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Christians Flee to Refugee Camps India Gov. - Attacks Systematic
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September 27, 2008 Nepal I am in Nepal where we are preparing for our first conference with the 74 village churches the Lord has helped us establish here. The event will take place in Nepalgunj, Nepal , near the India border. There have been torrential rains here over the past two months and the landslides have us little concerned about our members from the mountain churches making their way to the conference. The churches in the southern regions where the land is flat should not have any problems traveling. The weather is clearing though and our property drying out. Calcutta I spent the past week in Calcutta, ministering to the leaders in a large and historical church in the center of the city. This amazing work was started over 50 years ago by Mark Buntain, a well known missionary leader in the Assemblies of God. The work is now lead by Ivan Satyavrata, an extremely capable Indian pastor. I was impressed with his vision for the city and Bev and I are praying about how we can serve this strategic work. The Persecution Continues As I met with Pastor Ivan and ministered to his leaders the attacks on Christians came up in every conversation. Calcutta is relatively close to Orissa, the area where the violence began. The Christians here are shaken and grieving for their suffering fellow believers. I have been moved as I have heard reports that included a young man buried alive, an orphanage burned to the ground, a nun gang raped by a mob, a young girl burned alive in her home, and a paralyzed man burned alive in his home. Fleeing family members could hear his screams but could do nothing to help him. A mob of 200 men stood around the home as it burned. The violence is coordinated and vicious. 300 Villages have been attacked, over 4,000 homes destroyed, over 50,000 people displaced, more than12,000 in government refugee camps and over 1,000 more in private camps. Five people are still missing and 45 confirmed dead. If this were a natural disaster such as a tsunami or earthquake, the international press would publish front page reports. The Persecution of India continues to be ignored. One of the radical Hindu leaders was quoted as saying, Christianity was birthed and flourished with the death of Jesus Christ but now it will die in India. ChurchAsia - P.O. Box 82080 - Baton Rouge, LA 70884changing the world...one congregation at a time |
