April 2017 Persecution Magazine
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
WWW.PERSECUTION.ORG<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
PERSECU ION<br />
China’s<br />
Christians<br />
In the midst of a<br />
crackdown on China’s<br />
Christians, ICC<br />
examines the lives of<br />
Christians in China<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Table of Contents<br />
In This Issue:<br />
ANNOUNCEMENT<br />
3 | The Bridge<br />
Join ICC and other leaders, experts,<br />
and organizations as we host The<br />
Bridge conference, focused on North<br />
Korea on June 2 and 3 at Saddleback<br />
Church in southern California.<br />
FEATURE<br />
16 | Imprisoned for Christ: ICC<br />
Working to Free Prisoners of Faith<br />
ICC’s advocacy department aids two<br />
Christians wrongfully imprisoned in<br />
Sudan and Turkey.<br />
FEATURE<br />
20 | Believers in China<br />
ICC examines China’s fear of religion<br />
and how it affects Christians every day.<br />
FEATURE<br />
24 | Egypt Disintegrating<br />
Currently, the people of Egypt,<br />
Christians in particular, grapple with<br />
an economic crisis, growing Salafist<br />
sentiment, and Islamic State militants.<br />
THE BRIDGE<br />
THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON THE PERSECUTED CHURCH<br />
<strong>2017</strong>: NORTH KOREA: THE RELEASE OF THE BRIDE<br />
MARCO RUBIO<br />
U.S. SENATOR<br />
(INVITED)<br />
JOSEPH KIM<br />
NORTH KOREAN DEFECTOR<br />
POLICY DAY: MAY 24<br />
MAIN CONFERENCE: JUNE 2-3<br />
HYEONSEO LEE<br />
BEST SELLING AUTHOR & NK<br />
DEFECTOR (INVITED)<br />
DAVID CURRY<br />
PRESIDENT, OPEN DOORS USA<br />
RICK WARREN<br />
PASTOR & FOUNDER OF<br />
SADDLEBACK CHURCH<br />
JEFF KING<br />
PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL<br />
CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
3<br />
U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING<br />
SADDLEBACK CHURCH, SoCal<br />
4<br />
Regular Features<br />
4 Letter from the President<br />
A few words from ICC’s president, Jeff<br />
King, on finding the ultimate treasure.<br />
6 World News<br />
A snapshot of the persecution that<br />
impacts our brothers and sisters daily, in<br />
every corner of the world.<br />
10 Your Dollars at Work<br />
Learn how your gifts are providing<br />
comfort, relief, Bibles, education and<br />
vocational training to the persecuted.<br />
14 Volunteers<br />
Learn how members of ICC’s volunteer<br />
teams are making an impact in their<br />
communities for the persecuted.<br />
WWW.THEPERSECUTIONCONFERENCE.ORG TO REGISTER OR LEARN MORE<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
20<br />
3<br />
17<br />
25<br />
2 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
THE BRIDGE<br />
THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON THE PERSECUTED CHURCH<br />
<strong>2017</strong>: NORTH KOREA: THE RELEASE OF THE BRIDE<br />
MARCO RUBIO<br />
US SENATOR (INVITED)<br />
HYEONSEO LEE<br />
BEST-SELLING AUTHOR & NK<br />
DEFECTOR (INVITED)<br />
RICK WARREN<br />
PASTOR & FOUNDER OF<br />
SADDLEBACK CHURCH<br />
JOSEPH KIM<br />
NORTH KOREAN DEFECTOR<br />
DAVID CURRY<br />
PRESIDENT OF OPEN DOORS USA<br />
JEFF KING<br />
PRESIDENT OF INTERNATIONAL<br />
CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
POLICY DAY: MAY 24<br />
MAIN CONFERENCE: JUNE 2-3<br />
U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING<br />
SADDLEBACK CHURCH, SoCal<br />
WWW.THEPERSECUTIONCONFERENCE.ORG TO REGISTER OR LEARN MORE<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
3
President’s Letter<br />
Finding<br />
The Treasure<br />
Years ago I was in China and I asked my handlers to arrange a<br />
meeting with pastors that had been imprisoned for ten or more<br />
years. These were giants of the faith but little known. I sat and<br />
discussed persecution with these leaders and one of my first<br />
questions was, “What would the Chinese Church would be like<br />
if there was no persecution?”<br />
They said it would be a mile wide but an inch deep (my paraphrase).<br />
Famous speakers would gather large crowds, but they<br />
would have no anointing and little knowledge of the Spirit. I<br />
asked them if they knew anything about the Western Church<br />
and they had no idea as they were simple pastors without international<br />
experience.<br />
The Church in the West is largely adrift. There are many reasons<br />
for this, but, from my vantage point, a core problem is that we<br />
live out Christianity without real cost. Witness Lee, the great<br />
Chinese pastor of the early twentieth century and devotee of the<br />
great Watchman Nee, eloquently described this problem:<br />
The biggest problem today is that it is hard to find<br />
any wounds or scars in most Christians. Most of<br />
us do not have any wounds, scars, marks of death,<br />
or experiences of the cross. Even though we have<br />
been saved and truly have Christ’s life in us, this<br />
life has no way to come out. The reason is not that<br />
our behavior is too poor or too good but that we are<br />
too whole and too impregnable. Because we have<br />
no wounds, Christ has no way to be released from<br />
within us.<br />
-Witness Lee, The Crucified Christ, Chapter 1<br />
While we may not have any wounds or scars, our persecuted<br />
brothers and sisters have them in abundance. These believers<br />
and especially the faces of the martyrs are always in front of<br />
me, Christians like Pastor Ohii, Tilman, Necati, Pastor Kevin<br />
and so many more.<br />
The Choice<br />
These martyrs, like so many others, were almost always given a<br />
Above: Witness Lee<br />
chance to live if they utteedr three little words, “I deny Jesus.”<br />
Do you ever wonder why they don’t do it?<br />
Locked away in secret prisons, in the midst of beatings, torture,<br />
or under unrelenting pressure, certain Christians are transformed.<br />
When stripped of all that the world values, including<br />
dignity, strength, relationship, power, and standing, they<br />
let go of the world and any hope in its false answers to life.<br />
Somewhere deep within themselves, they place all of their<br />
physical and psychic treasure on the sacrificial altar. They put<br />
all of their proverbial chips into the middle of the table and they<br />
wager everything on God. In losing “everything,” though, they<br />
become immensely wealthy and concurrently truly dangerous in<br />
the spiritual world.<br />
In Kenya, Pastor Kevin was on his way to church on Sunday<br />
morning when he got calls from his sheep that were being<br />
slaughtered. “They were under attack. I heard gunshots, people<br />
screaming, crying. It was like a horror movie. It was just like<br />
hell,” he said. His assistant pastor standing in his place was<br />
4 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
President’s Letter<br />
killed at the lectern along with six others. Twelve others were<br />
wounded. Everyone else was, of course, traumatized. Pastor Kevin<br />
died and came to life that day. Listen to what he says. . .<br />
“After the attack, God inserted into me a spirit of courage. After<br />
your church gets shot up, you don’t fear anymore and you stop<br />
caring [about the danger]. We have been through a lot [but] we<br />
don’t fear anymore… There is nothing human beings can do to<br />
you.”<br />
Amazing right?<br />
Now here’s a little secret . . .In one way or another, this is what the<br />
Lord is doing in your life and mine!<br />
This process may be cathartic or it may be slow and gradual.<br />
Regardless of pace or tool, God is always working in gain and loss<br />
to get you to give up on this world and desire Him above all other<br />
treasures and relationships.<br />
All of our idols (that which we live for or through) and all of our<br />
crutches must fail. We must continue to toss them overboard one<br />
after the other, until we each find ourselves left with the one TRUE<br />
thing that we can live THROUGH, and live FOR.<br />
You can see the Lord’s heart on this in many passages such as<br />
Luke 14:26-27, Luke 14:33, Matthew 13:44-46, Luke 14:33, and<br />
Mark 10:17.<br />
You can see the Lord’s heart on this in many passages: If you don’t<br />
give up EVERYTHING you cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:26)!<br />
When a man discovered the treasure that is God, he went and sold<br />
everything he had to buy it (Matthew 13:44). What must I do to<br />
live forever? Go and give away everything that is most precious<br />
to you and follow me (Mark 10:17).<br />
Watchman Nee, the great Chinese Church leader of the early twentieth<br />
century, spoke about this process in one of my favorite books,<br />
“The Release of the Spirit.”<br />
Anyone who serves God will discover sooner or later<br />
that the great hindrance to his work is not others but<br />
himself. He will quickly detect that the greatest difficulty<br />
lies in his outward man, for it hinders him from<br />
using his spirit. The Lord employs two different ways<br />
to destroy our outward man; one is gradual, the other<br />
sudden. To some, the Lord gives a sudden destruction<br />
followed by a gradual one. It would seem the Lord<br />
usually spends several years upon us before He can<br />
accomplish this work of destruction.<br />
-Watchman Nee, Release of the Spirit<br />
Jeff King, President<br />
International Christian Concern<br />
We Must Give Up On The World<br />
The believer has to let go of the world and brokenness is a great<br />
catalyst in that process. Whoever has wagered all they have on<br />
God returns to the world as an alien and they stand out as such.<br />
They have been set ablaze by God and become a light in the darkness.<br />
This is the secret to why the persecuted Church is pure and<br />
grows.<br />
My core problem is that I don’t have enough of Him inside me and<br />
what I do have is restrained from being released into the world due<br />
to my being impregnable.<br />
Our trials, though wholly unwelcomed, are used to work on both<br />
of these issues. I want to invite you to embrace your trials. Evil<br />
