Displaying items by tag: church

The annual Persecution Trends report by the UK-based group Mohabat says that as well as the rise of brutalities against Christians in the Middle East, Pakistan and Africa, there is reason to worry about the safety of Christians in India and China. In India, the Religious Liberty Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship recorded 134 attacks on Christians or churches in the first half of 2016 alone, which is close to the annual totals for both 2014 and 2015 combined, adding that attacks on Christians are likely to continue to rise in 2017. In China, the Communist government’s 2016 draft regulations on religious affairs look set to increase the pressure on unregistered churches in particular. ‘China’s policy of Sinicisation, to make the Church somehow more Chinese in character, looks set to bite down harder in 2017.’ Last month, Pope Francis said the Church has more martyrs today than the early Church did. ‘But why does the world persecute Christians?’ the pontiff asked. ‘The world hates Christians for the same reason it hated Jesus: because He brought the light of God and the world prefers the darkness to hide its wicked works.’

A worker for Christ wanted to write about recent news, but didn’t. Firstly it was too depressing, and secondly there was a fear of information getting into the wrong hands with the possibility of personal danger. The desperation is to get people praying. Asked for their greatest fears, most replied, ‘being hacked to death and wasting away through starvation.’ Burundi has the highest rate of malnutrition in the world. The worker and colleagues need prayers for protection and wisdom in complex situations. He write: ‘“Why are you still here?” Because God calls us to weep with those who weep, to be a voice for the voiceless and to “not love our lives so much as to shrink from death”. (Rev 12:11) “How do you see things going?” Not well in human terms but, through the eyes of faith, I still believe that God is on His throne and that the Church is the hope of the world as He has stationed His best troops in Burundi. “What about your family?” We have agreed to live by faith, and want to model this to our children as we stand alongside the precious suffering Burundi community. Will you stand with us in prayer, if you have the emotional energy? I am here, amongst other things, to fly the flag for Burundi. Can you see it waving? It’s small, soiled, stinking, fear-ridden, torn, blood-and-tear-stained, but look more closely….that is not the whole story.’ See also

‘I have given them the glory that You gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and You in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent me and have them even as You have loved me.’ (John 17:22-23) HOPE unites the church across denominations, race, culture and customs. An unprecedented number of churches are committed to mission in 2018. The dream is to grow the church by 10 per cent. Thank God for churches working together. Pray that Christians will show God’s reconciling love and peace. Consider meeting to pray with other churches in your area.

(written by Rev’d Yemi Adedeji, Redeemed Christian Church of God)

The Christian communities of Syria and Iraq are in the middle of a ‘cataclysmic crisis’, a report warns. Their very existence is in peril, as the world witnesses one of the greatest threats to the Church in the Middle East since its birth over 2,000 years ago. Christians are facing targeted persecution and leaving Syria and Iraq at an increasing rate. If this rate of emigration continues, within a few years the Christian communities in these countries will be utterly devastated. The report warns that war in Syria and Iraq has ‘unleashed a tidal wave of violent persecution’, which has targeted the highly vulnerable Christian population and has dramatically accelerated the flight of Christians from Iraq and Syria. Before 2011, Syrian Christians numbered about eight per cent of the population of 22 million: today about half are believed to have left the country. Before 2003, there were around 1.5 million Christians in Iraq, less than five per cent of the population: now, estimates hover between 200,000 and 250,000. Those who have left often have no hope or expectation of return.

At least 500 churches, syn­agogues, and mosques across the UK have opened their doors to homeless people in the past year, a report by the charity Housing Justice says. Volunteers donated more than 490,000 hours to the 34 church and community night-shelter projects that contributed data to the report - an average of 14,850 hours per shelter. The report was produced to draw attention to the plight of homeless people in the UK and the work of night shelters. It says that these shelters stayed open for an average of 114 days during the year, with a total of 1,920 guests (84 per cent of them male). The findings were published as the Prime Minister announced extra funds for helping the homeless. Speaking last month, Mrs May said, ‘In the run-up to Christmas, images of soup kitchens and hostels remind us of the vital lifeline provided by charities and local services to those facing a night on the streets. But today I have witnessed a different kind of support, one which seeks to stop people ending up on the street altogether by providing assistance to address their most immediate needs, and - crucially - giving them the skills and oppor­tunities to help them build a more secure future for themselves.’

Four men have been arrested in connection with the suicide attack at the St Peter and St Paul church in Cairo last month, which killed 28 people and injured over 40. Eleven people are still in the hospital. Egypt's Interior Ministry says one of the four men arrested has links to the Muslim Brotherhood, though the group has denied any involvement. Hours after the attack, the terror group IS said one of its soldiers, named Abu Abdallah-al-Masri, was responsible for carrying out the attack, the worst on Egypt's Coptic Christian community since 2011. Despite this claim by IS, Egypt appears eager to pin the blame on the outlawed Brotherhood. Damage to the church was repaired just before 7 January, the day Coptic Christians celebrate Christmas. The renovations were undertaken by Egypt's army under orders of president Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, who has promised to rebuild all churches that have been destroyed or damaged since 2013.

The Church is the largest social force in China not controlled by the Communist Party. As a result, there are increasing efforts to restrict the way Christians operate. A considerable number of Christians are still imprisoned. Violence is at a very high level and is increasing: also, churches have been closed, and landlords pressurised to stop renting premises to Christians. The story for Christians in China varies hugely depending on the region. There has been a significant change for the better for Han Chinese, but Christians from minority ethnic groups face a great amount of persecution. ‘There was a woman in my church who was kidnapped by her family when they found out she converted. They took her back to her home village, broke her legs so she could not escape, and then tried to force her to be a Muslim again.’ These are the words of a Christian leader from the Hui people group. Originally from a Muslim family, as most Hui are, she came to Christ 14 years ago. In spite of the enormous risk, many Hui are becoming Christians. ‘It is amazing how the gospel message touches the hearts of the Hui; many are giving up everything to follow Christ.’

A report by the Iranian Christian news agency Mohabat News showed that persecution worsened in 2016, with a steep rise in organised, government-sponsored anti-Christian campaigns on radio and television, combined with a vicious crackdown on Farsi-speaking fellowships. Dozens of house churches have been investigated, meetings interrupted and members arrested, interrogated and imprisoned. Records show that 92 Christian converts from Islam are currently awaiting trial, although the real number is likely to be far higher. The report also mentioned a number of well-known Iranian Christians being deliberately defamed, portraying them as morally and financially corrupt. Publication of Bibles and Christian literature in the country is banned, whilst there is subsidising of the publication of works which give a false and negative image of Christianity. Lift up in prayer all Christians held in prison. Pray that the authorities in Iran will not see Christians, including converts from Islam, as a threat but rather as a valuable part of Iranian society, and that government efforts to discredit and suppress Christianity will prove futile.