Crown of Life Blog

State Department Denies Visas for Assyrian Christians Facing Death

5/23/2015

U.S. State Department Is Denying Visas for Assyrian Christians Facing Death in Iraq, And Yet...
by Isaiah Narciso
Breaking Christian News

Photo Courtesy Breaking Christian News

The U.S. State Department may have sent a signal to an Anglican bishop in Iraq that despite persecution and harassment from the terror group known as ISIS, Christians in that country will not find any support from the United States government.

According to Faith J.H. McDonnell of Philos Project, the Rt. Rev. Julian M. Dobbs, bishop of the Diocese of CANA East (Convocation of Anglicans in North America), revealed that part of U.S. foreign policy during an interaction with the State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM). Dobbs made his case to the State Department on behalf of a group of Assyrian Christians who are desperate to leave northern Iraq.

"There is no way that Christians will be supported because of their religious affiliation," the State Department said.

McDonnell reported that the Assyrian Christians received both the permission and blessing from their own bishop to leave Iraq. Until recently, church leaders in the region have urged Christians to stay in the Middle East; now they have concluded that their chances of survival are much better if they left.

"Christianity in Iraq is going through one of its worst and hardest stages of its long history, which dates back to the first century," Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil said. "Throughout all these long centuries, we have experienced many hardships and persecutions, offering caravans of martyrs. Yet 2014 brought the worst acts of genocide against us in our history."

Warda added that "Christianity as a religion and as a culture from Mesopotamia [ancient Iraq]" now faced "extinction" due to the ongoing threat posed by ISIS...

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Torture in Ethiopia

5/23/2015

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International Christian Concern
2020 Pennsylvania Ave. NW #241
Washington, D.C. 20006

www.persecution.org | E-mail: icc@persecution.org

"Kill Them, Or Else..." Ethiopian Christian Jailed, Then Told to Murder Pastors
Troy Augustine, Regional Manager for Africa

05/23/2015
Washington, D.C.
International Christian Concern

Aman Kuni was crammed into a tight jail cell with barely enough room to sleep on the floor, but that was only the beginning of the terror that he would face for his faith in Christ. Just five days after being released from prison in Asella, Ethiopia, he was forced to kneel down, with a pistol pressed between his teeth, and was given the mission to kill two pastor friends, or else his children would die.

"I was commanded to follow the instruction of four covered, armed, persons who spoke in the Oromo language. I was also slapped two times and asked to kneel down. They put their pistol in my mouth and gave me instructions to kill pastors Girma Hippo and Endezina," Kuni told International Christian Concern's Ethiopia staffer.

Kuni was instructed to accomplish the mission in three months' time. If successful, he was promised an easier life abroad, but if he refused, the masked assailants vowed to murder his three children. His wife's Muslim family had already forcibly taken them away from him, and now he faced this terrifying threat.

Christians Imprisoned on Trumped-Up Charges

On April 25, an estimated 15 police officers surrounded a Christian worship service in Asella about 100 miles south of Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa. The congregation of the Meseret-Kiristos Church had just witnessed the baptisms of 40 new believers in Christ.

"We were gathered for sharing and encouraging each other with the Word of God," Kuni recounted. "After we finished the service, police imprisoned us. Some of our friends ran away when they saw the way we were harshly handled," he added.

Witnesses reported that the police harassed several worshipers and four new converts from Islam fled the scene. Police later arrested them also at a nearby bus station. The number of arrested Christians also reportedly included three church leaders.

The men were held at a police station for two days until they appeared in court where the judge ordered for the case to be investigated.

Kuni and his friends were charged with "holding illegal meetings in secret locations," and he remained unsure about how long he would stay in jail. The men insisted they had fulfilled all of the legal obligations to hold their meeting, but all Kuni could cling to was his faith in Christ.

"Our main crime was preaching the Good News," Kuni said.

During the investiagtion, Kuni said he and the others were taken to court twice with no tangible evidence found against them. They were moved to the Assela prison where they were detained for two more weeks.

"The overall situation in the prison is very difficult. More than 168 inmates are stuffed into one small space. The Christians each have just enough space to lie on their sides at night. One of them has to sleep in the area they use as a toilet," an anonymous source said.

The men were released May 12 on 250 dollars bail each. Kuni says his faith in Jesus helped him to endure this difficult persecution.