does not come from the Lord but He will use trials and evil to try<br />
and make you rich beyond your wildest dreams.<br />
So many of the persecuted have discovered this truth and are<br />
worthy of your time treasure and talent. Please serve them with us!<br />
Jeff King<br />
President, International Christian Concern<br />
www.persecution.org<br />
Adapted from a chapter of a soon-to–be-released book from ICC’s<br />
president, Jeff King: “Last Words of the Martyrs.”<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
5
News<br />
3<br />
6<br />
4<br />
5<br />
1<br />
2<br />
“Local leaders<br />
often turn a<br />
blind eye to<br />
discrimination<br />
and harassment.”<br />
ICC Documents 361 Attacks on<br />
Christians in India in 2016<br />
1 | INDIA In 2016, ICC documented a total of 361 attacks<br />
against Christians in India, making 2016 one of the most<br />
trying years for India’s Christian community in recent<br />
years. In 2015, the Evangelical Fellowship of India<br />
recorded 177 incidents. This upsurge in attacks is both<br />
noteworthy and a cause for concern for local Christians<br />
and the international human rights community. The<br />
recorded attacks ranged from vandalism to social boycotts<br />
to violent physical assaults.<br />
Due to several factors, these attacks often go unreported<br />
by victims or witnesses; therefore, we can estimate that the<br />
actual number of incidents that took place last year is much<br />
higher. According to Dr. John Dayal, a human rights activist<br />
in India, it is possible that the number of attacks could be<br />
up to 10 times higher than what was recorded.<br />
The perpetrators in many of these attacks were radical<br />
Hindu nationalists who have enjoyed total impunity for their<br />
actions, encouraging further violence against the Christian<br />
minority. Each attack which goes unpunished emboldens<br />
new criminals to carry out more daring and audacious<br />
crimes. Since the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister<br />
Narendra Modi rose to power in 2014, Christians have experienced<br />
a notable rise in attacks.<br />
Despite the fact that the Indian constitution protects the<br />
religious rights of all citizens, it is evident that this right is<br />
being selectively enforced by Indian authorities.<br />
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi<br />
Muslim Converts<br />
to Christianity,<br />
Martyred<br />
2 | PHILIPPINES<br />
According to reports<br />
from Christian Aid<br />
Mission, a Muslim man<br />
in the Philippines converted<br />
to Christianity<br />
after hearing a presentation<br />
of the Gospel at<br />
his daughter’s wedding.<br />
The officiant at the<br />
wedding was a Gospelpreaching<br />
pastor and<br />
the groom’s father. It was<br />
by God’s grace that the<br />
father of the bride came<br />
to Christ during this<br />
message because he had<br />
previously engaged in<br />
attacking this very same<br />
pastor by tossing rocks<br />
at him and his church.<br />
Upon the man’s<br />
conversion, he began<br />
experiencing similar<br />
harassment at the<br />
hands of his Muslim<br />
relatives. As a final<br />
testament to his faith,<br />
the man was stabbed<br />
to death by local<br />
Muslims after refusing<br />
to stop sharing the<br />
Gospel. Once a persecutor,<br />
then a believer<br />
and now a martyr, his<br />
testimony is sure to<br />
survive him.<br />
Mexican Churches and Communities<br />
Deprived of Electricity<br />
3 | MEXICO Although widely unreported by the<br />
mainstream media, Christians in Mexico continue to<br />
face persecution for their faith, particularly in rural<br />
areas. While the Mexican constitution protects religious<br />
freedom, local leaders often turn a blind eye to<br />
discrimination and harassment.<br />
On January 22, local town leaders in Comitan de<br />
Dominguez, Chiapas, Mexico, cut off the power to<br />
a house church called “Templo Solo Cristo Salva.”<br />
According to the Coordinacion de Organizaciones<br />
Cristianas (COOC), the town leaders decided on this<br />
electrical cut a week prior during a town assembly<br />
meeting. However, the COOC also noted that the<br />
evangelical church members are not permitted to<br />
attend such meetings.<br />
Local residents have made official requests to<br />
the state government in an attempt to rectify the<br />
situation but, to date, there has been no definitive<br />
action. Thankfully, the federal government has taken<br />
measures to relieve such injustice by paying individual<br />
fines to help those affected by such incidents.<br />
Hopefully, this federal action will curb some of the<br />
deliberate targeting of religious minorities. While this<br />
is absolutely a step in the right direction, local leaders<br />
must also be willing to protect vulnerable minority<br />
groups in order to effect long-lasting change.<br />
Comitan de Dominguez, Chiapas, Mexico<br />
6 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
The Reina nightclub in Istanbul where a gunman with ISIS connections killed 39 people on New Year’s Eve.<br />
ISIS Claims Responsibility for Turkey Nightclub<br />
Massacre<br />
4 | TURKEY On New Year’s Eve, a shooter stormed into a Turkish<br />
nightclub in Istanbul, killing at least 39 people and wounding many<br />
more. Shortly after, an ISIS-linked news group released a video claiming<br />
responsibility for the attack. Furthermore, they reported that the<br />
gunman specifically targeted Christians who were ‘celebrating their<br />
pagan feast.’ A suspect was taken into police custody shortly after the<br />
attack and has since confessed to the crime and made clear his original<br />
intent of killings Christians in the violent attack.<br />
Christian Converts Banned from Iranian Churches<br />
on Christmas<br />
5 | IRAN In Iran, both government officials and business owners are<br />
ever attempting to drive Christianity out of the country by enforcing<br />
restrictions on religious activities. This past year, many Muslim<br />
Iranians and Farsi-speaking Christians were prohibited from attending<br />
Christmas services because the regime feared further spread of<br />
Christianity. Despite these crackdowns and the general persecutionesque<br />
disposition of the Iranian government, the Word of God continues<br />
to rapidly spread throughout Iran.<br />
Nearly 900 Churches Destroyed by Boko Haram<br />
6 | NIGERIA Toward the end of January, the Christian Association of Nigeria<br />
(CAN) reported that Boko Haram has destroyed more than 900 churches in<br />
northeastern Nigeria to date. In their report, CAN urged the Nigerian government<br />
to assist these churches in the rebuilding process and take stronger action<br />
to prevent violence against religious minorities. Boko Haram has become notorious<br />
for suicide bombings, attacks on Christian homes and churches, and the<br />
infamous kidnapping of the 276 primarily Christian schoolgirls from Chibok.<br />
All of this violence falls under the umbrella effort to wipe out the influence of<br />
Christianity in the region.<br />
CAN’s report is a grim reminder that Boko Haram is holding fast to their<br />
promise made last year to specifically target Christians in their campaigns of<br />
violence. Until more action is taken, both moderate Muslims and Christians in<br />
Nigeria will remain vulnerable at the hands of Boko Haram.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
The aftermath of a Boko Haram bombing.<br />
7
News<br />
5<br />
2<br />
3<br />
1<br />
6<br />
4<br />
An entrance to the Christian neighborhood of Joseph<br />
Colony in Lahore, Pakistan.<br />
Court Acquits Suspects of Joseph Colony<br />
Attack<br />
1 | PAKISTAN On March 8, 2013, a mob of Muslim radicals<br />
attacked the primarily Christian neighborhood of Joseph<br />
Colony in Lahore, Pakistan. Reports estimate that as many<br />
as 3,000 Muslims participated in the violence. When the<br />
dust had settled, at least 150 Christian homes were burned<br />
to the ground, along with several businesses and a church.<br />
The backing for this onslaught followed a trail back to<br />
a blasphemy accusation against a local Christian named<br />
Sawan Masih. During an argument, a Muslim friend accused<br />
Masih of making derogatory comments about the prophet<br />
Muhammad. Shortly afterwards, the aforementioned violence<br />
broke out. Masih was then taken into custody, charged<br />
with blasphemy, and sentenced to death in 2014.<br />
Despite the swift legal action taken to condemn Masih,<br />
in January <strong>2017</strong>, nearly four years after the initial riots,<br />
a Pakistani court acquitted all 115 suspects accused of<br />
participating in the violent attacks. While widely available<br />
photo and video evidence proved their guilt, the<br />
court cited a lack of<br />
evidence as the reason<br />
for their acquittal.<br />
All charges, ranging<br />
from attempted murder<br />
to terrorism, were<br />
cleared, denying justice<br />
to the hundreds of<br />
families whose lives<br />
were upturned by this<br />
violence.<br />
The response to<br />
this mob violence has<br />
drawn criticism, even<br />
from within Pakistan’s<br />
own government. In<br />
one instance, a Supreme<br />
Court bench criticized<br />
Punjab officials for their<br />
apathy and inaction<br />
toward the Christian<br />
minorities in this case,<br />
though this produced<br />
few results in terms of<br />
proper due justice.<br />
This case is indicative<br />
of two major issues<br />
affecting Pakistan’s<br />
Christian community:<br />
the misuse of blasphemy<br />
accusations<br />
and the lack of government<br />
response to<br />
crimes directed at religious<br />
minorities. Unless<br />
the government takes<br />
more decisive action<br />
in defending its vulnerable<br />
Christian community,<br />
it seems unlikely<br />
that these families will<br />
receive justice.<br />
Soad Thabet, an elderly Coptic woman assaulted by three<br />
men who broke into her house.<br />
