The waters had risen over the bridge making it virtually impossible to cross, especially with his children riding pillion. The children got off their father’s motorbike and ran ahead to the church while Thao struggled to push his motorbike through the water. Thao however, was
Hien and his wife Binh are Hmong, a tribal group that worships ancestors and give ‘gifts’ to the village witchdoctor to appease the spirits. One of Hien’s children became possessed by a demon and he would become very stiff as though bound with chains. In
A post had been erected in the middle of the village and Quy, with his hands tied behind his back, was being beaten. All the villagers were banned from coming near but they watched as three policemen mercilessly beat Quy. They kicked, punched and even
One of the two assistant pastors arrested by army officials last Christmas Eve is suffering deteriorating health from malnutrition. Pastor Dom Dawng Nawng Latt, 65, has become weak, lacks energy and suffers from asthma and dysentery, according to fellow pastor La Jaw Gam Hseng, 35,
Algerian Christians are grateful that Slimane Bouhafs, imprisoned since September 2016 for blasphemy, has received a partial pardon. His three-year sentence was reduced by 16 months on 5 July, the national day of Algeria, following a decree by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika which provided clemency to
A 23-year-old Ugandan woman was thrown out of her home by her family recently because of her new Christian faith. Rebecca came to faith in Christ after being healed of an illness. Her family had invited imams to pray, taken her to local shamans and
A court in China’s north-western Xinjiang denied the appeals of five Christians, condemning them to lengthy prison sentences. A Chinese court rejected the appeals of Zheng Lan, Cheng Yajie, Wang Lulu, Liu Yan, and Yang Zhaocun, Christians facing 3-5 year sentences for “gathering a crowd
Coptic Christians in Egypt are reeling from a fresh spate of murders, which they fear are part of a jihadist campaign against them. Three Coptic men were found dead in the space of eight days from the last week of June to the first week
Iranian Christians request prayer for Christian converts Yousef Nadarkhani, Mohammadreza Omidi, Yasser Mossayebzadeh and Saheb Fadaie, who have been given 10 year prison sentences for propagating house churches and promoting “Zionist Christianity”. Yousef and Mohammadreza have also been sentenced to 2 years’ exile, Yousef in
In the Philippines, one girl has stood firm for her Christian faith despite her young age. Not too long after accepting Christ, Jen-Jen began to experience pressure from adult authority figures, one of whom was a school teacher with militant views. One day, the teacher
Hindu militants attacked a Christian family recently as they prayed in their own home. On 3 May, Pastor ‘Falgun’, his wife and his sister and brother-in-law were praying for a sick neighbour when about 10 members of a Hindu extremist group rushed into the home
A judge in Iran has sentenced four Christians to 10 years imprisonment each for engaging in missionary activities and “conducting activities against national security.” Judge Ahmedzadeh handed down the sentences in the case involving Iranian national Nasser Navard Goltape, and Yusif Farhadov, Eldar Gurbanov and
I remember interviewing two ex-prisoners in Laos who were arrested and imprisoned for sharing the Gospel. Their treatment was severe, they were beaten then left in a small, dark prison cell, with stocks binding their ankles. Part of their punishment was to deprive them of
Christians in a village in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh are being denied access to water for their crops – to force them to deny Jesus. They have steadfastly refused. Local Hindus are refusing to sell water from their boreholes to four Christian families,
A Pakistani bike shop owner has been accused of blasphemy after telling one of his customers that Christians believe Jesus to have been the final prophet. Ashfaq Masih, 28, was arrested following accusations that he had “disrespected” Islam’s prophet, Muhammad. The incident took place in
Two Chinese students, whom the Pakistani government accused of “preaching,” were kidnapped and killed by the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS) in May. Chinese nationals, Li Xinheng and Lu Ling Lina lived in Quetta, Pakistan, where they were studying at a local language school with the
Yuri Pak was released from prison Saturday 17 June. Yuri a teacher, dean of a high school and a local church leader was sentenced to two years in prison, after being convicted of making a false emergency-services call. In April 2015, someone used Yuri’s mobile
The Eritrean government has stepped up its campaign against Christians, arresting almost a hundred followers of Christ in recent weeks. The arrests came as believers in the repressive East African country marked ten years since government officials placed the Eritrean Orthodox Patriarch, Abune Antonios, under
Al-Shabaab militants walked into Fafi Primary School, 95 km from Garissa, and shot dead a Christian teacher, Elly Oloo Ojiema ─ right in front of his pupils. They kidnapped another Christian teacher, Joseph Kamau, and a Muslim colleague who tried to protect him. The Muslim
Imprisoned as a threat to the state, Pastor Kashkumbaev had every reason to feel discouraged. But a pointed question from a Christian brother changed his perspective, leading to a powerful work of God in a Kazakhstani prison. “You will serve 10 years of hard time,”