"We count ourselves as privileged to be imprisoned like Paul," he said

Kuni said the court warned their accusers to produce evidence or the charges would be dropped. During the investigation, officials reportedly confiscated documents about church membership. Church leaders fear the persecution will add immense burden on the vulnerable community, particularly on the new Muslim converts who are already facing pressure from their families to return to Islam.

Kuni claims that three Muslim government officials were behind the arrests: Asella Mayor Yusuf, town Security Officer Shemsedin, and Arsi Zone Police Commander Adam.

"If the case is not approved with evidence and dropped the court, it seems those officials were using the government institutions to attack Christianity," ICC's Ethiopia staffer said.

The cost that Kuni has paid to follow Christ has been steep. With charges pending over his head, his family estranged, and his children threatened, he now prays for strength and protection for his family during this difficult time.

"For the past five and a half years, I was struggling to care for these three kids," he said. "Now, I am just praying to God to provide them a safe place."

For interviews, contact Troy Augustine, Regional Manager for Africa: RM-Africa@persecution.org

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You are free to disseminate this news story. We request that you reference International Christian Concern (ICC) and include our web address, www.persecution.org. ICC is a Washington D.C.-based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC provides Awareness, Advocacy, and Assistance to the worldwide persecuted Church. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

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Persecution Magazine, May 2015

5/23/2015

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Click Image to Read
Christians in Egypt Seek Exodus from Oppresion
Persecution Magazine
May 2015

Despite a glimmer of hope in a new government, discrimination, oppression and persecution continue to force many Christians, like the 21 martyred in Libya, to leave in order to provide for their families.

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Father Jacob Murad Abducted in Syria

5/23/2015

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International Christian Concern
2020 Pennsylvania Ave. NW #241
Washington, D.C. 20006

www.persecution.org | E-mail: icc@persecution.org
Media Contact: Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East RM-ME@persecution.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Deir Mar Elias Monastery, Syria (Photo by Daniel Demeter)

Priest Abducted from Monastery in Homs, Syria
Father Jacob (Jacques) Murad, Superior of the Mar Elian Monastery Abducted by Militants

05/22/2015
Washington, D.C.
International Christian Concern

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that Father Jacob Murad, a Syriac Catholic monk and Superior of the Mar Elian Monastery, was abducted by Islamic militants. Mar Elian, in the town of Qaryatayn, was preparing for an influx of people displaced by the capturing of the ancient city of Palmyra by ISIS (or Islamic State) jihadists.Located 40 miles southeast of Homs and 60 miles southwest of Palmyra, Mar Elian is in an area of potential advance for the militants opposing the Assad regime. "ISIS's advances in the Homs Desert will allow ISIS to stage for future attacks into the Syrian central corridor,which could create opportunities for other anti-Assad forces to advance on additional fronts," said the Institute for the Study of War in its May 20 update on control of territory in Syria. Since the conflict started in 2011, Qaryatayn has been a frequent site of clashes between the regime and opposition forces.

Several hours before being taken, Murad had refused to leave the monastery, despite the threat of the Islamic State group in the region. "As the priest and pastor, I will never leave this place so long as there are people here, unless they hunt me down," Murad replied to Father Ziad Hilal of Homs who had encouraged him to leave, according to AFP.

At least three armed militants arrived at the monastery by motorcycle and at gunpoint abducted Murad and another Christian, believed to be Boutros Hanna, a deacon in the church, La Croixreported.

Just hours before his abduction, Murad warned of the brutal advance of ISIS militants towards Mar Elian.

"We live in a difficult time when a lot of tension because the extremists who call themselves 'Daech' [Arabic initials of ISIS] approaching our city Quaryatein after their domination Palmire or they kill many people by cutting the heads...it's terrible what we live...today we are,tomorrow we do not know...life becomes complicated.

Please pray for us, Jacques."

He wrote in the email posted by The Association of Friends of Mar Musa.

The Mar Musa Monastery is the sister site to Mar Elian Monastery and was led by Father Paolo Dall'Oglio, who was himself kidnapped by ISIS in Raqqa, Syria on July 29, 2013. He was reportedly executed, but some had reported he was still in ISIS captivity.

Despite their role as mediators and promoters of dialogue, numerous priests have become targets of Islamic extremist groups in Syria.

Murad was born in Aleppo, Syria, and "has devoted his life to spread love, message of brotherhood, tolerance, justice and coexistence among all Syrian people and solemnly embraced the principle of dialogue with the Syrian Muslims community," according to the Assyrian Monitor for Human Rights.

