CHHATTISGARH, India (BP) – At least 40 members of New Bethesda Jesus Tribal Ministry in Michwar Village remain sheltered at the church two weeks after the village council banned them from the community unless they renounce their faith. The Christians are among 100 impacted by a joint resolution adopted Nov. 17 by eight village councils in the Sukma District of Chhattisgarh State. Christians who don’t denounce Jesus must leave the villages or their fields, belongings and property will be … [Read more...]
Baptists in Mexico still displaced after Catholic leaders renege on agreement
HIDALGO, Mexico (BP) – About 150 Baptists forcibly displaced from their homes in Hidalgo, Mexico, since April have sought refuge in a neighboring state after Catholic village leaders reneged on an agreement that would have welcomed the Protestants home. According to a Nov. 21 report from Christian Solidarity Worldwide, the members of Great Commission Fundamental Baptist Church began moving to Chalma, Veracruz, after it became clear that the Sept. 27 agreement would not be … [Read more...]
South Asian churches to be remembered on Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, Nov. 3
High in the Himalayan mountains of South Asia is a valley that is home to eight million Muslims. God is at work among the people, bringing many to salvation, but new believers are facing severe persecution. As the Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church approaches, will you pray for the believers in this valley and other brothers and sisters of the faith who are met with threats, beatings, imprisonment, loss of family and income, and even death for the sake of Christ? Among the … [Read more...]
Lone Christian convicted for praying silently in large UK abortion buffer zone
DORSET COUNTY, England (BP) – An Army veteran and father of three was found guilty Oct. 16 of praying silently in a large abortion buffer zone in England and fined the equivalent of $11,700, Alliance Defending Freedom UK (ADF UK) reported. Adam Smith-Conner could face jail time under the conditional discharge the court granted, his attorneys said, if he commits the same crime within the next two years. “This is a legal turning point of immense proportions. A man has been convicted … [Read more...]
China has no religious freedom, USCIRF says, days after release of U.S. pastor
WASHINGTON (BP) – China has tightened its control of religion, creating such crimes as genocide, mass arrests and enforced disappearances, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said in a Sept. 23 fact sheet, days after China released long-imprisoned American Protestant pastor David Lin. “Sinicization, or the complete subordination of religious groups to the CCP’s (Chinese Communist Party’s) political agenda and Marxist vision for religion, has become the core … [Read more...]
Breaking out of the Christian bubble, Central Asian believer ministers in Prague
by Tessa Sanchez PRAGUE, Czechia (IMB) – Nazira is a second-generation Christian from Central Asia. Her mother was the first believer in their family and reminds Nazira of the apostle Paul. Her mother is known for her faith, her deep study of the Bible and her passion for evangelism. While Nazira was born into a Christian family and attended a Baptist church, she admits she was confused about her beliefs. Studying at university caused her to question what she had learned as a … [Read more...]
Mexico Protestants march against forced displacement, church burning
OAXACA, Mexico (BP) – The last Protestants in an indigenous Mexican community where Catholicism is the only religion allowed were forced from their homes Aug. 6, their lone church set ablaze, CSW reported Aug. 22 ahead of Protestant protests in the street. Members of the Protestant Interdenominational Christian Church (ICIAR) and their supporters were expected to protest in the main square of Mexico City and in the city of Oaxaca Aug. 22, CSW said, calling out serious religious freedom … [Read more...]
Global religious freedom harmed by government-fostered lies, USCIRF reports
WASHINGTON (BP) – When Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the invasion was to “denazify” Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, is a Nazi hellbent on committing genocide against Russians and Russian-speaking Ukrainians, Putin said. In Iran, the government regularly disseminates misinformation on state-linked media channels about religious minorities, including statements that Christian converts from Islam are part of a “Zionist” network … [Read more...]
Cuban Christians’ religious freedom cry comes as pastor lingers in jail
LAS TUNAS, Cuba (BP) – The Alliance of Christians in Cuba (ACC) denounced the country’s human rights and religious freedom violations at its 2024 meeting, the third time it has done so since its 2022 founding and the latest in a string of such statements internationally. The ACC, a multi-denominational group of about 60 Christian leaders, called for the immediate release of religious prisoners and prisoners of conscience, the protected legal right for new churches to organize and … [Read more...]
State Department report notes religious persecution in 199 countries
WASHINGTON (BP) — Millions continue to suffer religious persecution globally, with wars and civil conflicts exacerbating already existing ills in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, the U.S. State Department documented in its 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom. The report on 199 countries and territories attempts to present a nonbiased overview of persecution by governments, extremists and members of society, relying on information from government officials, religious … [Read more...]
Annual Day of the Christian Martyr encourages personal sacrifice for gospel
BARTLESVILLE, Okla. (BP) — Prayer for the persecuted and faith to boldly proclaim the Gospel are being encouraged on the sixth annual Day of the Christian Martyr June 29, launched in 2019 by Voice of the Martyrs (VOM). Observed annually on the date church tradition remembers as the anniversary of the beheading of the Apostle Paul in Rome, VOM has successfully drawn attention to those who died for Christianity and hopes to inspire believers to persevere in spreading the Gospel, VOM vice … [Read more...]
Missionaries murdered in Haiti, now laid to rest in Missouri
NEOSHO, Mo. – Christians across Missouri and around the nation continue to pray for Missouri Rep. Ben Baker and his family after his missionary daughter and son-in-law, Natalie and Davy Lloyd, were killed by gang violence in Haiti, May 23. The bodies of the young missionary couple were transported from Haiti to the Kansas City airport and, on May 31, driven to Neosho. As they arrived in Neosho, hundreds of men, women and children stood along the roadside to honor the missionaries. They … [Read more...]
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