The
leader and founder of Christianity was
himself persecuted and unjustly murdered.
We are followers of Jesus who said that
we are to follow in his footsteps. If
we are faithful to this call, we will
find that following Jesus leads all
the way to the cross. But we also know
that beyond the cross is redemption
and glory.
While we pray that we not be brought
to the test and that we be delivered
from evil, we also need to see the role
of suffering and persecution in the
plan of salvation. Where there is no
persecution and the Christian faith
is predominant, Christians become complacent
and comfortable, no longer having to
face giving up their very lives for
their faith. Pretty soon, they have
been devoured by the world and have
become nominal Christians. This has
happened to the western nations of the
Americas and Europe. How ironic it is
that the nations who brought the faith
to the rest of the world, such as Spain,
are now in what is called the post-Christian
era, and even antagonistic to authentic
Christian faith.
But
when is the faith strongest? When Christians
are threatened and persecuted, because
they then face a situation where they
do not just profess their faith, but
have to live it out to the full. Where
is the faith strongest today? In places
where Christians are a minority and
where they are not free to fully express
their faith, like China, Vietnam, Saudi
Arabia, Israel. Christians there, if
they are truly serious about living
out their faith, face danger and persecution.
The early Christian Church was most
vibrant when the Christians were being
imprisoned, fed to the lions, crucified.
The blood of the martyrs propelled the
faith.
Today,
true Christians in so-called Christian
nations like the USA, Canada, Australia
and the countries of Europe, can expect
to be persecuted in another way. This
is when laws are passed to legalize
abortion, contraception, same-sex unions,
and the like. Together with this, laws
will be passed that will penalize certain
acts, such as speaking against homosexuality
(hate speech), putting up Christian
symbols, homeschooling, physical discipline
of children, praying at abortion clinics,
and the like. In this way, Christians
in so-called democratic countries will
face imprisonment, crippling fines,
the state taking away their children,
and the like.
The
persecution of Christians is intensifying,
not just in non-Christian nations but
in every nation as well. Such persecution
will test the quality and intensity
of our faith. Let us praise God for
the privilege of suffering for Him,
and if need be, giving up our very lives
for our faith.
Report:
most persecuted religion is Christianity
- 200 million suffering
Thaddeus Baklinski|Tue Nov 30
17:22 EST|Faith ROME, November
30, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com)
- The 2010 “Report on Religious
Freedom in the World” by the Catholic
organization Aid to the Church in Need
(ACN) states that Christianity
is the most persecuted religion in the
world, with at least 200 million people
suffering from discrimination.
The
report notes that in 21 of the 194 countries
studied, there is almost no religious
freedom, and that worldwide, out of
every ten people, seven cannot live
their faith in full freedom.
Two
types of religious persecution - one
by state policy and one by members of
other religions - are identified.
Peter
Sefton Williams, Chairman of Aid to
the Church in Need, commented that the
report identifies government-sanctioned
persecution in many parts of the world,
but particularly in Asia.
“Political
oppression and discrimination, come
from countries like China, from Cuba,
from North Korea, and from countries
like Vietnam,” Williams said in
a RomeReports video.
Noting
that persecution that comes from other
religions is particularly acute in some
countries with a Muslim majority, Williams
pointed to “places like Saudi
Arabia where it’s impossible for
any Christian or indeed any other group,
non-Muslim group, to organize and to
have open public prayer. We think of
places like Somalia, or we think of
Sudan.”
Marie-Claude
Lalonde, National Director of Aid to
the Church in Need (ACN) Canada, recalled
the massacre of Syrian Catholic Christians
in Baghdad on October 31, calling it
“a reality that is sadly growing
all over the world: religious freedom
is more and more threatened.”
“While
terrorists blasted through the group
of faithful gathered for mass, witnesses
of the attack reported a child, three
years of age, crying out: ‘Enough,
enough!’ He was shot at point
blank range by the assailants, just
as were 44 other people and two priests,”
Lalonde said.
“This
child’s cry recalls the essentiality
and necessity of continuing to speak
in the name of all those who, every
day, all over the planet, are persecuted
because of their religious beliefs,”
Lalonde remarked, adding, “Unfortunately,
the overall picture has not improved
very much. If some local conflicts have
ended since the publication of the last
report in 2008, like in Burundi, we
can observe little or no improvement
in Cuba, Iran, Israel, nor in Pakistan.”
“What
happened about a month ago in Iraq recalls
that religious fundamentalism is still
powerful,” Lalonde said.
In
Pakistan, the use of the blasphemy law
against religious minorities, especially
against Christians, was denounced by
Msgr. Joseph Coutts, the vice president
of the Catholic Episcopal Conference
of Pakistan.
Noting
the worsening situation of Christians
in his country, he particularly criticized
the blasphemy law, which invokes punishments
as severe as the death penalty to anyone
who speaks out against the Koran or
the Prophet Muhammad.
Although
the Pakistani government has not so
far executed anyone for blasphemy, some
defendants have been killed by radicals
acting on their own initiative.
“We
want to have our equality and all our
rights as equal citizens of Pakistan.
We are not against our country, we want
to stay in the country. We are not leaving
the country,” Msgr. Coutts said
in the RomeReports video.
A
case in point is that of Asia Bibi,
a 45-year-old Christian woman from a
village outside Lahore, who was sentenced
to death after being found guilty by
a Punjab court of insulting the Prophet
Mohammed.
Auxiliary
Bishop Sebastian Shaw of Lahore wrote
a letter in her defense which he presented
personally at the Vatican.
In
response, Pope Benedict XVI made a public
statement appealing on Asia’s
behalf.
The
verdict is expected to be appealed to
Pakistan’s High Court. Bishop
Shaw told Aid to the Church in Need
in an
interview November 29 that
he was hopeful of success.
“Some
High Court lawyers have said they have
already studied the case and believe
that the charges against her are not
proven. The right way to proceed is
for Christian lawyers and human rights
activists to work together on an appeal
case. Through these means we will succeed,”
Bishop Shaw said.
The
ACN report also reveals that religious
freedom has declined in the United States
and Europe by the radicalization of
secularism.
Spain
is cited for its prohibition of religious
symbols in public places, while France
and Germany are mentioned for discrimination
against Islamic communities and hostility
toward the Catholic Church because of
their position on family issues and
defense of life.
For
more information on the activities of
Aid to the Church in Need, visit their
website here. (http://www.churchinneed.org/site/PageServer?pagename=mainpage)
The
2010 Report on Religious Freedom in
the World will be available worldwide
in six languages on CD-Rom. In Canada
it will be available in French and English
and may be ordered by phone or email.
Aid
to the Church in Need Canada
Phone: 514-932-0552, 1-800-585-6333
Email: info@acn-aed-ca.org.
"For
to me to live is Christ, and to die
is gain." (Phil 1:21)