Murad and the Mar Elian community have been providing sanctuary and aid for hundreds of those displaced by the conflict, including more than a hundred children.

Todd Daniels, regional manager for the Middle East, said, "We are heartbroken to hear of the abduction of Father Murad and Boutros Hanna. Their abduction demonstrates again the nature of Islamic extremist groups who are not only seeking to establish an Islamic State, but are intent on stamping out Christianity as well. Father Murad as a result of the love of Jesus shown in the Gospel has dedicated his life to love and serve the Syrian people and this is the antithesis to the extremist Islamic ideology represented by the jihadists of ISIS. Our hearts and prayers are with Father Murad and we urge the Syrian government and the international community to pursue all available options to secure his release."

For interviews, contact Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East: RM-ME@persecution.org

# # #

You are free to disseminate this news story. We request that you reference International Christian Concern (ICC) and include our web address, www.persecution.org. ICC is a Washington D.C.-based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC provides Awareness, Advocacy, and Assistance to the worldwide persecuted Church. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

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Christian Pastors Face Death Penalty in South Sudan

5/23/2015

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One Year after Meriam Ibrahim's Release, Two Christians Face Possible Death Penalty in South Sudan
by Fredrick Nzwili
Christian Headlines

South Sudan Christians Under Watch of the Army, Public Domain

...Meriam Yahya Ibrahim was released ... but now two Christian pastors have been jailed and they also face a possible death sentence.

The Rev. Michael Yat and the Rev. Peter Yein Reith, both from the South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church, have been charged with undermining the constitutional system and spying, offenses punishable by death or life imprisonment.

The clerics are charged with waging a war against the state and assault on religious belief.

“We know they have been arrested, but we don’t know where they are being detained,” said the Rev. Kori Romla Koru, general secretary of the Sudan Council of Churches. “We are trying to find them...”

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Church Denied Permit in Cuba

5/23/2015

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Castro Regime Steps Up Persecution of the Church in Eastern Cuba
by JC Derrick
World Magazine

A Church in Rural Cuba, Courtesy World Magazine

Maranatha First Baptist Church is one of the largest congregations in Holguín, Cuba, a 400-year-old city of about 350,000 residents on the eastern end of the island. In 1992, the now-82-year-old church felt the firsthand effects of the Cuban government’s easing of restrictions on religious freedom, when officials granted a permit to construct its current building in the city center.

Each week hundreds of Cubans—more than 800 for special events—flock to Maranatha’s hot Sunday services in a structure without air conditioning. The vibrant congregation has planted house churches and missions, but still does not have enough space. It has repeatedly requested permission to build a larger building.

In early May Pastor Amado Ramírez Oliveros reported the long-awaited answer: Cuban authorities not only denied the construction permit, they announced the government is seizing the property that has belonged to the Eastern Baptist Convention since 1947. Maranatha will be forced to pay an unannounced amount of “rent” if it wants to remain in its building...

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Chinese Pastor Threatened

5/23/2015

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Anhui Authorities Monitor House Church Pastor's Phone Calls...Threaten Pastor
by Rachel Ritchie
China Aid

Pastor Zhang Mingxuan, Photo Courtesy China Aid

Authorities in China’s eastern Anhui province threatened a house church pastor on Friday...

“...I called Pastor Wu Changle, and the police listened to the phone call,” Pastor Zhang Mingxuan, president of the Chinese House Church Alliance, said. “The next day, six domestic security protection squad (DSPS) agents from the Suqian Municipal Public Security Bureau threatened Pastor Wu, saying that he must not welcome me...”

“...They said that if he comes to my home, I should just tell him I’m not there. I said Christians cannot tell lies. I’m home, and he wants to visit me because we haven’t seen each other in a long time. Why would I lie to him? The police said if I really want to see him, I can do so, but we can’t go to a gathering. They also said if I decide to welcome him, I should notify the DSPS that Zhang is coming and when,” Wu said...

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It's Safer to Meet in Public in Turkey

5/23/2015

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Public Church Services Lend Turkish Christians Credibility
by Reagan Hoezee, from Christian Aid Mission
Mission Network News

Kuzgunzuk Orthodox Church, Istanbul Turkey

First century churches in what is now modern Turkey met mostly in homes, but Christians in the country today find they run more risks meeting in their living space than in public buildings.

