One Catholic priest was killed recently and another was injured during an act of violence in Nigeria, prompting Pope Francis to issue a call for prayers to end the violence against Christians.

“I ask all of you to join me in praying for Father Isaac Achi, of the Diocese of Minna in northern Nigeria, who was killed last Sunday in an attack on his rectory,” the pope said in a Jan. 18 Twitter post. “So many Christians continue to be the target of violence. Let us #PrayTogether for them.”

Achi's parish in the village of Kafin Koro was set ablaze by terrorists at approximately 3 a.m. on Jan. 15, Catholic News Agency (CNA) reported. Achi was ordained in 1995 and was currently the head priest of St. Peters and Paul Catholic Church in Nigeria's Diocese of Minna.

Achi had been a victim of violent attacks before, a report from The Dialog said this week. In 2011, he survived an attack by the extremist group Boko Haram during a Christmas church service. Forty-four parishioners perished in the assault. Additionally, Achi was wounded by gunfire during the blessing of a child, and he also escaped a militant kidnapping.

Father Collins Omeh, another priest at the rectory, fled the scene but was wounded by gunfire; the CNA report said. He is receiving and responding to treatment at a hospital.

On the same day as the attacks against the priests, a group called the Islamic State detonated a bomb at a Pentecostal church in the eastern Congolese town of Kasindi, killing at least 14 people and injuring more than 60 others; CNA said in another report.