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Sudanese Dictator Ousted: What Next for Persecuted Believers?

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Listen to “Sudanese Dictator Ousted: What Next for Persecuted Believers?” on Spreaker.

For 30 years, Omar al-Bashir ruled Sudan with a corrupt and vicious iron fist.  During his time in power, Bashir was ruthlessly brutal to the nation’s Christian minority.  His heartlessness attracted worldwide headlines during the humanitarian crisis in Darfur last decade.

Last week, al-Bashir was finally ousted in a military coup.  But what toll did he exact on Christians in his country?  How did he target and persecute them?

In this podcast, Voice of the Martyrs Radio Host Todd Nettleton addressed those questions, examines what sort of government is likely to come next in Sudan, and why life is still very difficult for Christians in the region, even after the creation of the new nation of South Sudan.

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World Watch List Reveals Nations Most Hostile to Christians

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Listen to “World Watch List Reveals Nations Most Hostile to Christians” on Spreaker.

Communist North Korea is once against the world’s worst persecutor of Christians, but Islamic oppression is by far the greatest threat to believers around the globe according to the 2019 World Watch List from Open Doors USA.

The list of 50 nations also shows persecution sharply on the rise in prominent places like India, China, and Russia.

While persecution is on the rise in many parts of the world, Open Doors USA President and CEO Dr. David Curry says North Korea is still home of the worst brutality.

“If people know you’re a Christian, you’ll be arrested, taken to a labor camp and (you’ll) probably die there.  You’re not allowed to have a bible.  They’re illegal.  They consider Christians to be the number one enemy of the state,” said Curry.

Eight Islamic nations follow North Korea on the list – Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Sudan, Eritrea, Yemen, and Iran – with Afghanistan just a whisker behind North Korea for the worst nation to live as Christians.  India is now up to the 10th spot.

Curry says the growing strength of the Taliban makes life very difficult for believers in Afghanistan.

“There’s an underground church there but it’s very difficult for them to function,” said Curry.  “They don’t have the prison systems that North Korea does.  It’s more of a vigilante kind of a justice.  If they find out you are a Christian, you’ll be expelled from the family.  You could be beaten, killed, or raped,” said Curry.

Thirty-four of the fifty nations listed due to “Islamic oppression.”  So why do those government feel threatened by their Christian minorities?

“The ideology is what it’s all about for them.  They see Christians as apostates, as infidels.  These are radical Islamic folks who have an agenda to impose their world view on everybody, including the West if they could,” said Curry.

And why is India so high on the list?  Curry says the country has changed drastically in just a few years.

“The government has a radical Hindu agenda.  They’re attacking Christians and there are hundreds of cases against Christians and churches in that country.  They are good citizens, but it runs contrary to the BJP party’s nationalist Hindu agenda where they say you’re not an Indian unless you’re Hindu,” said Curry, noting that the government is even harassing Mother Teresa’s organization helping the poorest of the poor.

He believes a strong stand by American business leaders could make a big difference.

“I would love to see the business community in America – Amazon, Google, all these people that want to get access to that big population – look at their corporate charters.  What does it mean that we’re doing so much business in India when they have such a horrible human rights pattern here over the last six years,” said Curry.

Two other very prominent nations rocketed up the list in 2019.  China surged 16 spots to 27th, while Russia was off the list and is now at 41st.  Curry says Russia is still plagued by Islamic violence in the Caucuses but he is also worried about new religious expression rules being implemented by the government.

He considers China the big story of this year’s list, noting President Xi Jinping’s efforts to  consolidate more and more power in the state.  He says the Communist Party is infiltrating the churches because the regime is fearful of the 100 million Christians there.  Surveillance cameras are everywhere to monitor services and those refusing the cameras are shut down.  So are any pastors refusing to follow the demands for how churches ought to function..

Listen to the full podcast to hear much more about the World Watch List.  Dr. Curry explains why Christian women in these countries are the most vulnerable people in the world, where there is a major bright spot in the middle of the Islamic world, and what he hopes people do with this information.  Dr. Curry also talks about the perseverance of believers in the midst of persecution and how churches in many of these nations continue to grow.

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Are Politics Distracting Christians from Proclaiming Christ?