A Turkish pastor said Christians in towns along the Black Sea coast cannot meet in their apartments without raising suspicions from Muslim neighbors. In Samsun, in what was once the Roman province of Pontus to which the Apostle Peter addressed believers in 1 Peter 1:1, Pastor Matta (full name withheld for security reasons) and a colleague planted a church 13 years ago as they were simultaneously seeking to plant churches in Ordu and other towns along the Black Sea coast.

When they began making trips to Ordu, 93 miles east of Samsun, to disciple former Muslims, Pastor Matta and a colleague initially ministered primarily in parks. Turks are highly relational, conversational, and hospitable, Pastor Matta said, but the same relational bent that opens opportunities for gospel proclamation also makes it hard for those who have embraced Christ to meet for worship among their Muslim neighbors. Far from the isolated, private space of many Western nations, apartment homes in Turkey are a tightly-woven neighborhood tapestry.

In a country where many see Christians as foreign spies or national traitors, that can be a problem for forming house fellowships.

“There’s a great fear of small groups in homes; they are always under suspicion of nasty things developing that will damage the community,” Pastor Matta said. “Anyone with a different message is considered a foreigner and doesn’t easily fit in. If they have Bible studies in their homes, they lose their jobs, the families reject them, and there’s the risk that the children would be dismissed from their schools.”

Schools in Turkey have been known to invent technicalities as grounds for expelling students whose parents have been found to have left Islam. With a population of just under 196,000, Ordu is a small city where it is difficult to be anonymous, Pastor Matta said. Thankfully, he added, new Christians there have no qualms about attending worship meetings in a public space.

“The reason we had to rent a place to meet is that many of the believers couldn’t just invite us to their homes,” he said. “We noticed a lot of interest in learning about the gospel message, but lots of fear of having us tell them in their homes. We ministered mostly in the parks, away from their homes, but in the winter time, that’s impossible due to the cold weather...”

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Freedom Isn't Theirs to Celebrate

5/23/2015

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Not All of Eritrea Marks an Anniversary of Freedom
by Ruth Kramer
Mission Network News

Eritrean Soldier, Public Domain

On Sunday, Eritrea marks 24 years of independence.

For Eritrean Christians, freedom isn’t theirs to celebrate as much if they’re a part of the underground church. While religious persecution in Eritrea is not limited to Christians, the underground Christian church has suffered most.

According to the latest report from the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), the religious freedom situation is particularly serious for Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians and Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Greg Musselman is a spokesman for the Voice of the Martyrs Canada. “Today, you’ve got anywhere between 3000-4000 Christians there that are imprisoned in shipping containers or military camps because of their faith.” He says Eritrea also tolerates torture or other ill-treatment of religious prisoners, random arrests, and detentions without charges, and has a ban on public religious activities. Why? “The government of Eritrea sees evangelical Christianity as ‘western.’ They link it with the CIA, so as a result, they’re clamping down on the evangelicals within the country...”

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Building a Mosque on Christian Land

5/23/2015

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International Christian Concern
2020 Pennsylvania Ave. NW #241
Washington, D.C. 20006

www.persecution.org | E-mail: icc@persecution.org
Media Contact: Troy Augustine, Regional Manager for Africa RM-Africa@persecution.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Fethiye Mosque and the Church of the Taxiarches, Athens

Mob of Muslims Defy Courts to Forcibly Build Mosque on Christian's Land
Government and police officials are complicit to land grab, intimidation, and infringement upon family's religious freedom

5/21/15
Washington, D.C.
International Christian Concern

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that a Muslim mob in Deder, Ethiopia, has attacked a Christian man and forced him out of his home on the threat of death. Local Muslims want to appropriate his land so that they can build a mosque. Their actions are despite recent court rulings that guaranteed his property rights.

Fikere Mengistu's family has owned their land for more than 90 years, but a mob of more than 20 Muslims in Kufanzik village remain intent on forcibly building a mosque on the Mengistu farm in defiance of the law. Muslims make up the religious majority in the area. They have destroyed his fence and have looted his possessions. In addition, the local police are complicit in these attempts to steal his land.

"Their first plan was to kill my husband," Mengistu's wife, Haregewoyan, said. "Now, he has escaped from the area. We are fasting and praying for God to rescue us from this forceful action,"she added.

