Daniele Frison

In Assisi, the extraordinary exposition of the saint's remains for the 800th anniversary of his death. Thousands of pilgrims, including some from Asia, tell AsiaNews: “We pray for peace, there are too many wars in the world.” Young people from South Korea are also visiting, ahead of World Youth Day in Seoul in 2027. At the same time, a relic of St. Francis' ashes is travelling through the Philippines, offering the country a unique opportunity for veneration.

The 2026 World Watch List has been published. The number of countries suffering “extreme" level of oppression is up from 13 to 15 with nine in Asia and the Middle East. North Korea tops the list for 24 years. In Syria, the situation has worsened since Assad fled. State surveillance in China, anti-conversion laws in India, and violence in Myanmar are a source of great concern.

Accused of "opposing the state", the journalist spoke to AsiaNews in Thoibao’s office in Germany. Under police protection due to repeated threats, he is a symbol of resistance to Vietnam’s ebbing press freedom. At least 70 journalists have been imprisoned since 2016. The website has seen an uptake in visits after funding shut down Radio Free Asia. Today it uses AI-generated reporters to circumvent repression.

One of the survivors of 6 August 1945 spoke at the Community of Sant'Egidio peace summit in Rome, saying that she continues “to believe in human wisdom”. She was joined by the bishop of the Japanese martyr city, Alexis Mitsuru Shirahama, who said: "We have little time left.” For Susi Snyder, “Deterrence is not demonstrable.”

The archbishop of Imphal spoke to AsiaNews in Rome. Violence between Meitei and Kuki-Zo has diminished, but "the mental divide continues”. Modi's visit in September came “too late”. The Church is providing assistance to displaced people. For the prelate, “survivel comes first, then, the pursuit of peace”. Meanwhile, Naga leader Thuingaleng Muivah returned to Manipur after decades.

Aid to the Church in Need released its 2025 report in Rome. China, India, and North Korea are among the worst offenders. Cardinal Parolin cites Dignitatis Humanae, 60 years after the Second Vatican Council, noting that religious freedom should “be enshrined as a fundamental civil right in constitutions”. Those persecuted “should not be forgotten” whether in Pakistan, Syria or elsewhere.

At the Urbaniana University, the academic year opened with the presentation of the proceedings of the conference marking the centennial of the Concilium Sinense of 1924. The first apostolic delegate to China, Card Celso Costantini, convened this historic event, which Pope Leo XIV described as a "milestone in the history of the Church in China”. For Card Parolin, “being good Catholics in no way contradicts loyalty to one's homeland”. The Council was a “moment of purification of missionary work and intention,” said Card Tagle.

According to Japan’s National Police Agency, more than 40,000 lonely deaths at home were reported in the first half of this year. More than one case in four is discovered after more than a week. The causes include an aging population, weakening relationships, and a reluctance to seek help. “A person told me that [. . .] he has only one friend left, whom he talks to twice a year,” says Father Marco Villa, head of a counselling centre in Koshigaya. Loneliness is the country’s greatest tragedy.

In the large open space outside Rome, one million young people celebrated their Jubilee ahead of the next WYD in Asia. AsiaNews spoke to some of the 1,500 Koreans in attendance, “eagerly waiting” and “diligently preparing for 2027.” One said that his mother’s conversion “brought me here today, to Rome.” Young people from Japan, India, Lebanon, and Iraq will hold in their hearts the unique encounters that rekindled their faith.

From the Dominican Republic to New Zealand, hundreds of young people are in Rome visiting the exhibition dedicated to the Saint, canonised in 2016. Guided tours are also available to see the room she used during her stays in Rome. Her testimony inspires young people, who tell AsiaNews that “she showed love in small things, not with words, but with actions.”

From Piazza Madonna dei Monti to the streets of the city, young Ukrainians bring to the Jubilee the wounded and tenacious heart of their country, as well as flags, songs, meetings, and the word “Volya”: freedom and the will to resist. A 20-year-old man told AsiaNews that he came “to rest spiritually." For the Brand Ukraine NGO, “We are fighting for a European future.”

Some 21 young people aged 15 to 27 from Hong Kong’s St Patrick's Catholic Church are in Italy for the youth jubilee with Leo XIV. They also stopped off in Assisi, Milan, Florence, and Naples. For PIME missionary Fr Fabio Favata, the experience will help the group, which was recently formed, to "broaden their minds” and “discover the beauty of community”. Educational and psychological challenges await ahead. Friday's meeting with Card Chow Sau-yan is eagerly awaited.