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Are politically active Christians a critical force in changing public policy towards a more biblical perspective or are they getting drawn into ugly political infighting that distracts them from sharing the gospel and ultimately damages their witness to unbelievers?  America’s most widely syndicated columnist fears it’s the latter.

In his latest column, longtime conservative activist and writer Cal Thomas says many Christian conservatives get so immersed in politics, they become convinced they are indispensable to God’s plans.

“There is an unstated conceit among some evangelicals that God is only at work when a Republican is elected, even a Republican who does not share their view of Jesus, or practice what He taught. It is the ultimate compromise, which leads to the corruption and dilution of a message more powerful than what government and politics offer,” writes Thomas.

In an separate interview, Thomas says the endless flurry of controversies and scandals keeps believers away from their primary mission.

“The first thing we learn about Satan in scripture is not that he’s evil – that comes later – but that he’s subtle or crafty.  And I think there’s a lot of effort in this country to get evangelicals especially off their focus on Jesus of Nazareth and onto the kingdom of this world,” said Thomas.

While the debate plays out over the allegations against Alabama U.S. Senate Roy Moore, some Christians in Alabama have used scripture to defend Moore even if he did engage in sexual contact with a 14-year-old., with the state’s auditor comparing the alleged relationship to Mary and Joseph and other likening the offense to stealing a lawn mower.

Because of the political, cultural, and moral issues at stake, Thomas says many believers they have no choice but to vote for Moore no matter the facts from 38 years ago.  Thomas disagrees.

“The argument I’m getting on Facebook and other social media is, ‘Well, the Democrat opponent is pro-abortion and you want to continue the murder of babies and Judge Moore is pro-life.’  Well, I don’t think that’s the real issue.

“Even if Moore got elected, one more vote in the Senate is not going to stop the killing of babies in this country.  The pregnancy centers and sharing the gospel for a changed life is what’s going to change them.  And that’s the greater power,” said Thomas.

The bottom line, says Thomas, is that too many Christians are looking to politics for the solutions to life’s problems.

“Too many of us are worshiping at the shrine of Washington politics and especially the Republican Party.  That is always bound to disappoint, as we’ve seen with a Republican majority in both houses of Congress and a supposed Republican in the White House that [are not] getting anything done,” said Thomas.

Thomas has plenty of experience at the intersection of faith and politics, teaming up with the late Rev. Jerry Falwell in the late 1970s to urge evangelical Christians to get involved in politics and to make a positive difference.

He says he learned some hard lessons from that experience.

“I was vice president of Moral Majority.  I was there.  We thought we were going to organize conservative evangelicals and conservative Catholics and Orthodox Jews into a voting bloc that would give trickle-down morality from Washington.  It didn’t work because none of that changes the human heart.  The gospel of Jesus Christ changes human hearts, and when hearts are changed, nations are changed,” said Thomas.

So what is the proper role of Christians in the public square?  Thomas says there are some things they should be doing.

“We should vote.  We should pray for those in authority, but we shouldn’t expect more from government than it can deliver,” said Thomas.

What believers should not do, according to Thomas, is mistake earth for their permanent home.

“This is not our kingdom.  This is not where we’re going to spend eternity.  The world is going in the direction that the scriptures forecast.  These people who say they’re going to make the world a better place, no you’re not.  That’s left up to Jesus when he returns.

“He’s the only one who’s going to make the world a better place because he’s going to restore it to the way it was.  We’re not going to be able to do that through the political system,” said Thomas.

Many Christian conservatives push back on that argument by pointing out they are active precisely to resist movements antithetical to scripture, including abortion, the changed definition of marriage and other secular movements aimed at culture and their children.

Thomas says Christians have always been persecuted, including the crucifixion of Christ Himself, and urges Christians to live out the gospel rather than responding in kind in contentious debates.

“We should turn the other cheek.  We should be respectful and kind to our enemies.  We’re to love our enemies, pray for those who persecute us, visit those in prison, care for widows and orphans, feed the hungry and clothe the naked.

“Not as a social gospel as our friends on the left do – salvation by works – but as a means of demonstrating God’s love for the physical self so that you can share the greater message of their greater need, which is transformation, not reformation,” said Thomas.

Thomas says embracing Christ’s commands to love God with all our hearts, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourself would give non-believers a radially different view of what it means to be a Christian.