ICC provided legal assistance to Fikere Mengistu to retain his land when Muslims previously attempted to steal it in late 2014. He won the legal battle, but now they've returned and are attempting to take it by force. The authorities are letting it happen. In the past, he has faced threats from local police officers, has been forced to pay bribes, and has been imprisoned simply because he is a Christian.

The harassment started when Mengistu built a house for his 93-year-old mother two years ago. Fearing that the village's 38 Christians would use the house to gather for prayer, dozens of Muslims began to occupy his land and would remain for weeks at a time shouting "Allahu akhbar," meaning "God is great." They even destroyed his elderly mother's home as they attempted to drive the Mengistu family off their land and use it to build a mosque. The Muslims claimed Mengistu's land belonged to the government.

However, courts at the state level (East Harerghe Zone level), and the district level (Deder) both upheld Mengistu's land title in November 2014 and April 2015, respectively. Despite the court decisions, Deder Police Commander Abadir Yuya claimed they were not valid and needed to be reviewed. Since then, the mob has continued harassing the Mengistu family.

"We did our best try to defend our faith based on the law of the country and with all our resources, including ICC budget, to pay for our legal expenses. Muslims are out of the control of the government and the law. What can we do?" Mengistu said.

The Muslim rioters have resumed construction of a mosque on the Mengistu property and have designated the structure as a voting precinct, having placed a ballot box there for the upcoming national election, Sunday, May 24. ICC's Ethiopia staffer says the mob has employed this strategy in an attempt to legally justify continued construction.

"They are expanding their new mosque and building fences," Mengistu's wife said fearfully. She remains with her five children, aged mother-in-law, and 30 other Christians praying on the property. "Please help me protect my land and secure my family and the fellow Christians," she continued.

The main culprits perpetuating the illegal construction include Zone Police representative Abdi, militia leader Heder Abdi, and District Administrator Tajur Shami, who ordered the militia to protect the project.

ICC is working with the Ethiopian Lawyers Association to advocate for the Mengistu family's property rights. Progress has stalled until after the election because government officials remain focused on election-related issues at this time.

ICC urges all concerned readers to contact East Harerge Zone Administrator Asegid at +251-91-574-44-56, the Ethiopian Ministry of Justice at +251-11-554-18-68, or Ethiopian Ambassador Girma Birru at (202) 274-4570 and express their desire for justice and protection for Mengistu and his family.

ICC's Regional Manager of Africa Troy Augustine said, "The continued harassment of the Mengistu family in Deder is unacceptable. Governing authorities in the region are charged to uphold the Ethiopian law and the decisions of the courts instead of bending to pressure from the religious majority or worse, participating in the persecution of Christians through illegal activities. These men should be stripped of their authority if they fail to uphold the Ethiopian law and religious freedom guaranteed for all Ethiopian citizens in the constitution."

For interviews, contact Troy Augustine, Regional Manager for Africa: RM-Africa@persecution.org

# # #

You are free to disseminate this news story. We request that you reference International Christian Concern (ICC) and include our web address, www.persecution.org. ICC is a Washington D.C.-based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC provides Awareness, Advocacy, and Assistance to the worldwide persecuted Church. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

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Crown of Life Blog

The Martyrdom of ST Stephen, Pietro da Cortona, 1660

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Persecuted saints benefit most from your heartfelt and earnest prayer.

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial;
for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
James 1:12

'Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the
devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so
that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Revelation 2:10

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HOW TO READ A PERSECUTION NEWS STORY

Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring me to His feet,
Lay me low, and keep me there.

"God often takes away our comforts and our privileges in order to make us better Christians. He trains His soldiers not in tents of ease and luxury, but by turning them out and subjecting them to forced marches and hard service. He makes them ford through streams, and swim through rivers, and climb mountains, and walk many long miles with heavy backpacks of sorrow. Well, Christian, may this not account for the troubles through which you are passing? Is the Lord bringing out your graces and making them grow? Is it for this reason He contends with you?"

Read Why Do I Face Trials?,
by Alistair Begg, Truth for Life Daily, at One Place

Christian persecution is just a phenomenon in the
Middle East.

Christians aren’t greatly
impacted by persecution.

Whatever persecution there is, the damage is superficial - more a loss of multicultural diversity than anything else.

Christians supposedly bring persecution upon themselves by proselytizing.

Persecution couldn’t
happen here.

Please read 5 Myths about Persecution of Christians, by
Kristin Wright, at Religion Today.

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