As April flowers burst into bloom on the mountain slopes and in the valleys Nagorno Karabakh, there are almost no Armenians there to celebrate the arrival of spring in their ancient homeland.

Forced conversions, lost childhoods, years of hiding, living in limbo — the persecution Christians face around the world was given specific, concrete shape by the testimony of survivors at the annual Red Wednesday vespers in TorontoöÏÓãÊÓƵapp St. MichaelöÏÓãÊÓƵapp Cathedral Basilica.

Shahbaz Bhatti, declared Servant of God by Pope Francis in 2012, has a special place in the hearts of thousands of Pakistani Canadians who fled their country to find safety and freedom of religion here. 

Wearing the red of martyrs, St. MichaelöÏÓãÊÓƵapp Cathedral Basilica once again stood up for persecuted Christians — one of dozens of cathedrals around the world illuminated for Red Wednesday.

OTTAWA -- Getting the United Nations and the European Union to acknowledge the persecution of Christians is an ongoing challenge, but there are signs of progress, says Marcela Szymanski, a lobbyist for Aid to the Church in Need.

WASHINGTON – A new study categorizes what kinds of responses emerge when Christians around the world are persecuted, noting that, most often, Christians choose a strategy of survival.