Iranian Pastor Sentenced to Death - Update

Those of you following this story will recall that Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani has been condemned to death for apostasy because he converted from Islam to Christianity. When news of this travesty created protests from other nations, Iranian officials claimed that he was to be executed for sex crimes. This was obviously fabricated since none of this was mentioned in the court proceedings. Revealingly, he was recently given another chance to walk away - by denying his Christian faith.

Pastor Yousef recently refused to state that the Muslim prophet Muhammad was a messenger sent by God, despite the fact that it would have secured his release. On December 30, local authorities said they would release the pastor if he agreed to make the statement, but he rejected the offer and remains in prison awaiting a final decision on his case. The request violates article 23 of the Iranian Constitution, which states that no one should be molested or taken to task simply for holding a certain belief.

The pastor at the Church of Iran was arrested in Rasht in 2009, and in September 2010, he was tried and found guilty of apostasy and sentenced to death. He was made three similar offers in 2011 where recanting his faith would have saved his life, but he refused each time. His case was eventually referred to Iran's Supreme Leader. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the case may have been passed on to the head of the Iranian judiciary, delaying execution for up to a year to allow time to convince the pastor to renounce his faith. (Source: Christian Solidarity Worldwide)

This Pastor is one of many Christians around the world who are facing imrisonment, torture or even death for their faith. Another such case is that of Asia Bibi of Pakistan, a Christian wife and mother sentenced to die for allegedly committing blasphemy against Islam. She says she has forgiven those who are persecuting her. She recently told a Pakistani journalist, who asked her a list of questions prepared by an American journalist, that she spends her time praying and fasting for her family and other persecuted Christians.

Asia is confined to a cell and is allowed to go outside 30 minutes each day. She sees her two daughters and husband one hour each week. Asia told her interviewer that one of the prison workers recently tried to strangle her, and she must prepare her own food since it is feared she will be poisoned if workers in the prison prepare it. Life for All is supporting her family and has hired a lawyer to try and overturn the conviction. She says she is hopeful that she will be released, but there is a bounty of about $8,000 offered by the Islamic clerics to anyone who will kill her. Asia says she is content that her future is in God's hands and she will accept His will. (Source: VOM-USA, Atlas Shrugs)

When I read of these, and so many others like them, I am reminded of what the writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 11:38 - "...the world was not worthy of them." It is a challenge for we Christians living in relative ease to stand with our brothers and sisters in Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan, Nigeria and a host of other countries where claiming the name of Christ can get you killed.

There are at least three things all of us can do at a minimum. 1. Be informed. Subscribe to news feeds like VOM, because, Lord knows, you certainly won't hear the whole story from the mainline media. 2. Pray. We are Christians. The Bible tells us to pray for those who are suffering, and also for those doing the persecuting. Remember that at one time the Apostle Paul, perhaps the greatest of all Christian missionaries, was a persecuter of the church. Pray that the church would advance in spite of the persecution and that those facing challenges would have courage and know God's peace. 3. Spread the word. Use whatever means and networks you have at your disposal to let others know what is happening. Don't let these brave men and women stand alone.

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Pakistan and Osama Bin Laden

It will be interesting watching the fallout from the death of Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan after a ten year search. Of particular interest will be the ongoing relationship between the U.S. and Pakistan. Pakistan has consistently denied that
Bin Laden was hiding out in their country or that they knew where he was. Yet he was found in Abbottabad, near Islamabad, in a compound with re-enforced structures surrounded by barbed wire. This was obviously suspicious, particularly for a country naturally wary of foreigners. Even more telling, his hideout was almost across the road from a Pakistani military training base.

So, here's the question: were the Pakistanis lying or are they completely incompetent? My bet is that they are lying. The truth is that the U.S. has never trusted the Pakistani government and, even now, is only playing nice to help them save face. They didn't inform them until the operation, apparently by Navy seals, was complete precisely because they were afraid that someone would tip off Bin Laden and he would disappear again.

There are some elements within the Pakistani government who are pro-Western, but there are many who also would favour the Taliban and even Al Qaida. Many areas of Pakistan are beyond government control, but this was "civilization." Someone knew, but who, and how does the U.S. government proceed from here?

It seems, to this point, that the Americans approach is to play nice and pretend that all is well. The Pakistanis are doing the only thing they can - claiming that this was a good thing and that they're okay with the fact an American president ordered his soldiers to launch a military operation on their soil without informing them. We must assume there are some very animated conversations going on behind closed doors in Pakistan. It is this instability that is particularly unsettling, especially since Pakistan has nuclear capability.

It will be interesting to see what happens in Pakistan over the next few months and years. If they "officially" become an enemy it will make the war in Afghanistan even more complicated than it is already. At minimum it adds to the instability of an increasingly volatile Muslim world. Nothing is easy in this day and age of massive change and cultural clashes, but President Obama did what he had to do when he had the opportunity. Let's hope the short-term elation doesn't give way to more long-term problems. Time will tell.

