Pastor Threatened for showing Jesus Movie

By James Varghese
Special to ASSIST News Service

ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA (ANS) — A pastor was threatened for showing the well-known Jesus movie.

The incident occurred on July 27 in Andhra Pradesh in India.

According to a story on www.persecution.in, Pastor Devadanam organized a screening of the Jesus movie at his residence in Sanjeev Nagar Colony. The event drew about 100 people.

The website reported that as the film was being shown, between 15 and 20 young people from the Indian Peoples Youth Front (the youth wing of the Bharatiya Janatha Political Party, BJP) burst into the home.

According to the story, without saying anything the young people destroyed the speakers, tables and projector. They also tore and burned the screen, along with Bibles.

As the incident continued, the pastor and his family took refuge in one of the rooms in the house and locked the door. Banging on the door but unable to get in, the alleged perpetrators shouted to the pastor that if he ever screened the Jesus film again, they would kill him.

The story on www.persecution.in reported that following the attack, the pastor filed a complaint with the police against the alleged attackers. Six of the assailants were taken by law enforcement officers to the police station.

According to the story, Devadanam came to faith in Jesus many years ago, and has been in full-time Christian service for about a decade. His house church serves about 25 families.

The Persecution Report (August 2008)

On this month’s report hear about persecuted Christians in Iran, India and Nepal. Also hear how you can join in with Christians around the world to pray for the Persecuted Church.

Jailed Diabetic Iranian Christian in Critical Condition

Compass Direct News reports

ISTANBUL– A diabetic Iranian Christian jailed for two months is in critical condition due to lack of medical treatment, even as new reports of arrests against Christians surfaced this week.

The Iranian government has ratcheted up pressure in the last two weeks on underground churches in what seems to be a concerted effort to hound Christians and discourage their meetings throughout the country, sources told Compass.

At the same time, friends of imprisoned Christians Mahmood Matin, 52, and Arash Bandari, 44, a diabetic, are eagerly waiting for a phone call from authorities this week that would secure their release even if it means paying bail. Both prisoners have become frail from more than two months in prison, but the condition of Bandari is critical.

Converts to Christianity, Matin and Bandari were arrested on May 15 on suspicion of “apostasy,” or leaving Islam.

To complicate matters, a draft bill of an “apostasy law,” which would bind judges to sentence to death Muslim converts to Christianity, makes their immediate release crucial, say experts.

Full story at Compass Direct News.

Missionary Threatened for Refusing to Denounce Christ

Gospel for Asia missionary Amil Romir refused to comply with a local government official’s request to denounce Christ and discontinue his ministry in the small country of Bhutan.

Amil was summoned to the office of the local political leader. The man asked him to write a statement saying, “I will never preach about Jesus Christ and will never show the film on the life of Jesus Christ in this area.”

Since Amil refused to turn his back on Christ, the officials have threatened to send his case to a higher authority.

Amil and his ministry have been the target of anti-Christian extremists for several months. In June, local officials interrupted a worship service that Amil was leading. They were delivering a warrant calling for each of the Christians in the service to appear before the local government body and answer questions.

On June 30, Amil and his congregation appeared before the authorities, at which time each believer was questioned individually about how they became a Christian.

“We received Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior by our own decision and conviction,” one believer told officials. The other Christians echoed this testimony. Amil answered each of the questions they asked about the ministry.

They authorities declined to arrest Amil or the Christians, but they tried to force them to sign a statement saying they would not tell others about Jesus.

When these Bhutanese Christians refused to sign the statement, the officials let them go under the condition that they would not have any meetings or worship services and that they would come back and clean the government office and grounds every 15 days.

Amil and his church members are making the most of their unusual “punishment” by continuing to be examples of Christ’s love and humility as they serve these local officials.

Bhutan is a difficult place to minister the Gospel. In the past, elected officials have banned Christianity and denied citizenship to anyone who refused to practice the state religion of Buddhism. It is illegal for Christians to even meet in homes for worship in Bhutan.

Amil asks for continued prayer that God will continue to use him effectively, in spite of the circumstances. He also seeks prayer for those who oppose the ministry. He would like to see them turn to Christ.

Amil also asks for prayer for the Christians in his congregation, that God would continue to give them courage and help them stand firm in their faith.

Spread of Radical Islam Brings Increased Attacks Against Christians in Ethiopia as Muslim Mob Stones Christians in Eastern Ethiopia

By Michael Ireland
Chief Correspondent, ASSIST News Service

ETHIOPIA (ANS) — A mob of Islamic extremists stoned Seid Ahmed and Musa Ibrahim [names changed for security reasons] in Jijiga, a city on border with Somalia. The attack is the latest attack against Christians in Ethiopia where the spread of radical Islam is fueling the persecution of Christians.

ICC (International Christian Concern) www.persecution.org says that on July 19, 2008, Ahmed and Ibrahim were going to a church meeting when they were confronted by nine extremist Muslims yelling anti-Christian slogans. The extremists started hurling rocks at the two Christians.

Ahmed, who is a church leader, was hit by eight stones and suffered a severe concussion and injuries on his torso. He was admitted to Karamara Hospital where he was treated for his injuries.

Ibrahim escaped physical harm as he fled the scene to call the police who never arrived to stop the attack. The mob finally dispersed when Ibrahim ran in the direction of the local police station.

ICC says that Jijiga is the capital city of Somali Regional State, which is one of nine states in Ethiopia. The majority of residents in Somali State are ethnic Somalis who are majority Muslim.

According to ICC, this is not the first time that Christians have been attacked in Jijiga. On August 5, 2007, the Ethiopian Full Gospel Church in Jijiga was bombed. Though the church was packed with five hundred people, no one was hurt by the explosion. The same church was attacked by bomb five years earlier.

ICC’s Regional Manager for Africa, Jonathan Racho, said, “Unless the growth of radical Islam is curbed in Ethiopia, the attacks against Christians will continue to rise. Ethiopian government officials, particularly local officials in Muslim dominated areas of the country, should be made accountable for failing to protect Christians against such attacks.”

ICC is a Washington-DC based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC delivers humanitarian aid, trains and supports persecuted pastors, raises awareness in the US regarding the problem of persecution, and is an advocate for the persecuted on Capitol Hill and the State Department.