“The men stormed<br />
into her home,<br />
dragged her into<br />
the street, stripped<br />
her...and beat her.”<br />
Case Reopened Against Men Who<br />
Abused Elderly Coptic Woman<br />
2 | EGYPT Last June, Soad Thabet, an elderly Coptic<br />
woman, was assaulted by a group of three men who<br />
accused her son of having an extramarital affair with a<br />
Muslim woman. As the unconfirmed rumors about her<br />
son spread, the men stormed into her home, dragged her<br />
into the street, stripped her of her clothing within view<br />
of the public, and beat her. She and her husband had no<br />
option but to flee their village.<br />
In January, Egyptian authorities cleared the three<br />
accused men of their charges on account of a “lack of<br />
evidence.” Even though Thabet was able to identify her<br />
attackers and the president issued a public apology, the<br />
case was still dropped. Thabet and her family expressed<br />
their disappointment in this decision, as they felt let down<br />
by the Egyptian authorities and fearful that this case<br />
would set a precedent of impunity for future attacks.<br />
After Thabet’s legal team filed an appeal stating that<br />
witnesses involved with the incident changed their testimonies<br />
upon receiving threats, the case was recently<br />
reopened. At the time of writing, the case is still ongoing.<br />
Although there is a difficult road ahead to achieve<br />
justice for Thabet and her family, human rights activists<br />
view the reopening of this case as a significant step in<br />
the right direction.<br />
8 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Pastor Expelled from Sudan for Planting Churches<br />
3 | SUDAN On December 6, 2016, Sudanese authorities gave Christian pastor Koat Akot 72 hours to vacate the North African country. Akot was<br />
expelled from Sudan due to his involvement with evangelism and for planting three churches in the country. One of those churches has amassed<br />
approximately 500 members since its foundation. The government officials responsible for Akot’s expulsion reportedly confiscated several<br />
church-owned items from the congregation’s property during his interrogation. Akot was previously detained last November for leading worship.<br />
He was held for only one day, but had to report to authorities on a daily basis following his release. Pastor Akot is just one of the many Christian<br />
pastors facing persecution at the hand of the Sudanese government.<br />
A Chinese Bible.<br />
Six Women Detained for Holding Bible Study<br />
4 | CHINA In China’s Hubei province, six Christian women were<br />
recently taken into custody for hosting a Bible study in a house<br />
church. According to reports, officials accused the women of holding<br />
illegal religious gatherings, beating the six women and confiscating<br />
their property. The officers began to shove and beat the Christian<br />
men who tried to stop them. To date, family members of the detained<br />
have yet to receive official detention notices for their loved ones.<br />
This incident is unfortunately just one in a long string of targeted<br />
discrimination against religious groups at the hands of the Chinese<br />
government led by President Xi Jinping.<br />
Don and Ruth Ossewaarde.<br />
American Missionary’s Case to Russian Supreme Court<br />
5 | RUSSIA As previously reported, American missionary Don<br />
Ossewaarde was convicted last year under Russia’s newly implemented<br />
“Yarovaya” laws. These laws impose harsh restrictions on missionaries<br />
and their ability to evangelize in Russia. According to Christianity Today,<br />
32 have already been convicted under this law since its implementation.<br />
Ossewaarde was issued a fine of approximately $600 USD and has<br />
appealed his conviction all the way up to the Russian Supreme Court. The<br />
Supreme Court’s ruling will set an important precedent for Christian missionaries<br />
and ministries operating in Russia. This ruling is anticipated to<br />
make clear the Russian government’s attitude toward religious freedom.<br />
Compassion International Forced to Close in India<br />
6 | INDIA In 2016, the Indian government made revisions to its Foreign Contribution<br />
Regulation Act affecting international organizations that provide aid to the country.<br />
One major group that was affected by this change was a Christian child sponsorship<br />
organization, Compassion International. Although the organization has made multiple<br />
negotiation attempts with Indian officials and implored the US government to<br />
intervene, their attempts have been unsuccessful thus far.<br />
The CEO of Compassion International reported that this regulation will affect<br />
147,000 children in India who receive aid through the organization. Some experts<br />
speculate that Hindu nationalism is the reason why Christian groups are being<br />
forced out of the country, despite the numerous societal benefits that their work<br />
provides. It is unsettling to witness the Indian government let its religious ideology<br />
overshadow the needs of thousands upon thousands of children.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
9
Your Dollar$ at Work<br />
ICC Helps Pass Most Important<br />
Religious Freedom Law in Nearly<br />
Two Decades<br />
Where Most Needed<br />
At 2:30 p.m. on December 14, in a vote<br />
that very few witnessed or took notice<br />
of, Congress passed what may be the most<br />
important bill on religious freedom in almost<br />
18 years. The new law, known as the Frank<br />
R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act,<br />
was passed in the very final hours of the 114th<br />
Congress and was the culmination of years of<br />
efforts by ICC and many other religious freedom<br />
advocates. The bill includes numerous<br />
important provisions, including a requirement<br />
that all US Foreign Service Officers (FSO)<br />
receive mandatory training on religious freedom.<br />
These officers, who serve in over 190<br />
countries around the world, are the frontline<br />
advocates of the United States. They promote<br />
American values across the globe and hold<br />
government officials in each country accountable<br />
for persecuting Christians and other religious<br />
groups. Prior to the Frank R. Wolf Act,<br />
training on religious freedom was optional for<br />
FSOs, and many did not participate.<br />
The bill also creates a new tool for the US<br />
to sanction groups that persecute Christians<br />
by allowing the president of the United States<br />
to designate “non-state actors” as “entities of<br />
particular concern.” This means that groups<br />
that aren’t a part of a government, like Boko<br />
Haram in Nigeria or the Bajrang Dal in<br />
India, can face economic sanctions and travel<br />
restrictions for persecuting people of faith.<br />
Before this law, only entire countries could<br />
be sanctioned, leaving many groups and individuals<br />
to escape notice for causing persecution.<br />
ICC may now directly recommend to<br />
the US government specific individuals for<br />
sanctioning if they have engaged in severe<br />
religious freedom violations.<br />
The bill also moves up the deadline for the<br />
State Department’s annual report on international<br />
religious freedom. It requires an<br />
analysis of US efforts to promote religious<br />
freedom, and pushes the president to closely<br />
review if countries are making improvements.<br />
All of this means that the United States will,<br />
by law, play an even greater role in speaking<br />
out on behalf of the persecuted. This is<br />
wonderful news for millions around the world<br />
who are often persecuted in complete secrecy.<br />
When the United States speaks up on their<br />
behalf, other countries often listen, and it can<br />
frequently mean the difference between freedom<br />
and captivity, or even life and death for<br />
those who are oppressed. The day the Frank<br />
R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act<br />
ICC President Jeff King with<br />
Congressman Frank Wolf.<br />
passed, two of the lead congressional offices<br />
involved took a moment to thank ICC and<br />
other groups who advocated for years to see<br />
the bill get through Congress. “Thank you for<br />
all of your help, your passion, and commitment<br />
to this noble cause. Without your assistance<br />
and persistent lobbying and persuasion,<br />
we would not have succeeded in getting this<br />
bill over the line,” said one office. “You all<br />
represent the very best of principled advocacy<br />
for a worthy cause. Thank you,” said another.<br />
Advocacy on behalf of the persecuted can<br />
be incredibly challenging, taking years of work<br />
behind-the-scenes without any guarantee of<br />
success. Yet occasionally, thanks to persistent<br />
prayer and support from our donors, the impossible<br />
can be accomplished. The Frank R. Wolf<br />
International Religious Freedom Act is one such<br />
accomplishment, and we believe countless lives<br />
will benefit from it for many years to come.<br />
10 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Assistance for Fulani Attack victims<br />
Hand of Hope<br />
Towards the end of 2016, Fulani militants carried out a series of consecutive attacks in different<br />
villages in Nigeria’s southern Kaduna state. The attacks specifically targeted Christian<br />
farmers and their families, many of whom were brutally slaughtered in the onslaughts. ICC<br />
reached out to several of these families in order to provide them with long-term assistance.<br />
ICC recently visited two internally displaced people (IDP) camps in the Kafachan area to speak<br />
with victims who fled their homes during and after the Fulani attacks. Thankfully, ICC was able to<br />
deliver a one-month supply of food and basic clothing to at least 110 families in two camps during<br />
the first trip. Additionally, we visited the four most affected villages in Chawai and were able to assist<br />
victims with food, clothing, fertilizer and irrigation water pumps that were previously destroyed by<br />
