One Set Free, Others Continue to Suffer for Faith

Deny Jesus is Lord or die. This was a very real choice offered last week to one man in Afghanistan. The basic outline of the case is probably familiar to you, but there is more to this story than you may know.

A custody battle over his two daughters led to allegations of conversion to Christianity for Abdul Rahman. When arrested he was carrying a Christian Bible and then and since has steadily reaffirmed his faith in Jesus Christ even when threatened with death.

The 41-year old man who converted 16 years ago while working alongside Christian aid workers in Pakistan, is decidedly the most famous Christian in Afghanistan today. Fortunately he is among thousands of Christians in his home country. The issue is that while Christianity is permitted, conversion to the faith from Islam is punishable by death.

While his day in Afghani court may not yet be over as I write, he was set free this week and is seeking asylum in another country. There continues to be a furor over this case in Afghanistan where many still want to see Islamic Shari’ah law enforced.

The part of the story you may not know is that he is not the only Christian recently arrested in Afghanistan. The Christian news agency CompassDirect.org has been able to confirm reports that two other Afghan Christians were arrested, though there cases are not getting the public attention of Rahman.

In addition, many Christians do not know how common this choice—deny Christ or suffer the consequences—has become. The Christian organization the Voice of the Martyrs has calculated that more Christians died for their faith in the last century than in the previous 18 centuries of Christian history.

Often the attacks are not conducted by governments, but take place with no government interference. This is true in Indonesia where this past Sunday a house church with 200 in attendance was blocked from congregating by an angry mob as police did nothing to intervene.

Meanwhile in India, the radical Hindu group RSS plans mass reconversions from Christianity to Hinduism from April 8-10. There target number is 10,000 converts. Past actions of the RSS show that the group will use violence and the threat of violence to force conversion on Indian Christians.

In other parts of the world, Christians rarely die for their faith, but they suffer arrest, torture and lengthy imprisonment. This is the case in China where the China Aid Association reports that one house church leader confessed to authorizing Christians to kill on his behalf.

The confession came after seven days of torture which CAA’s defense papers for court say included, “denial of sleep for long periods and pouring hot pepper, gasoline and ginger juice into his nostrils. He was hung for long periods with his armed stretched and bound, shocked with electricity applied to copper wires bound around his extremities and hit with clubs on a helmet worn on his head.”

In nearby Laos, 15 Christian families recently had their homes seized to be given to Buddhist families. This is part of a program the communist government of Laos calls the “New Mechanism” in which Christians must deny Jesus or give up their homes and property.

There is some good news to report on the persecution of the Christian church. In the Sudan a long civil war consisted of a bloody Jihad of the Muslim north against the oil-rich Christian south. Christian churches, schools and hospitals were destroyed. Christians faced torture aimed at conversion and death if they would not deny their faith in Jesus. In 2005, a peace agreement called a truce in this long, bloody attack on the Christians of the Sudan.

It’s not fair to let you know about the problems of Christian persecution if there is nothing you can do about it. The main thing you can do is to pray. This will be more meaningful for you and more effective if you know the prayer needs. One way to do this is through groups such as the Voice of the Martyrs found online at www.persecution.com or by phone at (918) 337-8015. The group keeps Christians posted on Christians suffering for their faith and offers opportunities to take some concrete action in addition to the all important prayer.

The Apostle Paul taught us that the church is the Body of Christ, and went on to write, “If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it” (I Corinthians 12:26). Today, the Body of Christ is suffering around the world.

However, suffering is not the whole story. We are paradoxically strengthened as well by the faithfulness our fellow Christians have shown in persecution. In Abdul Rahman’s cheerful smile as he reaffirms his faith while threat of death, we have seen the face of Christ. Likewise we have seen Jesus in the many Christians facing down violence around the world. Through our prayerful support may they not have to face down violence in Jesus name alone.

(The Rev. Frank Logue is pastor of King of Peace Episcopal Church in Kingsland.)

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