Families & churches join hands to aid Chinese lay evangelists
BEIJING (BP)–Lay evangelists from numerous house churches in China are not alone as they direct their efforts toward unreached people groups and cities with the gospel.
Christian Persecution
Turkish Court Releases Jailed Christian in Southeast
ISTANBUL, July 5 (Compass) — An Assyrian Christian arrested a month ago for taking home videos in an ancient churchyard in Turkey’s heavily militarized Southeast was ordered released today by Diyarbakir’s State Security Court.
Turkmenistan: “Don’t Go To A Judge,” Threatened Baptists Told
Five officers of Turkmenistan’s secret police, the KNB (former KGB), raided the Baptist church in the western town of Balkanabad (formerly Nebit-Dag) during a service on July 7, Protestant sources have told Keston News Service.
Open Doors Urges Christians to Join Its “Wage Peace Upon Colombia” Prayer Campaign on July 28
Open Doors with Brother Andrew, the ministry begun more than four decades ago by Brother Andrew, the Dutch-born author of “God’s Smuggler,” is urging Christians worldwide to join their “Wage Peace Upon Colombia” campaign and pray for peace in that trouble-torn country and also for persecuted Christians there.
Muslim militia killing Christians, burning homes and churches in Indonesia
Thousands of extremist Muslim fighters armed with automatic weapons are attacking Christian villages in Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi province, burning churches and thousands of homes and sending residents fleeing.
Bhutan represses Christians as Day of Prayer approaches
Believing for Bhutan
A Bhutanese man gives his grandson attention during a festival. It is illegal to hold Christian services and authorities have been cracking down on Christians. Pray that God will protect local churches. Pray that believers would also find favor in the eyes of the government to overturn this decision.
Christian woman recalls horror of forced conversion to Islam
On the Indonesian island of Ambon, hundreds of Christian men and women — young and old, even infants and pregnant women — have been forced to convert to Islam and circumcised under threat of death. As Muslim jihad warriors press their efforts to kill or convert all Christians in Indonesia, many Christians are forced to choose between their faith and their lives. Photo by Warren Johnson
Brunei Christians Suffer For Government ‘Cult’ Fears
Details emerging from recent detentions and interrogations of Christians in Brunei point to a growing government concern that the growth of “cults” in this predominately-Muslim nation could lead to political and religious instability.
Facing Persecution in Khartoum
KHARTOUM, Sudan (Compass) — Every Friday, during the Muslim holy day, a special group of Christians meet in a house.
Facing Persecution in Khartoum
Every Friday, during the Muslim holy day, a special group of Christians meet in a house.
Christians in Bhutan report escalated police persecution
WASHINGTON (BP)–Christians in the country of Bhutan are facing a much-escalated level of opposition and persecution, according to a report to the Baptist World Alliance from D. Kitbok Ryntathiang, director of the Christian Academy, Shillong, in northeast India.
Nigeria’s Zamfara State Accused of Aiding Church Demolitions
Christian leaders in northern Nigeria’s Zamfara state have accused the government of coercing Muslim converts to Christianity into attacking Christians and demolishing church buildings.
Two Churches Closed in Laos as Authorities Tighten Control
Reports from Laos say authorities closed two churches in the southern part of the country earlier this year.
Kidnappers Demand Hefty Ransom for Colombian Pastor
March 25 was a special Sunday for the 18,000 evangelical Christians who attend the Bethesda Missionary Center church in Bogota, Colombia. It marked the fortieth day of captivity for their pastor, Jorge Enrique Gomez, kidnapped on Valentine’s Day by a band of heavily armed men.
Martyrdom of Liu Haitao Confirmed in China
On October 16, 2000, twenty-one-year-old Liu Haitao from Henan province in central China died as the result of severe police beatings. Although the immediate cause of his death was a kidney ailment that flared up after police mistreatment and a harsh imprisonment, there is no question his death was the result of his witness for Christ, which makes him a martyr for the faith. Local Christians in the area plan to observe October 16 as a memorial day to the life of the young Christian.
Minority Christians “Punished” In Vietnam
Evangelical Christians blamed for the unrest in Vietnam’s Central Highlands in early February have been abducted, tortured and prevented from worshipping together by security police, according to reports from the region.
Police Arrest Turkish Christian in Gaziantep
Four security police from Gaziantep’s anti-terrorism division raided a Turkish Christian’s home on the night of April 11, placing him under arrest for five days pending investigation of accusations against him.
Police Arrest Two Christians in Azerbaijan
Two Christians were sent to jail yesterday for seven days on charges of “disobeying the police” in the town of Ismailly, 120 miles west of the Azerbaijani capital of Baku.
Kenyan “Jesus” Film Team Leader Attacked; Three Killed
The leader of a Kenyan “Jesus” film team ministry supported by churches and individuals through Christian Aid narrowly survived a murder attempt April 3. However, three neighbors who rushed to his aid in the 3 a.m. attack were shot and killed by the attackers.
Baptist prisoner’s family pressured to convert to Islam in Turkmenistan
The wife and children of Baptist prisoner Shageldy Atakov in Turkmenistan have been told by the local mullah, administration officials and officers of the country’s political police, the KNB (former KGB), that they may not believe in Jesus Christ and must convert to Islam. According to a statement from local Baptists — passed on to Keston News Service by the German-based Friedensstimme mission — officials in the town of Kaakhka, close to Turkmenistan’s southern border with Iran, also warned Atakov’s wife, Artygyul, that the family home would be confiscated if Christians continue to meet there.