From the Voice of the Martyrs:
1. Sixty-Eight Eritrean Christians Police and military authorities jailed sixty-eight Christians during the first week of January, according to a January 23 report from Compass Direct. The wave of arrests occurred in three official round-up operations against both Protestant evangelicals and Orthodox renewal movement church members.
On January 4, military commanders at the national Sawa Military Centre performed what they called “a random check-up on the activities of Christian extremists” on student conscripts. They searched the conscripts’ personal effects, finding 250 Bibles which they burned in front of the entire military camp. The commanders then arrested thirty-five of the teenage students and ordered that they be subjected to severe military punishment, including physical torture.
On January 5, police took eight staff members of government ministries, five men and three women, into custody. The Christians — who are all members of Medhane Alem, an Eritrean Orthodox Church renewal movement — are reportedly being interrogated and pressured by police to identify all leaders and supporters of their movement. Police have informed their families that the arrest order came from higher authorities.
In another January 5 incident, twenty-five Christians in the southern port city of Assab were arrested by police. All of the prisoners, including seven women, were incarcerated at the Wi’a Military Camp, where they were pressured to recant their faith.
Pray for the release of all Eritrean Christians who are imprisoned because of their loyalty to Christ. Ask God to open doors of opportunity for them in prison so that they can share the gospel for which they suffer (Colossians 4:2-3). Pray that those who are being tortured for their faith will be strengthened and delivered by the Lord (2 Corinthians 1:9-11).
For more information on persecution in Eritrea, go to www.persecution.net/country/eritrea.htm .
2. Pastors and Believers Beaten, Arrested During Prayer Meeting in Karnataka, India
Two pastors and two female Christians were beaten and arrested during a prayer meeting in the village of Gokul, Karnataka on January 19, according to a January 19 report from the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC).
Pastor Raj Shekhar and Pastor Raja Naik were attending the meeting when members of a Hindu militant organization gathered around the house. The militants accused the believers of forcible conversion, beat the four Christians and called the police. After the police forced the worship service to an end, they took the four Christians to the police station. Pastor Naik was later released but Pastor Shekhar and the two women are still being detained.
Pray for the release of the three who are detained. Ask God to heal those who have been injured. Pray that those who falsely accuse Christians in India of forcible conversion will see that the message they bring is one of a free gift, not coercion, and respond to God’s grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).
For more information on the persecution facing Christians in India, go to www.persecution.net/country/india.htm . Also visit www.persecution.tv for recent video reports from India.
3. Worship Service Disrupted in Madhya Pradesh, India
A worship service in Kanpur, Madhya Pradesh was disrupted within the past week when members of the Hindu organizations Bajrang Dal and VHP stormed the meeting. According to a report from the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), the militants appeared to be targeting foreign missionaries from Japan who were present at the meeting. The pulpit and sound system were destroyed and those attending the meeting were pushed and abused for approximately two hours before police arrived.
A police report has been filed against the Hindu attackers and the GCIC reports that the local media has condemned the attack.Pray that these believers will remain steadfast in the faith (1 Peter 5:8-10). Thank the Lord that no one was seriously injured in this attack. Ask that the Lord will enable Christians in India to continue to lovingly and boldly proclaim the gospel (Ephesians 6:18-20).
4. Pastor and Wife Beaten in India for Preaching to Slum Dwellers
Pastor Paul David (29) and his wife Prasanna Kumari (25) were beaten and forced from their home in Bangalore, Karnataka on January 15, according to a report from the Global Council of Indian Christians. For the past two years, Pastor David has been conducting church services in his home that are mostly attended by people from the nearby slum.
On January 11, a mob gathered outside the couple’s home, beating Pastor Paul and forcing him and Prassana to flee from their home. Fearing violence, local Christians did not offer them any assistance and they had to spend the night on a terrace. After finding safe storage for their belongings, the couple returned to Bangalore the next day and found a small room in the slums.
At approximately 6:30 p.m. on January 15, a mob surrounded Pastor Paul and Prassana’s room. Both of them were robbed and severely beaten. When Pastor Paul demanded that they be taken to the police station, the mob continued to abuse them for over an hour before taking them to the Mico police station. They were falsely accused and questioned for two hours before being released. The couple then hid in a half constructed building in a school compound until the next morning, when they found shelter in a friend’s home.
