Religious Persecution in 21st Century
Many Christians in more than 40 countries are in prisons serving sentences ranging from a few months to life.
By Dale Linder-Altman 11.04.05
Christian persecution and martyrdom are words that seem alien in the 21st century. They’re words that kindle visions of Christians facing lions in the Coliseum or tied to flaming stakes during the Middle Ages. But though many Christians are unaware of it, some of their spiritual brothers and sisters are facing persecution, prison and even death throughout the world today.
Dr. Rebekkah Zakaria and several friends are serving a three year sentence in a prison in West Java, Indonesia for “attempting to coerce children to change their religion” – even though the children had their guardians’ permission to attend Zakaria’s Sunday school classes.
Zakaria, a medical doctor who once treated 30-40 patients per day in her clinic, now spends her time in a filthy prison. She sleeps on a wooden platform without blankets or a pillow. She and other prisoners have to pay the guards to turn on the water to flush the toilets. They get barely enough food to survive.
Even though she is imprisoned and separated from her two children, Zakaria holds no grudges against those who brought charges against her. She shares her testimony with her fellow prisoners and was recently overjoyed when a male prisoner accepted Christ.
Zakaria’s story is available as part of the program called “Doing Hard Time for God.” This project was organized by Archbishop Gary Beaver of the Old Catholic Church in England to raise the public’s awareness of religious persecution and urge intervention in behalf of the prisoners.
Many Christians in more than 40 countries are in prisons serving sentences ranging from a few months to life, Beaver said in a recent news release. These Christians are not murderers or thieves. They are not heroes or statistics.
“They’re our Christian brothers and sisters,” Beaver said. “Our persecuted brothers and sisters do not have to suffer in silence; we can join in their trials and triumphs as co-workers in Christ.”
The Southern Baptist Press also publishes stories of modern Christians who are suffering for their faith, including that of Bektas Erdogan. A fashion designer in Istanbul, Erdogan has been a Christian for 11 years. When he went to work for a designer jeans company earlier this year, his Muslim employer promised to evaluate Erdogan on the basis of his work and not his religion.
Recently, his first collection sold well in Russia, and Erdogan’s employer called him in to work on Sunday afternoon. Erdogan expected to receive congratulations, but instead, his employer and several other men accused him of “missionary work” and brainwashing the other employees. They beat him in the face and head and shot at him three times, but the gun failed to fire.
After several hours, Erdogan was released, but his captors warned him that they’d kill him. He has received a number of threatening phone calls, but has not turned to the police because he fears that his employer, who has ties to the local police, will make him the target of further aggression.
Other Christian organizations describe increased persecution worldwide. Voice of the Martyr and the Christian Monitor report persecution in Indonesia, India, China, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Nigeria, and Azerbaijan and Eritrea, etc. during 2005.
According to Beaver, more than half of today’s Christians face some form of discrimination, ridicule, restrictions or persecutions. Over 2.7 billion people live in nations where a freedom of religion is understood. Recent estimates indicate that 200 millions Christians face actual persecution while another 350 millions face discriminations and restrictions.
This persecution of the Christian faith comes in fulfillment of prophecy, Beaver said. “Jesus warned that ‘if they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you also.’ (John 15:20) As more and more governments separate the Church and State, which is a worrying reality, we should be aware of greater levels of acceptable persecution. ‘I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.’" (Revelation 17:6)
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