militants. At least 200 families benefitted from these gifts, all made possible by your donations.<br />
The interaction with these victims revealed other needs they have as Christians who are constantly persecuted.<br />
Let’s continue to pray for their provision and protection as ICC develops new projects to assist them.<br />
Medical Aid for Rachael Gikonyo<br />
Suffering Wives and Children<br />
R<br />
achael Gikonyo survived the attack at Garissa University, Kenya, in 2015. She did not,<br />
however, walk away unscathed. Rachael was shot several times in the chest, legs, and back,<br />
leaving her in a wheelchair and in need of further medical assistance. She has visited with several<br />
physicians in both Kenya and India, but she needs surgery on her legs in order to walk again.<br />
When ICC heard about Rachael’s condition, we developed a two-phase project to help the<br />
Gikonyo family with her medical expenses and injuries.<br />
Due to the extensive nature of her injuries, Rachael accumulated a hefty medical bill, including<br />
medications, nursing care, physiotherapy, and further follow-up treatments for her recovery.<br />
ICC has teamed up with the Gikonyo family to tackle these mounting medical costs.<br />
Let’s continue to pray for Rachael’s condition and God’s provision for her and her family. It<br />
will not be an easy road to recovery, but God is providing a way.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
ICC Aids Prisoner’s Family in Pakistan<br />
Suffering Wives and Children<br />
ver 20 people died on March 15, 2015, when twin suicide bombers attacked two separate<br />
O churches in Youhanabad, Pakistan, a Christian neighborhood often targeted in sectarian conflict.<br />
In retaliation, local Christians killed two Muslim suspects. Police then arrested roughly 43 Christian<br />
men, most of whom were innocent, for the murders. These Christian men were the breadwinners of<br />
their families who have lost access to basic necessities, including food.<br />
ICC was able to locate four of the innocent imprisoned men and their families to assist during<br />
this time. Shabana, the wife of one prisoner, told ICC, “The situation of my family after the arrest of<br />
my innocent husband is extremely miserable. It is very difficult for me to live without my husband,<br />
to pay school fee[s], and bear [the] expenses of my three children. Therefore, I sold out house stuff<br />
e.g. blankets, vessels, washing-machine etc. to feed my children.”<br />
Because of your generosity, in December 2016, ICC was able to respond by providing food and<br />
educational assistance for the families, including Shabana’s. Acknowledging ICC’s efforts, she<br />
said, “I am very thankful to ICC for extending [to] me all the winter stuff, food aid, and bearing<br />
schooling expenses of my three children. Sometimes my children go to bed without food; they<br />
have nothing to enjoy their childhood.” We intend to be there until their breadwinners return home.<br />
11
Your Dollar$ at Work<br />
ICC Helps Rebuild Two Churches Destroyed in India<br />
Community Rebuild<br />
In India, ICC has reported almost double the number of attacks in 2016 compared<br />
to 2015. From social boycotts to deadly assaults, Christians and other<br />
religious minorities struggle to survive in this country. Not only are Christians’<br />
livelihoods under threat, radicals also target Christian places of worship.<br />
Hindu radical forces successfully convinced government revenue officials<br />
to raze the Shalem Prayer House in Telangana. Because the church had no<br />
prior warning of the demolition, they lost everything inside. The church<br />
served as a house of worship for more than 100 Christians for 11 years. Pastor<br />
Raju explained, “Many of our believers are day laborers and can hardly meet<br />
their daily needs…We are not sure if we can build [the church] again.”<br />
ICC responded to the situation by purchasing new equipment for the<br />
church. While it may seem like a small gesture, the church’s congregation<br />
was incredibly grateful. “On behalf of the church, we really want to thank<br />
ICC for providing carpets, [an] amplifier and instruments, etc…Thank you<br />
very much for encouraging us through practical help.”<br />
The Christian community described how “many leaders and people came<br />
and sympathized, when the incident took place, but ICC was the only organization<br />
to come back and replace the broken items.” The new equipment has<br />
renewed members’ hope in God and strength to endure further persecution.<br />
The same Hindu radicals who attacked Shalem Prayer House also had a<br />
role in burning a church in Nagapattinam, India, destroying both the building<br />
and the equipment inside the church. The pastor remembered the attack<br />
vividly: “[My son called me and] he said, ‘Appa, the church is on fire.’ I was<br />
really shocked, broken and I was in tears. I immediately rushed to the spot<br />
and saw that really the church is on fire. I was not able to believe my eyes. I<br />
was speechless and I was still for some time.”<br />
In the midst of tragedy, God still showed up. The pastor’s daughter encouraged<br />
her father saying, “God is with us, Appa, do not cry. He will build His<br />
church more strongly.” We are excited to tell you that because of your donations,<br />
ICC was able to provide construction assistance, including cement,<br />
sand, iron rods, and bricks. Congregants are now “faithful and hopeful that,<br />
we will not stop and continue [until the] completion of the work. May God<br />
help us in doing that.”<br />
Christmas Gifts for<br />
Orphans<br />
Kids Care<br />
In 2008, radical Hindus launched anti-Christian riots across India which<br />
orphaned many Christian children. In response, ICC constructed a<br />
children’s home and adopted 14 of these orphans and has been providing<br />
them with food, shelter, education, medical assistance, and the Gospel.<br />
No children’s program would be complete without Christmas gifts.<br />
Last year, ICC was able to provide gifts for each individual child and<br />
worker. Each child received two new sets of clothing. The children’s<br />
home workers were also given new clothes. At the special request of the<br />
workers, a television was installed at the home. We were able to provide<br />
these gifts of encouragement because of our donors.<br />
We pray that this small token continues to exemplify the love of<br />
Christ to these children.<br />
12 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Education Assistance for<br />
Abducted Bauchi Girl<br />
Suffering Wives & Children<br />
In March 2016, a 13-year-old Christian girl was abducted on her way<br />
to school by a Muslim man in Bauchi State, Nigeria. The young victim<br />
was not only forced to deny her faith and convert to Islam, but also forced<br />
to marry her abductor. Fortunately, the young woman was recovered in<br />
May of 2016 with help from a network of Christian communities.<br />
These incidents are common in the Bauchi state area, though many<br />
go unreported, overlooked, or even condoned by the Muslim authorities.<br />
To protect themselves from retaliation, the aforementioned family<br />
decided to move from their home to a less Muslim-dominated<br />
area. Unfortunately, the family did not have the resources to supply<br />
their basic needs, including the continuation of the girl’s education.<br />
Thankfully, ICC was able to connect with the victim’s family and pastor<br />
to determine a solution in a safe environment.<br />
With God’s provision, ICC sponsored the enrollment of the young<br />
girl in a local boarding school. Additionally, ICC provided her with<br />
books, uniforms, and one year of tuition, so that she can continue where<br />
she left off before her abduction.<br />
We recently spoke with this same girl who had a message to send to<br />
our donors:<br />
“Say to all that I am very grateful to them. May God bless them and<br />
open more doors for them. I am looking forward to studying Mass<br />
Communication. I want to be a journalist. I want to be able to tell the<br />
world true stories of what is happening to people.”<br />
Your Dollar$ at Work<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
Food Aid in Muranga to<br />
Mandera Victim Families<br />
Hand of Hope<br />
O<br />
n October 6, 2016, al-Shabaab militants carried out a brutal attack<br />
targeting Christians in the town of Mandera, Kenya. At least<br />
six Christians were killed in the attack. The town is located near the<br />
Somali border and includes a vast community of Christians who live<br />
under constant threat. The families left behind after the October attack<br />
not only suffered the pain of losing loved ones, but also their primary<br />
breadwinners. Last November, ICC sent a representative in Kenya to<br />
find out more about the details of the attack and provide these families<br />
with food assistance and spiritual support.<br />
David Chege, one of the six victims killed during the attack, used to<br />
work as a barber to support his family. ICC was able to deliver a onemonth<br />
food supply to his parents and brothers, who were still mourning<br />
the loss of David.<br />
John Ndegwa had previously survived an attack by al-Shabaab in<br />
2014, but was unfortunately killed during this last one. He used to<br />
work as a stone cutter to provide for his parents and siblings also, who<br />
are now forced to find different means to support themselves. ICC was<br />
also able to deliver a one-month supply of food to these victims and is<br />
currently looking into long-term solutions for both families.<br />
13
Volunteers<br />
Sierra Leone Pastor Teaches<br />
Students to be a Voice for<br />
the Voiceless<br />
<strong>Persecution</strong><br />
Conference<br />
Volunteers<br />
ICC volunteers serve across the globe,<br />
raising awareness by bringing attention<br />
to the suffering of persecuted Christians<br />
around the world. Pastor Vandi is one such<br />
