July
8, 2016
‘Do what you like to us: we won’t leave
Christ’
Hindu
extremists in India have given a group of Christians a stark choice: stop
worshipping Jesus or we’ll kill you. And local police have threatened to fine
believers if they hold church services in public.
Please
pray for your church family in
Hunter village, Jharkhand state. The 25 Christians there are standing firm in
their faith, despite death threats – but at a high personal cost.
The
six families concerned are Dalits or ‘untouchables’, the lowest of the low in
Hindu society. They are also now being denied the right to buy basic foodstuffs
at subsidised rates.
Their
troubles started in May when 100 Hindu villagers summoned them to a meeting and
told them it was wrong to follow Christ.
Pastor
Sanjay Kumar Ravi responded by sharing a testimony of how Jesus healed him in
2007. Furious villagers beat him and five others with sticks, hanging them
upside down by their legs.
Yet,
the Christians stood firm. ‘Do
whatever you like, we are not going to leave Christ at any cost,’ they
said.
When
the believers reported the attack to police, officers forced Christians to sign
a statement that they would worship only at home or risk stiff fines. Last month
extremists threatened to kill the Christians, after one of them again resisted
pressure to deny Jesus.
- Pray that God will heal the six Christians who were beaten. Naresh Ram’s hands were broken and Pastor Sanjay has internal injuries that cause severe chest pain.
- Pray that moderate Hindus in Hunter will reject extremism and support local Christians.
- Pray that President Narendra Modi and his Government will take a firm stand against the religious intolerance which appears to be growing in India.
(Source:
Morning Star News)
Release
Int.
