Persecution of Christians

[pinqy]

Right. I hear that is the case atheists brought before the courts in Europe.. Arrest any Christian overheard saying Jesus is the Only Way into Heaven and it is hell for all those who reject salvation. What is the crime called? Terrorism. They claim the gospel instills fear into their hearts.

Whoever you heard that from was lying.

It's the law there.

That is untrue. It is certainly not the law anywhere in Europe. Now, specifically targetting and saying Group X will go to Hell, may well run afoul of hate speech laws in some countries, but that's not what you were claiming.

 

[freedombecki]

despite being worth an estimated T$40 billion and taking in $8 billion a year from tithes. The article says that the LDS church gives away less than one percent of its annual income to charity.
Read more at Mormon Church Upset by Bloomberg Businessweek's Cover Mocking Founder, Wealth

That's not 100% on the mark, uscitizen. I lived next door to Mormon country for 35 years. All they make goes to a church that (1) teaches families how to take care of each other (2) re-establishes people who have no home, no car, no job, etc., to having from their pockets (3) refusal to publish good works for human praise (a biblical idea, BTW) (4) gives scholarships to many, many young people whether they are Mormons or not.

Mormons I knew were first and foremost good neighbors. Individuals gave a ton of money to secular schools, supported teams, and rehabilitation community centers, not to mention gifts to the medical community of hospital equipment not otherwise affordable.

I have no pony in the Mormon show, but I will tell you that as human beings, they prosper neighbor, other citizens' businesses, communities, state, and nation in ways you will never hear about because of their adherence to (3) above.

 

[waltky]

Christian persecution in Pakistan...

Violence Against Christians Flares in Pakistan Amid Charges of ‘Blasphemy’
March 11, 2013 – Christian schools in several cities remained closed on Monday following the weekend looting and torching of more than 150 Christians’ homes and stores by a Muslim mob riled by allegations of “blasphemy” against Mohammed.

The violence in Lahore, the capital of Punjab state, sparked protests by Christians there and in other cities, in some cases leading to clashes with police. Senior church leader Bishop Azad Marshall appealed to the Christian community to remain calm but also called for justice. Police officials said some of those involved in the attacks in a Christian enclave known as Joseph Colony had been identified from media footage and had been arrested. But few accused of similar offenses in the part have been convicted or punished. Also under arrest is the Christian whose alleged blasphemy is being blamed by the mob for their behavior.

Named by police as Sawan Masih, the 28 year-old has been charged under section 295-C of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, which states, “Whoever by words, either spoken or written or by visible representation, or by any imputation, innuendo, or insinuation, directly or indirectly, defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) shall be punished with death.” The latest violence comes just days after Pakistani Christians voiced concern about the way non-Muslim minorities fare under the country’s electoral system as the May elections approach.

At an election rally in Peshawar on Sunday, the leader of one of the major parties campaigning in the election, Imran Khan of the Movement for Justice party, deplored the violence and pointed a finger at one of his rivals, Nawaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), whose support base is in Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province. Khan blasted Sharif’s party for making electoral alliances with “terrorists” – an apparent reference to Sunni Tehreek, which signed an electoral pact with the PML-N in early February. Sunni Tehreek is a radical group within the Barelvi movement of Sunni Islam. Sometimes viewed in the West as moderates because they oppose al-Qaeda, Barelvis hold extreme views regarding shari’a and blasphemy, and Sunni Tehreek has often been at the center of anti-Christian agitation.

Khan at his rally also accused Punjab’s PML-N government of encouraging an environment where anti-Christian violence could thrive by not ensuring justice after a previous such attack in the province, in a town called Gojra in 2009. Eight Christians died during that incident which, like the latest one, was triggered by blasphemy allegations. If the provincial government had caught those responsible for Gojra, Khan said, then the weekend attack in Joseph Colony may have been avoided altogether. “The Punjab government should be ashamed,” he said.

‘Mosque incitement’

See also:

Egypt's Christians Think U.S. Is Backing Muslim Brotherhood, Congressman Warns
March 8, 2013 – A Republican congressman who recently returned from a Mideast visit warns of eroding U.S. credibility, citing a perception among Egyptians that the Obama administration is supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and employing a double standard by overlooking abuses, especially those targeting minority Christians.

Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), a veteran religious freedom advocate, visited the region to hear first-hand the concerns of Christians about their future amid turmoil in their countries. In a report on his trip, he urged the administration to pursue policies emphasizing the need to protect minority rights, particularly in its dealings with Egypt’s new government and the anti-Assad opposition in Syria. In Egypt, Wolf reported that apart from his interaction with government officials, “no one painted a rosy picture for the future of Egypt.” “In fact, many suggested that life was better under [ousted former president Hosni] Mubarak. I was repeatedly told that the new government led by President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood is ignoring women’s rights, human rights and religious rights.”

Wolf witnessed the perception that the U.S. is backing the Muslim Brotherhood. (Secretary of State John Kerry heard the same complaints during his recent visit to Cairo, as did his predecessor before him.) “I was told people think the United States is developing relationships with the Muslim Brotherhood because it believes the party is going to remain in power,” Wolf said. “[T]he feeling is that as long as the Brotherhood protects the United States’ interests in the region, it can act with impunity within its borders.” Wolf met with Copts and other Christians, and heard about at atmosphere of intolerance towards Christians and women, regularly fostered in television programming. “Churches have been desecrated, and no permits to build new churches have been granted since January 2011,” he said. January 2011 marked the start of the protests that led by Mubarak’s departure. “By most accounts, U.S. policy has not evolved to meet the new realities in Egypt,” Wolf said. “We have embraced the Morsi government the same way we embraced the Mubarak government to the detriment of other elements of Egyptian civil society – elements with which we have a natural affinity. “While such groups may not take the reins of leadership in the near future, they are central to the Egyptian democratic experiment, and we can bolster their standing and effectiveness if we take the long-term view.”

Noting that Egypt has received more than $60 billion in U.S. foreign assistance over three decades, Wolf called for changes in the way aid is given. “Given the Mubarak regime’s human rights and religious freedom abuses, I have long believed this assistance should be conditioned on improvements in these areas,” he said. “Now with the Muslim Brotherhood at the helm, and the transition to a mature democracy with all that entails far from certain, I am more convinced than ever that aid to Egypt must be conditioned upon the government respecting and upholding universally recognized human rights norms.” Clear benchmarks should be set to determine whether Egypt really is moving in the right direction. Also, the waiver authority built into existing legislation relating to aid to Egypt should be removed, Wolf said, “since the State Department, without fail and irrespective of changes on the ground, uses the waiver.”

Source

 

[waltky]

Iran persecutin' Christians...

Iran puts five Christians on trial for their faith
March 11, 2013 - Five Iranian Christian converts who were detained late last year will reportedly begin trial in Iran’s Revolutionary Court this week, according to a human rights group following the case.

The five men were among seven arrested in October when security forces raided an underground house church in the city of Shiraz during a prayer session. They will be tried at the Revolutionary Court in Shiraz’s Fars Province on charges of disturbing public order, evangelizing, threatening national security and engaging in Internet activity that threatens the government, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a religious persecution watchdog group. “Judging from recent cases, it is likely that, at the very least, those detained may face lengthy prison sentences,” said CSW spokesperson Kiri Kankhwende. According to Kankhwende, the crackdown against Christian converts and house churches parallels a general increase in repression against many, including journalists, religious and cultural minorities and others as the government is leading up to June’s presidential elections.

The five imprisoned men, Mohammad Roghangir, Surush Saraie, Eskandar Rezaie, Shahin Lahooti and Massoud Rezaie are members of the Church of Iran denomination, one of the country's largest house church movements. “There has been a noticeable increase in the harassment, arrests, trials and imprisonments of converts to Christianity, particularly since the beginning of 2012," Kankhwende said. "Any movement that differs from or offers an alternative to orthodox Shia Islam, and any persons who chooses to follow an alternative belief system, are interpreted as a challenge to the very state itself.” The underground church network has been rapidly growing in Iran as a place where converts from Islam to Christianity can pray as they are forbidden to attend services at formal churches.