volunteer serving in Sierra Leone. He works<br />
in this country by raising prayer support in<br />
schools across his community.<br />
Pastor Vandi and his ministry, Soldiers of<br />
Jesus Christ Network Sierra Leone, work<br />
alongside students, teaching the scriptures<br />
and spreading the Gospel. The ministry has<br />
a central focus on teaching students “what<br />
it means for them to endure and become<br />
a voice for the voiceless.” Each day at<br />
lunch, Pastor Vandi shares the Gospel and<br />
presents updates about persecution to the<br />
students. They then gather as a team to<br />
pray together.<br />
Pastor Vandi reports that the students have<br />
welcomed this ministry with open arms. In<br />
these schools, “students are now very much<br />
active in spreading the Gospel and transforming<br />
lives of students passing through<br />
oppression at home and in the school community.”<br />
He explains how this has reduced<br />
the amount of persecution, harassment, and<br />
stigmatization within the schools.<br />
“The pain of the persecuted can never be<br />
distant since we are called to be one Body<br />
in Christ Jesus,” Vandi told ICC. “There<br />
should be no schism in the body.” Rather,<br />
we are called to serve one another and build<br />
each other up in faith. This is why Pastor<br />
Vandi does what he does.<br />
Instead of prioritizing his own needs,<br />
Pastor Vandi is one of many volunteers fulfilling<br />
the mission laid out in Hebrews 13:3:<br />
“Continue to remember those in prison as<br />
if you were together with them in prison,<br />
and those who are mistreated as if you<br />
yourselves were suffering.” By bringing<br />
attention to their suffering and educating<br />
today’s youth on such issues, we can bring<br />
reassurance to our persecuted brother and<br />
sisters around the world. Think about the<br />
ways you could impact your community for<br />
the persecuted.<br />
“Whatever you did<br />
for one of the least<br />
of these brothers of<br />
mine, you did for Me.”<br />
– MATTHEW 25:40 (NIV)<br />
Last July, volunteers from all walks of<br />
life offered their assistance to help with<br />
ICC’s first annual Bridge conference. The<br />
response was incredible. Without the help<br />
of these volunteers, this conference would<br />
not have operated so smoothly or received<br />
as much attention as it did.<br />
Local volunteers helped with logistics at<br />
the actual event by helping with set-up,<br />
registration, distribution of materials, and<br />
more. Other volunteers helped get the word<br />
out about this event by promoting it in<br />
their churches, raising awareness on social<br />
media, and simply spreading the word among<br />
friends and family. Lastly and most importantly,<br />
volunteers around the world took on<br />
the invaluable task of covering this conference<br />
in prayer.<br />
As ICC prepares for the second annual<br />
Bridge conference in June, your support is<br />
both welcomed and encouraged. Whether<br />
you live locally in southern California<br />
or wish to support this conference from<br />
afar, your help is greatly appreciated.<br />
To find out more about how you can get<br />
involved with the Bridge, contact ICC’s<br />
Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@persecution.org.<br />
14 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Looking for a Way to Make a Difference in the World? Join Our Team of Volunteers!<br />
For those wishing to make difference on behalf of the persecuted Church, many are not sure how to get started. Many around the world are wanting<br />
to make a difference on behalf of the persecuted Church, but not everyone knows how to get started. Volunteers across the globe are making a<br />
difference within their own communities as members of ICC’s five volunteer teams: Advocacy, Awareness, Office, Prayer, and Special Projects. By<br />
standing up for the persecuted in countless different ways, ICC’s volunteers have played a crucial role in connecting the global Church by bridging<br />
the gap between the persecuted and the Western Church. It only takes one person to make a difference – are you willing to make the call?<br />
Multilingual Volunteers<br />
Because ICC has an international reach, many of our supporters<br />
do not live in areas where English is the native language.<br />
Therefore, the need for informational materials in other languages<br />
is common. Several bilingual ICC volunteers are working to bridge<br />
this gap. By translating ICC’s informational materials, including<br />
news releases, prayer requests, and newsletter articles, these volunteers<br />
are helping to spread awareness about persecution in communities<br />
that may otherwise go unreached. These volunteers play<br />
an essential role in creating a bridge between the Western and the<br />
persecuted Church as part of ICC’s Awareness team.<br />
Prayer for the Persecuted<br />
The landscape of persecution is one that is always changing.<br />
Yet one constant in this world is the need for prayer.<br />
Christians living in dangerous regions of the world come to ICC<br />
on a regular basis, asking for prayer above all else. Thankfully,<br />
ICC has a team of volunteers designed to meet exactly that<br />
need. Whether leading prayer groups, distributing prayer<br />
resources, or simply setting aside a period of time each day to<br />
pray for the persecuted, these faithful volunteers are making a<br />
difference and reminding their brothers and sisters in Christ that<br />
they are not alone.<br />
Volunteer Teams<br />
1 Advocacy Fight for justice for the persecuted through petitions, Congress<br />
calls, and more.<br />
2 Awareness Raise your voice through speaking in churches, writing, and<br />
social media.<br />
3 Office Lighten the load of ICC’s staff by helping with administrative assignments.<br />
4 Prayer Intercede for our brothers and sisters in Christ both individually and<br />
as a church.<br />
5 Special Projects Volunteer on your own schedule through one-time projects.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
Interested in Serving?<br />
Online Apply on our website at:<br />
http://www.persecution.org/how-you-canhelp/volunteer<br />
or send an email to<br />
volunteer@persecution.org<br />
Phone Want more information? Feel free<br />
to call us at (301) 585-5915.<br />
15
Profile<br />
Imprisoned for Christ:<br />
ICC Working to Free Prisoners of Faith<br />
An illustration of<br />
Andrew Brunson<br />
that ran on<br />
christianpost.com<br />
“Remember those<br />
who are in prison, as<br />
though in prison with<br />
them, and those who<br />
are mistreated, since<br />
you also are in the<br />
body.”<br />
- Hebrews 13:3 ESV<br />
By Nate Lance & Isaac Six<br />
Imagine that you are suddenly arrested for a crime that you<br />
didn’t commit. Before you know it, you’re being shoved<br />
into a cold, dark prison cell packed with drug addicts,<br />
thieves, and murderers. You are thousands of miles away<br />
from friends and family and no one lets you make a phone<br />
call. They say you’ve committed crimes against the state,<br />
but you know that the real reason you’ve just been imprisoned<br />
overseas is because you followed faithfully after<br />
Christ.<br />
This scenario was the reality for two imprisoned Christian<br />
leaders. Andrew Brunson, an American pastor in Turkey, and Petr<br />
Jasek, a Czech national and Christian aid worker in Sudan, were both<br />
recently imprisoned abroad for their work. For months, ICC’s advocacy<br />
team has been hard at work raising the cases of both of these Christians<br />
with high-level US government officials, doing our absolute best to<br />
secure their release.<br />
Petr Jasek<br />
Sudan has a long-standing and well known preference for imprisoning<br />
political opponents and Christians. Their latest crackdown on<br />
Christians included the arrest of Petr Jasek and two Sudanese men,<br />
16 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
“In December, ICC initiated a multi-faith letter signed<br />
by over 40 like-minded religious freedom and faithbased<br />
organizations to the president of Sudan...”<br />
Reverend Hassan Abduraheem and Mr. Abdumonem<br />
Abdumawla in 2016.<br />
The Sudanese government has laughably tried to<br />
frame these Christian workers with providing aid to<br />
rebel groups, committing crimes against the state,<br />
and a myriad of other charges. After over a year in a<br />
Sudanese jail, the government sentenced Jasek to 20<br />
years in prison on January 29, <strong>2017</strong>. The two Sudanese<br />
Christians each received 12-year sentences.<br />
These charges are undoubtedly politically and religiously<br />
motivated. Since the separation of South Sudan<br />
from Sudan, President Omar al-Bashir and his Islamist<br />
government have intensified their persecution of religious<br />
minorities. It is clear that Jasek and the others were<br />
imprisoned because of their beliefs and for their aid to<br />
Christian communities, not because they have any connections<br />
to the false charges levied at them by Sudan’s<br />
“kangaroo court.”<br />
In December, ICC initiated a multi-faith letter signed<br />
by over 40 like-minded religious freedom and faithbased<br />
organizations to the president of Sudan, requesting<br />
Jasek’s freedom and reminding the president of<br />
his country’s past commitments to upholding basic<br />
religious freedom.<br />
Petr Jasek was released after 445 days of imprisonment<br />
and returned home. His two Sudanese co-workers,<br />
Pastor Abduraheem and Mr. Abdumawla, remain<br />
imprisoned to serve their 12-year sentences.<br />
Andrew Brunson<br />
In October 2016, Andrew Brunson and his wife were<br />
called into a local Turkish police station for questioning.<br />
They expected to discuss their application for residence<br />
visas. Instead, police accused them of being involved<br />
in a terrorist organization and arrested them. Brunson’s<br />
wife, Norine, was released within a week, but Brunson<br />