“The average unbeliever looks at believers today and what do they see?  We’re against all kinds of stuff.  We’ve got a long, long list of everything we’re against, but what are we for?  Who are we for?  [Jesus’ commands] are the greatest evangelistic tool that Jesus ever gave us.  But how many people actually apply it?” asked Thomas.

“If we obeyed the calling of Jesus and His instructions, this world would be turned upside down,” said Thomas.

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Dems Coming Clean on Single Payer, Sarsour’s Sick Con Job, Cruel Texas Cartoon

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Alexandra DeSanctis of National Review and Greg Corombos of Radio America are actually glad to see Sen. Kamala Harris and other national Democrats admitting they want single payer, government-run health care for everyone and they hope America is still ready to reject it.  They also hammer radical activist Linda Sarsour for acting as if she’s raising money for hurricane victims when her real goal to build up the bank of her organization to foster division along ethnic, racial, and gender lines.  They also pound Politico for a horrible political cartoon characterizing Texans as confederate, Christian rubes who should realize they are being rescued by government rather than God.  And they close by shaking their heads at the cases of Americans who injured themselves by applying sunscreen directly to their eyeballs to look at the recent solar eclipse.

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Forgiveness and Resolve

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The testimonies of persecuted Christians and policy proposals to address the brutality highlighted the World Summit in Defense of Persecuted Christians this week in Washington, and both left religious freedom activists ready to work even harder to protect the right of free religious expression around the world.

Persecution of Christians is on the rise throughout the world, with some experts concluding we’re seeing the worst oppression of believers in recent memory.

“We are definitely seeing an expansion of persecution issues around the world.  Pew Center estimates that 79 percent of the world lives in a place that faces high or very high social hostilities and government restrictions on religion and religious expression.  That’s true for the persecuted church but it’s also true for all sorts of other places as well,” said 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative Director of Policy Relations Nathan Wineinger.

He says this week’s summit had a two-fold purpose.

“The main focus was on figuring out how people around the world can call leaders to account and make sure that the persecution of Christians is addressed in policy and in practice on the ground,” said Wineinger.

“We (also) heard from people who experienced really horrific moments of persecution.  Also people from Iraq and Syria talked about the importance of Christian forgiveness in confronting persecution issues,” said Wineinger.

He says the testimonies of persecuted believers were the most gripping moments of the summit.

“I heard the story about a pastor who had been abducted in Iraq and for nine days was held and tortured, and then after that is finally released.  When he gets out, he goes and tells his congregation to forgive the people who had persecuted him and to not take vengeance,” said Wineinger.

He says similar acts of love were also heard.

“It was extremely powerful to hear those people talking about how they’re moving forward, how they’re bringing healing to their communities, about how they’re bringing aid, food and shelter to displaced people.  That was really powerful testimony about how to respond to persecution,” said Wineinger.

While the scourge of ISIS in Iraq and Syria dominates headlines related to persecution, Wineinger says there are plenty of other places where persecution is rampant, including countries most Americans rarely think about.

“Sri Lanka faces dozens of situations where churches are attacked or individuals are attacked.  That’s a country we don’t hear about very much because it’s a small country but persecution is happening there,” said Wineinger.

The 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative is calling for some specific steps around the globe, namely for the United Nations to appoint a special envoy to the Lake Chad area of Africa, where Boko Haram is still wreaking havoc on believers.

Here at home, the group is urging President Trump to put forward a nominee to be U.S. ambassador for religious freedom.

“Now that we have a new administration, we need to see that administration maintain that commitment with a highly-qualified individual and they need to put that individual in quickly so that the work of the International Religious Freedom office at the State Department can continue,” said Wineinger.

Wineinger says there is already a dedicated staff in place but it cannot do much until a leader is in place who will not only chart a clear course but also have the ear of the president and secretary of state.

He also says another priority is to implement a new religious freedom training program for foreign service officers that became law last year.

“The Frank R. Wolf International Freedom Act that President Obama signed into law last year requires that foreign service officers take training on the importance of religious freedom and how that composes part of our human rights initiatives.  It;s very important that that training be put into place so that foreign service officers have the tool and training they need to be advocates for religious freedom in embassies around the world,” said Wineinger.

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