Alongside the growing network of home churches has been the increase in violent crackdowns and raids on these communities and arrests made on Christian converts, among them the internationalized case of Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, held for almost three years on charges of apostasy and more recently American Pastor Saeed Abedini who is currently serving an eight-year sentence for evangelizing and threatening national security. “House churches are growing because the converts have nowhere else to go,” said Tiffany Barrans, international legal director at the American Center for Law and Justice, “When you’re a convert to Christianity in Iran, you can't go worship at the church on the corner, because conversion is not acceptable. If they were allowed to go to an official place of worship, there wouldn't be a house church movement,” Barrans said. “Essentially they have created the house church problem and now use it to persecute its own people.”

Read more: Iran puts five Christians on trial for their faith | Fox News

 

[koshergrl]

I have stumbled onto the anti-Christian death cultist thread.

Joy. I was wondering where the pigs were congregating, and now I know.

 

[waltky]

Christians Persecuted In Pakistan, Middle East...

Minorities, including Christians, at receiving end in Pakistan
Friday, March 15, 2013 - Nearly 2.2 billion Christians across the globe, 37.5 per cent of whom live in North and South America and 25.7 per cent of whom reside in Europe, are today wary of the treatment meted out to the followers of Jesus Christ and readers of the Holy Bible in most parts of the Muslim world, though they are also distressed over the state of affairs in non-Muslim countries like India.

While the followers of the world’s largest religion, are visibly rattled over the recent Joseph Colony disaster in Lahore where an unruly mob had set ablaze the houses of the Christians, besides reducing their belongings to mere ashes, they are yet to erase the memories of a six-month old incident when the prayer leader of an Islamabad mosque was arrested by police on charges of fabricating the evidence that he had used to accuse a 14-year old Christian girl Rimsha Masih of blasphemy. Just to recall, in September 2012, poor Rimsha Masih could have faced a death penalty for allegedly desecrating the Quran, but a timely testimony from an eye-witness in her favour and against the prayer leader has saved her from going to the gallows.

We all know that non-Muslim minorities like the Hindus, Ahmadis and Sikhs etc and have already voiced grave concern, and so have their sympathizers in the US and Europe, over the failure of successive Pakistani regimes to protect the rights of minorities in a country where over 2.9 million followers of seven different faiths, besides Islam, are living together. These minorities comprise more than three per cent of all Pakistanis having national identity cards.The break-up of religious minorities in Pakistan shows that the Hindu community is the largest with 1.4 million followers. Christians are second on this list with 1.27 million followers.

Then, there are 125,681 Ahmadis or Qadiyanis, over 33,000 Baha’is, 6,146 Sikhs and over 4,000 Zoroastrians or Parsees.Meanwhile, no fewer than 1,500 Pakistani citizens have classified themselves as Buddhists. The history of persecution of Christians in Pakistan is not very old. Just 15 years ago, a Christian Ayub Masih was the first to be convicted of blasphemy and sentenced to death. Ayub was accused by a neighbour of stating that he supported British writer Salman Rushdie, author of “The Satanic Verses.” Though the lower court had upheld Ayub’s conviction, his lawyer was able to prove before the Pakistan Supreme Court that the accuser had used the conviction to force Masih’s family off their land and then acquired control of the property. Masih was resultantly released.

Since 9/11, a time period that has seen dozens of millions of Muslims slating the United States and its European allies for killing and suppressing Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan etc, attacks against Christians and other minorities have significantly increased in the Muslim world. And Pakistan is no exception. While terrorists have repeatedly been blaming these minorities of supporting the United States and its European allies, ordinary Muslims have been screaming worldwide against what they dub “an anti-Islam killing spree” led by the United States and the European nations.

MORE

 

[waltky]

US Pastor Suffers Internal Bleeding In Iran Jail...

Persecuted Pastor Saeed Abedini Suffers Internal Bleeding After Prison Beatings
4/16/2013 - It began last week. American pastor Saeed Abedini, who is serving an eight-year prison term in Iran because of his Christian faith, has been suffering from internal bleeding for months—injuries received from beatings in prison. In what could only be viewed as a cruel act of psychological abuse, prison officials took Pastor Abedini to a hospital last week—only for him to be turned away and brought back to Evin prison without receiving medical treatment for his internal bleeding.