Ask God to give Pastor Paul and his wife healing. Pray that, as sufferings overflow, their comfort in Christ will be more than enough for them (2 Corinthians 1:5). Ask that all Christians in India will keep their eyes on Jesus, persevere in their faith, and not grow weary or lose heart. (Hebrews 10:32-39; 12:1-3).
5. Christian Aid Workers Accused of Forcible Conversion in Himachal Pradesh, India
There were two separate attacks on Christian Aid workers reported over the past week.
On January 18, four Christians working at “The Last Resort,” a drug rehabilitation centre in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, were arrested on false accusations of forcing patients to read the Bible and convert to Christianity, according to a January 19 report from the Evangelical Fellowship of India. The complaints were filed by two patients who had escaped from the facility on January 16. One of the escaped patients, Vinod Saini, later told the Christian Legal Association that he was pressured to file the report and wanted to withdraw his statement to the police. The four Christians, Pastor Rajesh Toppo, Mr. Nizam Minthang, Mr. Gopal Singh Bhatia and Mr. Lalboi were released on bail on January 19.
A few days later, on January 20 or 21, as many as 250 Hindu militants from the Bajrang Dal, Siva Sena and VHP gathered at the home of Pastor Behal in Kangra, Himachal, who works with drug addicts and orphans in the community. According to reports from the All India Christian Council (AICC), the militants protested Behal’s missionary activities, demanding that he close down his home for orphans and his church and leave Kangra. The militants accused him of forced child labour and forcibly converting people to Christianity. The AICC has contacted officials, who assured them that all measures would be taken to protect Pastor Behal and his institutions.
Thank the Lord that those arrested were released on bail. Pray that they will remain faithful to the task He has given them, knowing that they will receive the crown of life (1 Peter 5:1-4). Pray for Christians as they continue to minister to the needy of Himachal Pradesh. Pray that those who persecute will come to repentance and salvation.
Thanks for posting this.
American Christians have no idea how blessed we are. I just talked about this with a co-worker of mine and she responded indignantly, “Well, I was persecuted at my last job-I wasn’t allowed to wear my cross.”
Christians are being tortured and killed. What are we doing to help?
In actuality, most of these reports are uncorroborated and appear mainly on evangelical websites. There are many millions of Christians coexisting peacefully with Hindus in India. Nowadays there is even increased intermarriage among Christians and Hindus and this is increasingly acceptable in urban settings (understandably, less acceptable in rural settings). Most Indians do not want to be split along religious lines and think that religious differences are less significant than, say, national differences. There is a big discrepancy between the stories of organized persecution on evangelical websites and the stories on mainstream news sources; the mainstream sources are much more reliable.
The MSM is reliable? Since when?
I have several groups of friends who are missionaries in India. They’ve reported things such as kidnappings, drive-by shootings, etc. Whether or not Evangelical sites and the mainstream media is reliable, these people are reliable.
Did you know it’s a capital offense to convert someone from Hinduism to Christianity?
Amanda:
The MSM may not be inherently reliable, but their credibility is arguably higher than that of a group with a vested interest.
Ontheedgeofmyseat:
Your friends in India are twisting the truth. The profile of the hate-crimes you report matches crimes in the US, but not in India. Very few in India have access to cars, and almost no one has access to guns. Most of the places where such incidents take place are in rural India where there are no good roads. Besides, being an Indian, the only crimes of the type you describe that I have heard of are mainly conducted in crowded cities by well-funded crime or terror organizations. Thus it is unlikely that “drive-by shootings” happened. It is more likely that your friends thought making up such stories would be an easy way to gather support for their cause.
Your friends are also lying about conversion from Hinduism to Christianity being a capital crime. Except in a few states in India, it is not illegal for Indians to convert other Indians. In all states, it is legal unless they use deception, incentives, coercion or foreign funding to bring about the change. It is illegal for foreigners to engage in any kind of conversion activity. The punishment if a foreigner is caught doing such illegal activities is a fine that is extremely modest by Western standards and deportation. Most of the sensational stories you see are just that: stories.
It has been illegal for foreigners to conduct missionary activity in India since the 1950s; if your friends are not Indians, they have entered India under false pretenses and are breaking the law. Please contact the Indian embassy closest to you so that these people can be deported.
Thanks for posting and keeping the persecuted church on your heart and in your prayers.