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Remember My Chains

A few times on this site I have written about the plight of Christians in different parts of the world. There have been a few reports over the past few weeks, that have caught my attention, which have not been widely reported by the popular media. What is normally reported is what is referred to as "religious violence" between Christians and Muslims or Christians and Hindus, etc... Digging a little deeper, what this usually means is that Christians have been attacked by a group representing whatever the religious majority of the country or region involved.

This article is not designed to absolve the Christian church of all guilt; we are all familiar with the crusades and other shameful periods in church history. Suffice it to say that those who participated in these and other regrettable chapters over the centuries were actually acting against the teachings of Jesus Christ. Thankfully, church leaders have gone to great lengths to try to make amends for these events, though they took place in the distant past. The full text of the apology issued to Muslims is given below. If you wish to read more on the "Reconciliation Walk," click on the link.

"Nine hundred years ago, our forefathers carried the name of Jesus Christ in battle across the Middle East. Fuelled by fear, greed and hatred, they betrayed the name of Christ by conducting themselves in a manner contrary to His wishes and character. The Crusaders lifted the banner of the Cross above your people. By this act, they corrupted its true meaning of reconciliation, forgiveness and selfless love.

"On the anniversary of the first Crusade, we also carry the name of Christ. We wish to retrace the footsteps of the Crusaders in apology for their deeds and in demonstration of the true meaning of the Cross. We deeply regret the atrocities committed in the name of Christ by our predecessors. We renounce greed, hatred and fear, and condemn all violence done in the name of Jesus Christ.

"Where they were motivated by hatred and prejudice, we offer love and brotherhood. Jesus the Messiah came to give life. Forgive us for allowing His name to be associated with death. Please accept again the true meaning of the Messiah's words:

"'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.' As we go, we bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ."

I'm thankful that there are good things happening in the area of reconciliation, but what I'd like to do today is to draw our attention to the millions who are suffering for their Christian faith in the world today. According to estimates, there are an average of 171,000 people being martyred for their Christian faith every year. As I said earlier, rarely do we hear of these through normal news channels. Let me draw attention to a few of them.

March 24, 2011 - (Mauritania) A report was received from Mauritania that a Christian Pastor named Ahmadou Abu Bakr was murdered by Islamists. He left a wife and three children, now in hiding. He had been kidnapped sometime before. His bullet-riddled body was discovered on March 6. It was reported that he was the fourth Christian martyred in that region of Mauritania since 2009. There was no report of arrests made.

March 23, 2011 - (Pakistan) As Christians gathered to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their Salvation Army church in Hyderabad, Pakistan, a group of young Muslims gathered nearby and began to harass young women who were making their way to the service. When some of the men came out to protect the women, some of the Islamists left and came back with weapons. They opened fire on the Christians, killing Younis Masih and Jameel Masih and seriously injuring two others. None of the identified attackers had been arrested by police. This comes on the heels of the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, the only Christian member of government in Pakistan. Bhatti was an outspoken critic of the anti-blasphemy law, used by Muslims to imprison Christians and other minorities. A Christian imprisoned for blasphemy also recently died in prison after being regularly beaten.

March 23, 2011 - (Iraq) A report by Sarah MacDonald tells us that conditions for Christians in Iraq are so critical it's been described as "near-genocidal." Since 2003 more than 500 Christians have been murdered. Islamic activists have targeted Christians in an effort to purge the country of a Christian community dating back almost 2,000 years. The increasing pressure on Christians has caused many to flee the country, bringing the estimated Christian population from about 1.3 million in 1991 to about 500,000 today.

March 23, 2011 - (China) ChinaAID reports that yet another Chinese house church was raided on March 13, 2011. 12 Christians were arrested, 2 of whom still remain in detention. They are Weng and Zhang Yongkuan. Police confiscated all Bibles and other books. Thousands of Christians remain in prison or in "re-education camps" in China. Many disappear, never to be heard from again.

March 22, 2011 - (Nigeria) The Stefanos Foundation, an organization established to support the persecuted church in Nigeria, reports an attempted bombing of a church on Sunday, March 20, 2011. The timer on the bomb apparently malfunctioned and it blew up prematurely, killing two attempted Islamic terrorists. Earlier that day, three Christians had been murdered at Duala Junction and six other Christians were being treated in hospital for stab wounds. Muslim elders in the region declared a jihad (holy war)on Christians on December 28, 2010, stating their intentions to cause such mayhem that the government would be forced to declare a state of emergency.

As you can see, these are all reports from within a less than one-week period. The following video on behalf of Christian martyrs was prepared by Voice of the Martys Canada. Please pray for Christians around the world who are suffering for their faith.



Items of Interest;
Shahbaz Bhatti - Christian Martyr
Modern-Day Martyrs in Turkey - A Reprise
Modern-day Martyrs in Turkey
Assumptions

Shahbaz Bhatti - Christian Martyr

Shahbaz Bhatti, the only openly Christian Member of Parliament in Pakistan, was murdered by Islamic terrorists on March 2, 2011. He had been threatened repeatedly for opposing Pakistan's blasphemy law which had been used as an excuse by Muslims to have Christians and other minorities arrested and imprisoned. He was a courageous man of God.