Now comes word out of Iran that the beatings and physical abuse are intensifying. Abedini reported Monday that last week he was severely beaten the same day the prison officials took him to the hospital. During the weekly prison visit Monday, Abedini's family reported that his physical condition is worsening, having seen firsthand the marks and symptoms left by the recent beating. These beatings and the internal injuries are causing Pastor Abedini frequent fainting spells. Iranian officials are telling Abedini it could be an additional two months before he will receive medical treatment. Such a delay is inhumane and a gross violation of Iran’s international obligations.

In addition to refusing to give Abedini the medical care he needs, it now appears authorities are stepping up their physical abuse and psychological torture. Abedini reported that cellmates, who appear to have connections to the Iranian intelligence police, recently threatened they would suffocate the pastor in his sleep, making his death look like an accident. The daily threat that his life could be taken by his internal injuries or by the hands of cellmates weighs heavily on Abedini.

These troubling developments are of grave concern to Abedini's wife, Naghmeh, who lives with their two children in the U.S. "I cannot express in words how concerned I am about Saeed's physical and mental health," Naghmeh says. "He is now continually attacked and threatened. The Iranian government should know that we are watching and aware of what they are doing to Saeed inside Evin prison. We need to speak louder until Saeed is home safely on U.S. soil." That is exactly what we are doing at the American Center for Law and Justice. In addition to working at home and around the world to secure Abedini's freedom, we are publicizing his story—putting a global media spotlight on his plight—and applying international pressure on Iran. The truth is, the world is watching and rejects the continued abuse and torture of Pastor Abedini, a U.S. citizen.

Abedini has spoken often about the beatings and abuse he suffers at the hands of his captors. In a recent letter from his prison cell, he wrote that he cannot even recognize himself after all the beatings and torture he has endured: “My hair was shaven, under my eyes were swollen three times what they should have been, my face was swollen, and my beard had grown.” Prison officials want one thing: for Abedini to recant his faith in Christ. And while they continue to try and get him to do that, his faith remains strong—a faith that is clearly keeping him alive. We ask that you continue to pray for Pastor Abedini. At the same time, we offer thanks to the more than 33,000 people who have already sent letters of support to Pastor Abedini. If you haven't done so yet, please take a moment and craft a letter of prayer and support for this hostage in Iran. You can send a letter by going to SaveSaeed.org.

Source

 

[koshergrl]

But NOBODY persecutes Christians! It's all in your head!

 

[waltky]

Iran pressuring pastor to recant conversion to Christianity...

American Pastor Faces Worsening Conditions in Iranian Prison
April 19, 2013 – Almost 570,000 people have signed a petition calling for international pressure on Iran to release American pastor Saeed Abedini amid continuing reports of that he is being beaten and maltreated in prison. The Iranians reportedly are demanding that he recant his faith in Jesus Christ or spend even longer behind bars than the term he already faces.

Arrested last September while visiting family members in Iran, Abedini – a convert from Islam to Christianity who moved to the U.S. in 2005 – was sentenced in January to eight years’ imprisonment for “threatening the national security of Iran.” He is incarcerated at Tehran’s notorious Evin prison. The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which is leading a campaign for his release and representing his wife and children in Boise, Idaho, reports troubling news from relatives’ visits to the prison – reports of continuing beatings, internal bleeding and fainting, denial of medical treatment and death threats from cellmates.

A letter from Abedini obtained by the ACLJ earlier this month recounted that prison authorities had told him, “Deny your faith in Jesus Christ and return to Islam or else you will not be released from prison. We will make sure you are kept here even after your eight year sentence is finished.” “I can not express in words how concerned I am about Saeed’s physical and mental health,” the pastor’s wife, Naghmeh, said in a statement released through the ACLJ. “He is now continually attacked and threatened. The Iranian government should know that we are watching and aware of what they are doing to Saeed inside Evin prison. We need to speak louder until Saeed is home safely on U.S. soil.”