remains in a Turkish prison.<br />
Since the coming to power of President Erdogan in<br />
Turkey in 2003, the Turkish government has become<br />
increasingly hostile to Christians and others in Turkey.<br />
A failed attempt to overthrow the government in August<br />
2016, only made matters worse. Unfortunately, it seems<br />
that Andrew Brunson, who has been serving the people<br />
of Turkey for over 20 years, has been targeted as a result.<br />
After his arrest, Brunson was barred from legal representation<br />
or even a visit from US embassy officials,<br />
a clear violation of Brunson’s rights. To make matters<br />
worse, his eyeglasses and Bible were taken from him,<br />
and for a time, his wife was not allowed to visit him.<br />
After engagement with a number of congressional offic-<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
Above: Petr Jasek with a boy in a community in Sudan where he did aid work<br />
until his arrest and 20-year sentence.<br />
Below: Andrew Brunson, an evangelical pastor, with wife Norine, ministered<br />
in Turkey for 23 years before he was arrested Oct. 7, 2016.<br />
17
“For the Lord hears the needy and does not despise<br />
his own people who are prisoners.” - Psalm 69:33 ESV<br />
Above: Khartoum is Sudan’s modern capitol and second largest city, home to over five million people. Petr Jasek and two Sudanese<br />
associates were imprisoned in a detention center in Khartoum. Flickr creative commons photo by user Christopher Michel.<br />
Above: Petr Jasek and an associate in<br />
Sudan.<br />
Above: A protest held on behalf of Jasek<br />
calling for his immediate release by Sudanese<br />
President Omar al-Bashir.<br />
Above: The entrance to Al Huda Prison<br />
in Khartoum where Petr was held until<br />
his release after 445 days. Two of Jasek’s<br />
Sudanese associates remain imprisoned.<br />
18 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
es, the US Commission on International<br />
Religious Freedom, and the US State<br />
Department regarding this case, there<br />
have been some improvements. Brunson<br />
now has his glasses, Bible, and his wife<br />
is sometimes allowed visits. US embassy<br />
staff has also visited him and we know that<br />
Andrew’s imprisonment has been raised at<br />
very high levels by the US government.<br />
In addition, as this article was going<br />
to print, a US congressional letter initiated<br />
and promoted by ICC on behalf<br />
of Brunson had just been completed.<br />
At time of writing, 31 senators and 35<br />
representatives had signed the letter to<br />
President Erdogan, calling for Brunson’s<br />
quick release. President Trump’s staff<br />
have also been briefed on the case. Our<br />
hope and prayer is that overwhelming<br />
congressional and public attention<br />
will encourage President Erdogan and<br />
Turkey’s government to release Brunson<br />
and return him to his family. Brunson’s<br />
daughter, Jacqueline, is engaged, but has<br />
delayed her wedding until the day her<br />
father can walk her down the aisle.<br />
We ask that you pray for these prisoners,<br />
their families, and their loved<br />
ones, but also pray that the leaders of<br />
Turkey and Sudan would release them.<br />
Proverbs 21:1 tells us, “The king’s heart<br />
is a stream of water in the hand of the<br />
Lord; he turns it wherever he will”<br />
(ESV). Please pray that He would shape<br />
the hearts of those in power in Sudan<br />
and Turkey so they may set these men<br />
free and truly begin to embrace religious<br />
freedom in their country.<br />
Above: Izmir is Turkey’s third most populated metropolis and home to the<br />
Brunsons. Andrew remains in prison near Izmir.<br />
Above: Andrew and Norine Brunson have lived in Turkey for the past 23 years.<br />
Right: Norine Brunson stands below Izmir’s<br />
Harmandanli Detention Centre, where her<br />
husband has been held since October 20,<br />
2016. World Watch Monitor photo.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
19
BELIEVERS<br />
IN CHINA<br />
ICC examines China’s fear of religion and<br />
how it affects Christians every day.<br />
By Amy Penn<br />
20 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
Sheshan Basilica<br />
The Basilica is a<br />
prominent church in<br />
Shanghai, China. Flickr<br />
Creative Commons image<br />
by user Maxime Guilbot.<br />
Religion frightens the<br />
Marxist leaders of<br />
China. It is a force that<br />
unifies people outside<br />
of state control and<br />
looms as a potential<br />
threat to their mafialike<br />
wielding of power.<br />
They have reason<br />
to fear. Not from<br />
Christianity, but rather from the populace as<br />
they seem to be trapped. If they give away<br />
too much freedom, many of them would<br />
spend years in prison for human rights abuses,<br />
embezzlement, and murder as the Chinese<br />
State is one of the most murderous governments<br />
in history.<br />
While most Christians have some awareness<br />
of the macro-level issue of Chinese<br />
persecution of the Church, we rarely have the<br />
opportunity to hear from individuals about<br />
their day-to-day experiences as Christians<br />
living in China. ICC recently had a chance<br />
to speak with the wives of two imprisoned<br />
Christians and human rights activists. They<br />
explained the broader context of Chinese<br />
persecution and also shared their personal<br />
experiences with persecution on a daily basis.<br />
Sinicization of Christianity<br />
Historically, persecution in China has demonstrated<br />
an ebb and flow trend. During<br />
Mao’s reign, for example, Christians were<br />
horribly persecuted. Later, as China tried to<br />
modernize under Deng, persecution decreased<br />
in a way that allowed church growth. In fact,<br />
until 2008, there was moderate freedom to<br />
worship.<br />
While in the big picture, the Chinese government<br />
has become less repressive, they are<br />
being led presently by a belligerent hardliner.<br />
They are in a crackdown phase and intolerant<br />
of human rights lawyers, as well as churches<br />
and their crosses in the public eye.<br />
Any institution that can rally large numbers<br />
of people is naturally understood as a threat.<br />
China only wants one thing to unite its people<br />
– state ideology.<br />
In 2015, China Aid reported that there<br />
was an 11 percent increase in persecution<br />
cases from 2014 and 709 percent increase<br />
from 2008.<br />
State officials have tried to control the<br />
Church while maintaining a semblance of religious<br />
freedom with state-approved churches<br />
called the Three Self Patriotic Movement<br />
(TSPM). TSPM churches must submit sermons<br />
for approval from government authorities.<br />
Their services can be, and often are,<br />
monitored by the religion department of the<br />
Chinese government.<br />
21
Feature Article<br />
TSPM ministers must be approved by the<br />
state and are often individuals indoctrinated<br />
with pro-government ideology. The Chinese<br />
government is slyly attempting to balance out<br />
international expectations of religious freedom<br />
with the security of a controlled, prostate,<br />
religious experience for its religious<br />
citizens. They call this “sinicization” – the<br />
creation of Chinese-centric doctrines, ideologies,<br />
and beliefs.<br />
Two Witnesses<br />
Being a Christian in China can be dangerous<br />
but, what does it look like at the individual<br />
level? What does it really mean to be a<br />
Christian in China?<br />
Jiang Tianyong is both a Christian and<br />
human rights activist. He is also missing.<br />
His wife, Jin, fears that the government has<br />
detained him and is torturing him in prison<br />
somewhere. On November 21, 2016, Jiang<br />
was traveling to Beijing to meet a friend.<br />
He entered the train station, texted his friend<br />
that he was boarding, but he never arrived at<br />
Beijing. Nobody knows where he is or what<br />
has happened to him.<br />
Unfortunately, this fear of detainment is not<br />
new. Jin told us how the government continually<br />
detained, beat, and harassed her husband<br />
because of his faith and activism. State officials<br />
even disbarred him from practicing law<br />
because of his human rights work and faith.<br />
When life in China became too dangerous,<br />
Jiang sent Jin and his daughter to the US. Jin<br />
recalled how government agents followed her<br />
while she went to the grocery store or how<br />
authorities locked her out of her own home,<br />
gluing the door shut so she couldn’t get in. They<br />
tracked her as she tried to go about her daily life.<br />
When prominent foreign visitors came to<br />
China, Jin remembered the mandatory house<br />
arrests and how her husband would conveniently<br />
disappear for the duration of the visit.<br />
Today, she continues to wait for word on<br />
her husband. Is he alive? Is he detained? Is he<br />
being tortured? Is he eating? Is he sleeping?<br />
Since she and her daughter left in 2013,<br />
Jin knows that her husband has furthered the<br />
Gospel and helped many others underground.<br />
Such work comes at a cost, however. “He<br />
live[d] as if he [was] homeless. He has had to<br />
move almost daily. And there is no normalcy<br />
in his eating habits. He is always running and<br />
escaping from the police.”<br />
The state saw Jiang as a threat to the government<br />
and Chinese culture because he dared<br />
rally around an ideology and belief other than<br />
the Chinese state. Now he’s missing. The<br />
consequences of following Christ in China are<br />
severe as ever.<br />
Tang and his wife, Wang, also know what<br />
it’s like to be persecuted for their faith. Before<br />
he became a Christian and a human rights<br />
activist, Tang studied chemistry. After reading<br />
“Stream in the Desert,” he became a Christian<br />
and soon, “his faith strengthened his pursuit<br />
for justice…The Bible [became] the foundation<br />
of his faith and pursuit.”<br />
Swallowed<br />
In 2014, the government tried to silence<br />
