
One year after the pope's election, religious sisters across Africa say his early visit affirmed the continent's place in the church and now challenges communities to turn his message of peace into lasting action.
A year into Leo XIV's papacy, Catholic sisters around the world are celebrating how the first U.S.-born pope is continuing to focus on issues near and dear to them.
Medical Missionaries of Mary Sr. Gladys Dimaku runs St. Teresa Clinic, a primary healthcare facility in Nigeria where patients receive preventive and curative care with special attention to HIV and tuberculosis.