The maltreatment of the 32 year-old naturalized American citizen continues despite statements by Secretary of State John Kerry, first in January and then again last month, voicing concern about his plight and urging Iran to release him. The ACLJ continues to encourage support for a petition, citing Iran’s violation of international treaty obligations and its own constitution, and urging the United Nations, European Union and Council of Europe to take “all available diplomatic action to press Iran to respect human rights and release Pastor Saeed.” The petition had 568,434 signatures as of early Friday. The ACLJ is also calling on people to write letters of support and encouragement to Abedini ahead of his May 7 birthday, which it aims to ensure will reach him in prison. More than 20,000 people have done so, using a simple online tool.

The reports of authorities exerting pressure on Abedini to renounce his faith recall the plight of another pastor who converted from Islam and fell foul of Iranian justice, Youcef Nadarkhani. Imprisoned from October 2009 until last September, Nadarkhani during that period was sentenced to death for “apostasy,” pressurized for months to return to Islam, and finally acquitted last fall. (Convicted of an alternative offense, “evangelizing Muslims,” he was imprisoned for a further fortnight three months later, after being arrested on Christmas Day.) The Nadarkhani case prompted protests from numerous Western governments, religious and human rights institutions, and galvanized millions of Christians around the world.

American Pastor Faces Worsening Conditions in Iranian Prison | CNS News

 

[pinqy]

But NOBODY persecutes Christians! It's all in your head!

None of the examples are laws specifically against Christians.

 

[waltky]

Granny says dey's persecutin' dat poor good Christian family man...

American Pastor Jailed in Iran Now Accused of Spying, Brainwashing Young Muslims
June 3, 2013 – Amid growing international calls for Iran to release an imprisoned Iranian-American pastor, a regime mouthpiece reportedly has accused Saeed Abedini of spying for the U.S. government and brainwashing young Iranian Muslims to convert to “Zionist Christianity.”

According to Mohabat News – an independent Iranian Christian news agency – Iran’s Bultan News charged that Abedini, who was arrested while visiting Iran last September to build a non-sectarian orphanage, had been “commissioned” to pursue nine objectives. These included the illegal planting of house churches; creating financial networks to support the spread of “Zionist Christianity” including attempts to brainwash and “recruit” Iranian orphans; and transmitting news from inside Iran “directly to the White House” – which it said amounted to an accusation of spying.

Bultan (“Bulletin”) News is linked to Iran’s intelligence service and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Another Iranian site linked to the intelligence service, Didehban News, also ran the report. Abedini, a convert from Islam living in the U.S. in 2005, was sentenced in January to eight years’ imprisonment for “threatening the national security of Iran.” Amid a campaign led by the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), the evangelical pastor’s plight taken up by members of Congress and by Secretary of State John Kerry. On Friday, ACLJ Executive Director Jordan Sekulow brought his case before the U.N. Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva, with the pastor’s wife, Naghmeh Abedini, sitting alongside him.

Iranian-born American pastor Saeed Abedini has been imprisoned in Tehran since September, and in a letter to his family reported beatings and death threats.

In his presentation before the HRC – during a session focusing on freedom of peaceful assembly – Sekulow charged that Abedini had been imprisoned “solely and only for exercising his right to peacefully assemble with others in his religious minority.” “Saeed’s peaceful assembly violated no promulgated law nor has Iran demonstrated how the peaceful assembly of its religious minorities threatens its security,” Sekulow said. By raising the notion of security-related offenses, the Bultan News report highlighted by Mohabat on Sunday appears to be an attempt to do just that.

Unlike some regimes that unapologetically discriminate against non-Muslim minorities Iran insists that it does not. Tehran reported to the HRC in 2010 that Iran was “a successful model of brotherly and peaceful coexistence” between Muslims and members of “recognized religious minorities” – Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians. When the handing down of a death sentence on another pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, prompted international outrage in 2011, the regime brazenly denied that he was being punished for “apostasy” – even though court documents said as much. Instead, officials cited other supposed offenses, such as rape and “being a Zionist.” (Nadarkhani was eventually freed late last year.)

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