Tang. They charged him with subversion<br />
and sentenced him to five years in prison.<br />
Government officials now allow Wang to visit<br />
her husband once a month, but she cannot be<br />
alone with him. Five or six guards supervise<br />
their short meetings and can end visitation<br />
rights if anything ‘inappropriate’ is said.<br />
Wang related how government authorities<br />
deny Tang the right to have a Bible in prison<br />
and how he lives under horrific conditions.<br />
“[The] condition in prison is terrible- no matter<br />
it is food, environment or medical resource.<br />
Twenty, 30-ish people are packed in one dark<br />
cell. There’s no real outdoor exercises whatsoever<br />
but only staying in a room with a sunroof.<br />
Prisoners that live under these conditions suffer<br />
greatly and can die from infection or suffer<br />
mental consequences.” Tang’s faith didn’t just<br />
get him in trouble; Wang suffers too. She has<br />
been harassed, tracked, and detained for five<br />
months. She even lost her job. Wang cannot<br />
rely on anyone or anything but God.<br />
Jiang and Tang are just two caught in the<br />
middle of the Chinese government’s attempt<br />
to silence faith and justice. Even if the government<br />
releases them, neither will ever be the<br />
same. Li Chunfu never was.<br />
Ruined<br />
In 2015, Chinese authorities arrested and<br />
detained over 300 human rights lawyers. The<br />
authorities held some for extensive periods,<br />
among which was Li. After 18 months of<br />
detention, the government released Li on bail.<br />
No one will ever know what happened to him<br />
during the year and a half of detention and his<br />
family could never have prepared for what<br />
they saw when he came home.<br />
Emaciated and exhausted, Li was very frail<br />
and seemed to have aged years. But even more<br />
alarming was his mental state. Once released,<br />
Li rejected his wife’s embrace. When she<br />
would make phone calls, he would cry out for<br />
her to put the phone down, accusing her of<br />
conspiring with the government against him.<br />
His family and other activists believe that Li<br />
is suffering from some degree of schizophrenia<br />
from torture and extensive mental stress.<br />
Unfortunately, we may never know for sure<br />
since the Chinese government refuses to give<br />
insight to Li’s condition.<br />
ICC works to get Bibles into<br />
the hands of hungry believers<br />
throughout Southeast Asia.<br />
Jiang, Tang, and Li are faces of Chinese<br />
persecution. They live out their lives in the<br />
shadows, hiding from further incarceration<br />
and ill will. Religious freedom does not exist<br />
in China. Human rights activists and Christian<br />
leaders live in a constant state of fear or as<br />
prey waiting to be devoured. Their futures<br />
are unsure, their families are unsafe, but their<br />
determination for the Gospel and justice is<br />
unfaltering.<br />
Up Next<br />
China’s future is hardly looking up. New<br />
and developing legislation is making it harder<br />
for Christians to live out their faith freely. For<br />
example, in China it is illegal to be involved<br />
in a cult or participate in cult activities.<br />
Unfortunately, the definition of a ‘cult’ is<br />
highly subjective and government officials can<br />
accuse anyone of participation in such activi-<br />
22 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
ICC’s Interview with<br />
Jiang Tianyong<br />
On November 21, 2016 in China’s<br />
Hunan Province, Jiang Tianyong was<br />
on his way to meet the family of an<br />
imprisoned human rights activist. As<br />
a human rights activist and Christian,<br />
Jiang felt compelled to assist this family<br />
in any possible way. After entering a<br />
train station, Jiang texted his friend that<br />
he was boarding a train to Beijing. He<br />
never made it.<br />
On December 9, 2016 Jiang’s wife, Jin,<br />
told ICC about her husband’s life as a<br />
Christian in China. “In the past three<br />
years…my husband has not had a normal<br />
living condition. He lives as if he is<br />
homeless. He has had to move almost<br />
daily. And there is no normalcy in his<br />
eating habits. He is always running and<br />
escaping from the police.”<br />
Heroically and yet tragically, Jiang had<br />
the chance to leave all his struggles<br />
behind in 2013 and escape to the US<br />
with his family, but he chose to stay<br />
behind and help his country.<br />
“He felt like he could do more to help<br />
those who are vulnerable and need<br />
legal defense.” Jin told ICC.<br />
ties so long as it proves beneficial.<br />
While China does not generally consider<br />
Christianity to be a cult, government officials<br />
will often use charges of cult activity<br />
against individuals. Often, Christians do not<br />
understand what a cult actually is or how their<br />
actions fall into this category. Recent legislation<br />
has further empowered government officials<br />
to utilize the cult accusation status. ‘Cult’<br />
members accused of proselytizing government<br />
officials, children, or foreign groups can now<br />
be imprisoned under the new law.<br />
With many Chinese churches and pastors<br />
working with foreign mission offices, this new<br />
change will prove exceptionally problematic<br />
and dangerous.<br />
Further legislative changes include amendments<br />
requiring that religious work “be<br />
[involved with] politics…be politically clearheaded…be<br />
strict in discipline and…dare<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
to be responsible.” In other words, religion<br />
must be politically correct and sinicized. It<br />
is unclear how Chinese officials will judge<br />
churches to be politically clearheaded and<br />
responsible, although registration with China’s<br />
state church is likely.<br />
‘Unprecedented suppression’ is expected<br />
in China under the new political and legislative<br />
climate. The combination of legal<br />
changes, increased arrests and church closures,<br />
and the change in cult status legislation<br />
creates new and more severe challenges<br />
for the Chinese Church.<br />
Despite all of this, Christian aid organizations<br />
are estimating that China will have the<br />
largest Christian population in the world by<br />
2030. To a certain degree, it matters not what<br />
the Chinese government does; the Church is<br />
sure to flourish even under, or because of, the<br />
harshest of persecution.<br />
ICC’s Interview with<br />
Chris Smith<br />
“I am a strong believer. I believe in the<br />
importance of working with Evangelicals<br />
and across the spectrum of Christianity<br />
and other faiths.” Rep. Chris Smith said<br />
in an interview with ICC.<br />
Congressman Chris Smith of New Jersey<br />
has worked closely with ICC in order to<br />
promote human rights and religious<br />
freedom across the globe. Whether it’s<br />
Chinese human rights violations or the<br />
brutalities of ISIS, Congressman Smith<br />
not only feels the burden of the suffering<br />
people around the world, but also<br />
works to rectify these mistreatments.<br />
As a testament to his conviction, Smith<br />
regularly travels to persecuted countries,<br />
meeting with Christian families to<br />
hear firsthand accounts of their struggle,<br />
and looking for more opportunities<br />
to provide assistance State-side.<br />
23
Egypt<br />
Disintegrating<br />
Currently, the people of Egypt, Christians in particular, grapple<br />
with an economic crisis, growing Salafist sentiment, and Islamic<br />
State militants. For a people acclimated to the spirit of revolution,<br />
we may see yet another uprising in Egypt.<br />
By Sandra Elliot<br />
“<br />
Our church has been built<br />
on the blood of martyrs.”<br />
–Fr. Boulos, Cairo, Egypt.<br />
On December 11,<br />
2016, Mahmoud Mostafa<br />
strapped on an explosive<br />
vest under his church<br />
clothes. At 9:50 exactly,<br />
Mostafa detonated his<br />
vest in the women and<br />
children’s seating section of St. Mark’s Cathedral in<br />
Cairo, Egypt. The resulting carnage was severe.<br />
Twenty-nine people lost their lives because of the<br />
bombing that day in the worst single attack against<br />
Christians in modern Egyptian history.<br />
These numbers, though, don’t tell the human story<br />
of loss, heartbreak, and heroism. At ICC, we are ever<br />
filtering through terrorism and sectarian attacks. We<br />
find that it is most important to keep the personal<br />
loss of victims at the forefront of our work. Below<br />
are snippets from just a few of the victims we interviewed<br />
from the Cairo church bombing of 2016.<br />
The Church Defender, Nabil<br />
Habib, 48<br />
Nabil Habib was a proud man. He loved his work<br />
and he swore to defend his church until the day he<br />
died. His wife, Nadia, hated it when Nabil would<br />
speak of martyrdom.<br />
24 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
St. Peter and St. Paul’s<br />
Church<br />
On Dec. 11, 2016, a suicide<br />
bomber killed a total of 29 people<br />
and injured 47 others. This<br />
was the largest church attack in<br />
Egypt in recent history and ISIS<br />
claimed responsibility. Wikimedia<br />
Creative Commons image.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
25
Feature Article<br />
The aftermath of the<br />
bombing in St. Peter<br />
and St. Paul’s Church<br />
on Dec. 11, 2016. Coptic<br />
Orthodox Media Center<br />
photo.<br />
“He dreamed to be a martyr and his dream<br />
came true,” she told ICC.<br />
Nabil was the church guard at St. Mark’s<br />
cathedral for 20 years and his family of five<br />
lived on the church compound. On December<br />
11, someone saw Nabil running towards the<br />
suicide bomber just as he detonated himself in<br />
the St. Marks hall. Nabil’s daughter, Marian<br />
found him buried under the rubble of the<br />
destroyed hall.<br />
“My father died 18 days before my birthday,”<br />
Marian told ICC. “On my birthday, my<br />
