SANTA ANA, Calif. (Oct. 30, 2002) – Open Doors with Brother Andrew is calling on churches and Christians around the world to pray for suffering Christians during the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church on Sunday, Nov. 10.
While it would be impossible to relate all the untold or lesser-known stories of persecuted Christians worldwide, below are updates of a few in danger of being forgotten.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA (ANS) — Former Taliban prisoners Heather Mercer and Dayna Curry told more than 1,800 attendees at the 42nd annual Minnesota Prayer Breakfast how they coped with their three-month incarceration in an Afghan jail.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA (ANS) — All Christian Churches apart from those belonging to Eritrea’s three principal denominations have been ordered to close, according to information received by the World Evangelical Alliance.
ISTANBUL, August 2 (Compass) — A mob of Orthodox Church members led by priests attacked and killed an evangelical Christian pastor in his home two weeks ago in Merawi, a town in northwestern Ethiopia.
Alvaro Uribe won May’s presidential election on a promise to step up the war against the country’s Marxist rebels, but at least one of Colombia’s mission leaders doesn’t think it will make much difference.
AUSTIN, Texas, May 16 (Compass) — Guerrillas snatched Juan Carlos Villegas on his way back from a baptismal service near Medellin, Colombia, on April 28. A few days later, they sent a demand to Family Christian Church: hand over $25,000 or their assistant pastor would be killed.
Carrollton, TX—June 17, 2002— Risking his own safety to help fleeing refugees at the Pakistan/India border, a Gospel for Asia (GFA) missionary trainee in Kashmir was found murdered earlier this month. The Indian-born student was training for pioneer evangelism ministry at a GFA Bible school located five kilometers from the Pakistan border. GFA leaders in India believe that Muslim extremists are responsible for his death.
HANOI, VIETNAM(ANS) — A group of Hmong Christians living in the highlands of Vietnam have filed a complaint about violent incidents that they say took place amongst this tribal group last year.
Christians in Indonesia are outraged over the arrest of one of their leaders, Renaldy Damanik, General Secretary of the Christian Synod in Central Sulawesi and a hard-working, long-time peace advocate.
Indonesian Christians are learning the hard way what it means to “forsake all and follow Christ.”
Christian Aid’s contact in Indonesia said Sunday that Christians in some villages that have been taken over by Laskar Jihad militant Muslims are being offered the opportunity to leave their villages, but on one condition: They must relinquish all right to their homes, businesses and properties, and never return to their villages again.
Christians in the Maluku provincial capital of Ambon are appealing to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan to send peacekeeping forces in the wake of recent terrorist attacks.
ISTANBUL, March 18 (Compass) — Unidentified terrorists hurled grenades into a Protestant worship service in the diplomatic quarter of Pakistan’s capital city yesterday, killing five worshippers and wounding another 40 members of the congregation.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 5 (Compass) — Dr. Christy Munir was discharged from an Islamabad hospital yesterday, 10 weeks after a deadly church attack in Pakistan’s capital city almost took his life.
ISTANBUL, September 25 (Compass) — Armed gunmen attacked a Pakistani Christian welfare organization in Karachi this morning, then escaped after killing seven Christians and leaving an eighth critically injured.
Christians in Laos still suffer from strict oppression of religious activity, according to recent reports, while at least one brother’s Christian work is being tolerated.
Sources of the The Voice of the Martyrs in Indonesia say members of the militant Islamic group Laskar Jihad are likely responsible for a bus bomb blast near Poso on Wednesday. VOM has learned more details about the attack that killed at least four people and injured 17 others.
Families of jailed South China Church leaders complained about mistreatment and injustice in an open letter to United Nations officials.
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY (ANS) — A Hungarian Reformed Pastor continues to preach the Gospel despite alleged death threats and opposition from Russia and Communists who he says still rule the Hungarian village of Doboz, near the Romanian border.
NUKUS / BUDAPEST, (ANS) — A correspondent of the Keston News Service (KNS), which covers religious persecution, was harassed by the security service of Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic in Uzbekistan, KNS reported Thursday, June 6.