Six recently baptised Christians were arrested in northern Orissa State after Hindu activists accused them of converting to Christianity 'illegally'. The six ethnic minority Christians, who had recently joined Good Shepherd Ministries in Mayurbhanj district, appeared in court but were released on bail, according to Release partner All India Christian Council (AICC). Their pastor, Mannuel Mahapatra, was also arrested and accused of forcible conversion. Hindu extremists frequently level accusations of forcible conversion at pastors – but allegations against those who are converted are less common. The state of Orissa has implemented anti-conversion legislation and its Freedom of Religion Act bans religious conversions without the prior permission of local police and a district magistrate. In Karnataka state, nine members of the New India Church of God in Mysore were arrested last Sunday after Hindu extremists stormed the church. Attacks on individual Christians in Karnataka also continue. Four Christians were beaten and charged with 'outraging religious feelings' after distributing pamphlets.
Pray: for the Church in Orissa and the new believers that God will empower them and protect them from the hand of the enemy. (Pr.2:8)
India: Monsoon floods in Assam State
12 Jul 2012Towns and roads are underwater throughout most of the state of Assam, where the Brahmaputra river runs. Churches and Christian charities have joined the massive relief effort to an area which recently experienced a devastating flood that claimed over 125 lives and left nearly three million people homeless when torrential monsoon rains inundated thousands of villages in 23 of the 27 districts of Assam. At least 18 churches and several schools have been washed away or damaged. Reaching targeted areas is a major problem, as roads have been damaged and even washed away. 58 Gospel for Asia-supported churches have been affected. Water level is still rising. A local newspaper reported that 900,000 people are affected with at least 80,000 losing their homes. Livestock kept for food have been washed away. Food and drinking water are in short supply and many have lost their personal belongings. One pastor said the Christians are ‘tired, wet and weak’. See:
Pray: for co-ordinated work through the many agencies to swiftly bring relief to the victims. (2Sa.22:17,18)
yclone Phailin hit India last week as a category 4 storm with 130 mph winds. Loss of life was minimal due to large-scale evacuations but flooding has inundated homes and destroyed 1.2 million acres of crops. The local government has set up rescue and relief operations on the campus of a Bible training facility. It will take more than two weeks to restore power, the national highway is still covered by three feet of water, and some areas experienced levels above five feet. 873,000 people in Odisha and 100,000 in Andhra Pradesh sought safety in evacuation centres and will be returning to their communities as soon as flood waters recede. They will find little to salvage, particularly in poor farming villages along the coast where the storm wreaked the most havoc. The government will do what it can, but it doesn't have all the systems in place to offer much help.
Pray: for Christian Aid and other agencies already in the area who are able to respond immediately, pray for uncluttered communication between NGO’s and government bodies, pray also for adequate funds to be released to meet immediate and long term needs.
India: Human trafficking
21 Oct 2011Human trafficking is modern-day slavery in India and has become one of the fastest growing criminal industries in the world. Homeless girls and boys become victims of violence, deceit and compulsion for sexual exploitation or other forced labour. Every day hundreds of thousands of minors are trafficked, sold and forced into prostitution and bonded labour. Helpless poor people, seeking a better life because of poverty, domestic violence or other pressures they have no control over, are brutally oppressed, often sexually abused, raped, beaten, starved and humiliated by those making a god of power and money. So it is heart-warming when we read, ‘Two minor girls stuck in prostitution ring in a red light area in Pune were rescued by the Christian organization, Indian Rescue Mission, along with the Social Security cell of Pune police on Thursday, October 13, 2011. Acting on a tip they raided the brothel and rescued Roopa (16) and Gowri (17), and the manager of the brothel was arrested.’
Pray: for God to minister healing to the girls and for more traffickers to be found and punished appropriately. (Ps.64:7-10)
More: http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=9440
Over 100 Hindu extremists gathered to announce their plan to rid Madhya Pradesh of Christians ahead of a 2011 reconversion event ‘to drive away Christian pastors, evangelists and foreign aid workers from the district’. They said a holy Hindu assembly would be staged in February 2011 and they hope for 2 million participants. Previous gatherings prompted Christian beatings, homes and churches destroyed and the desecration of graveyards. The recent gathering of hate speeches and vows to ‘cleanse’ the region of Christians motivated at least one assault on Christians. Extremists repeatedly accuse Christians of forcing Hindus to convert and of paying them to follow Jesus. ‘How much have these Christians paid you?’ new believers are asked. 'We will pay you double for returning to Hinduism.’ Local police refused to provide security for Christians.
Pray: for the physical and spiritual protection of our brothers and sisters in Madhya Pradesh. (Ps. 18:2) More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/india/20289/
India: Hindu intolerance to Christianity
07 Jun 2010Hindu nationalists on May 27 falsely accused a pastor of forcible conversion in Karnataka after disrupting a worship service. The Global Council of Indian Christians reported that the Hindus also warned the Christians not to worship in the area. Extremists from Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh barged into the rented home of Pastor Barmanagowda as he led a house church service affiliated with the Karnataka Evangelical Association. The extremists forced the pastor to the police station and filed a complaint of alleged forcible conversions. They warned him against conducting worship services in the village and told him to vacate his home and leave the area. On May 23rd in Andhra Pradesh Hindu extremists from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh damaged a church building and installed an idol of the Hindu god Hanuman inside it. (This deity is believed to give courage, hope, knowledge, intellect and devotion).
Pray: for God to give the persecuted church in India strength, hope and wisdom as they continue to gather in His name. (Ps: 25:1-2)
More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/india/21035/
India: Hindu extremists victimize pastors
09 Jul 2010
In India, Hindu extremists have continued to victimize pastors by using anti-conversion laws as an excuse to attack Christians, thereby limiting church activities. UK based Release International (RI) said in a recent report www.releaseinternational.org that pastors were beaten and cars burnt amid accusations of forced conversion. The RI report stated that on June 23, two pastors from Bethel Assembly of God Church were seriously injured when men attacked them with iron bars in Chandapura, Karnataka state, accusing them of converting people to Christianity by force. Before that attack some extremists burnt at least seven vehicles belonging to the Jesus with Us Pentecostal Church in Mathikere, Tamil Nadu. This attack followed efforts by Hindu extremists to prevent the church holding a four-day convention and that in the event, the gathering went ahead in a different location, under police protection. Eight Indian states have introduced anti-conversion laws however Tamil Nadu has since repealed them. Pray: that the church in India will remain steadfast in their faith and pray that politicians and law enforcers will take a tougher line on extremist elements. (2Th.1:4) More: http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2010/s10070026.htm
India: Floods
27 Jun 2013Every summer hundreds of thousands of devout Hindus make the Char Dham Yatra pilgrimage to four temple towns in Uttarakhand, returning before monsoon rains begin in July. This year early monsoon rains,the heaviest in 80 years, swept away entire villages in Uttarakhand along with thousands of pilgrims. The Army has evacuated 100,000 stranded people. The Air Force is conducting search and rescue operations with 45 helicopters - but bad weather has hampered progress. They were unable to fly to the temple town of Badrinath where 5,000 pilgrims need rescuing. Officials said they must get to the affected areas urgently - time is running out for survivors. Thousands have no shelter, fresh water or food. On Wednesday morning Air Force Chief NAK Browne visited Uttarakhand to boost the morale of pilots a day after a rescue helicopter crashed near a pilgrimage site. More than 800 have died in the floods so far.
Pray: for the thousands who still need rescuing from remote mountain areas, for the children, elderly and vulnerable who are most at risk. (Neh.9:17b & Ps.86:15)
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-23058651