father used to wake me up in the morning and<br />
sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to me, kiss me and give<br />
me a present…”<br />
Marian’s birthday passed this year without<br />
her father’s wakeup call or touch. His children<br />
and wife feel his absence deeply. Nadia, only<br />
33, must now raise her three children by herself.<br />
“Life is very hard without [Nabil]…,” she<br />
explained to ICC. “Life is very long and I cannot<br />
bear it alone. I hoped [he]…would be with us.”<br />
She Loved the Children,<br />
Samia Kheer, 36<br />
Mohsen Tanius remembers his wife’s last<br />
day: “On Sunday morning, at 4:00 a.m. she<br />
woke me up and said to me, ‘Don’t be lazy,<br />
let’s go to church.’”<br />
Part of her enthusiasm for church came<br />
from her love of the children that she worked<br />
with. Before moving to Cairo, Samia worked<br />
with special needs kids in upper Egypt. It was<br />
always difficult for Mohsen to understand his<br />
wife’s commitment to such children, but he<br />
admired it all the same.<br />
“She was always saying they [special<br />
needs kids] were angels and very intelligent,”<br />
Mohsen told ICC. “She loved them so much.”<br />
Samia and Mohsen weren’t supposed to<br />
be at St. Mark’s Cathedral on December 11.<br />
In fact, the couple was going to Anba Royce<br />
Church in Abassia when Samia noticed the<br />
St. Mark’s doors open. She insisted they go in<br />
and say the Lord’s Prayer before continuing on<br />
their way to the cathedral at Abbasia.<br />
“She sat down on the third bench in the right<br />
side of the church and I sat down on the third<br />
bench on the left side of the church.” Mohsen<br />
explained, “Some time passed and I looked<br />
to her to ask if we could leave, but I saw her<br />
focusing on prayer and her eyes were looking<br />
to heaven.”<br />
At 9:50 a.m., the ISIS suicide bomber<br />
detonated his vest in the right wing of the<br />
cathedral, causing the roof to cave in. At the<br />
sound of the blast, Mohsen rushed to where<br />
his wife once sat.<br />
“I found her lying [still], her eyes still looking<br />
to heaven but not moving,” he recalled.<br />
“She had passed away.”<br />
Samia leaves her husband and her inspiring<br />
legacy of love behind. She was devoted<br />
to her work in the children’s ministry, writing<br />
songs and plays for the Sunday school classes<br />
for various congregations. Many in Egypt’s<br />
church body feel her loss.<br />
The Brides of Christ<br />
On December 12, wooden coffins lined the<br />
walls of the Virgin Mary Church. On each, a<br />
cross was painted to celebrate the martyr laying<br />
inside. Nahla stood between two coffins,<br />
one hand on each. It felt so unfair to have lost<br />
so much.<br />
“I see now that it was a grace from the Lord<br />
to take my two daughters together, as they<br />
loved each other very much,” she recently<br />
explained to ICC. “It would be very difficult if<br />
one of them left and the other stayed. This is<br />
still very hard to me to say.”<br />
The night before Nahla lost her children,<br />
the three stayed up late drinking tea and shar-<br />
26 PERSECU ION.org<br />
APRIL <strong>2017</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
ing jokes. The two sisters agreed before bed<br />
that their mother needed rest and should skip<br />
the next morning’s mass. The girls had been<br />
attending St. Marks their whole lives, so they<br />
hardly missed a service.<br />
“My two daughters were linked to each<br />
other, they were together everywhere,” their<br />
father, Fahim Helmy, remembered. “Now they<br />
are together in the same place, in heaven<br />
enjoying the Lord Jesus Christ and that is the<br />
only thing which comforts us. They are the<br />
brides of Christ.”<br />
What’s Next<br />
These are just a few stories of persecuted<br />
Christians in Egypt. Not only are Christians<br />
persecuted with suicide attacks, but they face<br />
social and economic persecution.<br />
Discriminatory persecution can often be less<br />
obvious, though it still affects a wide population<br />
in Egypt.<br />
Egypt is currently grappling with a massive<br />
economic crisis and currency collapse.<br />
Christians in particular are bearing the weight<br />
of suffering through marginalization and discrimination<br />
in education and the workforce.<br />
Such discrimination has forced countless<br />
Egyptian men to journey to Libya in search of<br />
work. This travel is dangerous.<br />
“Now they are<br />
together in the same<br />
place, in heaven<br />
enjoying the Lord<br />
Jesus Christ and that<br />
is the only thing which<br />
comforts us. They are<br />
the brides of Christ.”<br />
– NAHLA, MOTHER OF DAUGHTERS<br />
KILLED IN THE BOMBING<br />
The 21 Martyrs<br />
You’ve heard the story and the fates of<br />
these men before. Twenty-one Christians<br />
lined up in orange jumpsuits. ISIS militants<br />
in military garb. The Christians<br />
knelt, then the militants slit their throats.<br />
The world was horrified, but moved on<br />
with their lives while families were left to<br />
suffer the loss alone.<br />
So, what now? What is the future of this<br />
nation? Currently, the citizens of Egypt and<br />
Christians in particular are grappling with<br />
an economic crisis, growing radical sentiment<br />
and Islamic State militants.<br />
For a people acclimated to the spirit of<br />
revolution, we may see yet another uprising<br />
in Egypt. With inflation rising exponentially,<br />
foreign reserves failing, and gas prices<br />
increasing, social tension and fanaticism<br />
is on the rise and social upheaval leaves<br />
Christians in a very vulnerable position.<br />
Please pray for these brothers and<br />
sisters as they suffer innumerable abuses<br />
in unstable circumstances. Fear is<br />
woven into the fabric of life for Egyptian<br />
Christians and they need our support now<br />
more than ever.<br />
Challenges in Egypt<br />
Security camera footage captures the dust<br />
cloud moments after the bomb went off in St.<br />
Peter and St. Paul’s Church on Dec. 11, 2016.<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
Egypt’s failing economy has contributed<br />
to marginalization and discrimination.<br />
<strong>Persecution</strong> is not confined to economic<br />
or discriminatory measures, but these are<br />
some of the ways in which Christians bear<br />
an uneven weight in Egypt.<br />
We must understand that, in Egypt,<br />
economics and radicalism are connected.<br />
To put it plainly, financial desperation<br />
in Islam often results in the<br />
growth of fanatic sentiment. This puts<br />
Christians at risk. We have seen an<br />
increase in religiously motivated attacks<br />
in many rural parts of Egypt as well<br />
as in Cairo. While President al-Sisi<br />
has promised to support the Christian<br />
minority and has made many wonderful<br />
pronouncements, little has changed and,<br />
in fact, radicals have a free hand with<br />
the Christian community.<br />
Christians are more vulnerable than<br />
ever as the economic crisis and the sectarian<br />
drift are pushing them to further to<br />
the edge of society.<br />
With no official protection, Christians<br />
are a likely scapegoat for the growing<br />
dissatisfaction in Egyptian culture and<br />
economics.<br />
ISIS seems to be floundering. With<br />
security forces in Iraq and Syria liberating<br />
more of the militant occupied territories,<br />
we are seeing a new strategy emerge<br />
from the group: suicide bombings.<br />
The Islamic State has, for the most part,<br />
occupied itself with territorial expansion<br />
and ethnic cleansing in the last three<br />
years. So why the sudden change in strategy?<br />
Certain scholars argue that terrorist<br />
organizations will employ suicide tactics<br />
as a response to territorial loss as a last<br />
resort. With liberating armies continuing<br />
to push militants out of Iraq and Syria,<br />
the umbrella organization is resorting to<br />
a desperate power play. Suicide bombings<br />
are particularly sinister in nature<br />
and the carnage is extensive, making this<br />
terror strategy very effective in instilling<br />
widespread panic.<br />
Attacks like we’ve seen in Belgium,<br />
France and Turkey are ISIS’ desperate<br />
attempts to inflict damage. They are no<br />
longer confined to an established territory.<br />
While we shouldn’t fool ourselves<br />
into thinking them defeated, ISIS new<br />
strategic approach to terrorism may also<br />
be their final strategy.<br />
27
You Can Help Today!<br />
PERSECU ION.org<br />
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN<br />
SEND DONATIONS TO:<br />
ICC<br />
PO BOX 8056<br />
SILVER SPRING, MD 20907<br />
OR ONLINE AT<br />
WWW.PERSECUTION.ORG<br />
OR BY PHONE<br />
800-ICC-5441<br />
GIVING TO ICC VIA<br />
YOUR WILL<br />
Provide now for a future gift to ICC<br />
by including a bequest provision in<br />
your will or revocable trust. If you<br />
would like more information on giving<br />
to ICC in this way, please give<br />
us a call at 1-800-ICC-5441.<br />
A group of Christian<br />
women learn sewing<br />
techniques as part of<br />
a clothing factory that<br />
ICC set up in Egypt<br />
to provide sustainable<br />
income for their families.<br />
© Copyright <strong>2017</strong> ICC, Washington, D.C., USA.<br />
All rights reserved. Permission to reproduce all<br />
or part of this publication is granted provided<br />
attribution is given to ICC as the source.<br />
International Christian Concern (ICC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) (all donations tax-deductible).<br />
ICC makes every effort to honor donor wishes in regards to gifts. Occasionally, situations<br />
arise where a project is no longer viable. ICC will then redirect those donated funds to the<br />
fund most similar to the donor’s original wishes. ICC uses 7.5 percent of each restricted<br />
donation to carry out the mission of its segregated funds.<br />
facebook.com/persecuted<br />
@persecutionnews