June 2017 Persecution Magazine

Feature Article
In February of this year,
International Christian
Concern (ICC) traveled to
Indonesia to meet with numerous
underground church pastors.
We sat with these men,
asking them why they had to
practice their faith “underground”
in a country where it
is not illegal to be a Christian
or even to evangelize. During these
meetings, they openly shared with us the
danger they face in choosing to follow
Jesus in Indonesia.
Every one of the pastors had stories of
persecution. One pastor had to flee an
angry, torch-bearing mob in the middle
of the night by motorcycle. Another
spent days in the jungle hiding from radicals
who were hunting for him. Another
pastor’s entire family was beaten and
driven out of their town.
Sharing your faith in Indonesia is
risky. Muslims are becoming increasingly
radicalized by growing religious
conservatism.
Sharing the Gospel is especially dangerous
considering evangelical pastors
and their need for follow-up as they disciple
new believers. These visits alone
often stir up suspicion.
Pastors shared with ICC how they were
often questioned as to their purpose for
visiting a community, or asked why they
were coming so often if they did not have
something to sell or a family to visit.
These men do not pastor house churches
for fame or money. In fact, most of
them are quite poor. One pastor sold
ice cream from a cart. Another drove a
used motorcycle taxi that he rented from
a friend. Another sold crackers on the
street. These pastors share the Gospel
because they believe in it.
One young pastor named Nur shared
his testimony with us. He first heard
about Jesus from his father, who had
been a teacher of the Quran, but found
Christ and became an underground pastor.
Nur’s decision to follow in his
father’s footsteps has meant significant
sacrifice for himself and his family.
As a casual laborer, he has no regular
income and struggles to financially support
his wife and child. To make matters
worse, Nur has tuberculosis, and is often
unable to afford the medicine he needs.
At the time of our first meeting with Nur,
we had no idea the dangers he would face
within only a few days.
“They stripped my clothes...They forced me to
do so even though they knew I was sick. They
kept punching and kicking me. I counted more
than 30 times they kicked me that night.”
Shortly after we met Nur, he was sharing
the Gospel with some friends at their
house. A neighbor asked if he could listen
in on the conversation, to which the
group tentatively agreed. Nur understood
well the risk of allowing such a guest,
but he hoped for the best and trusted
the Lord. Mid-teaching, another three
men entered the home, one of whom was
wearing the garb of a radical Muslim
organization. The three grabbed Nur and
took him outside and began beating him
senselessly.
They punched him in the face and
asked why he would teach “heresy” and
attempt to Christianize a family in their
community. They took his phone and
his wallet and brought him to a local
mosque. When he got there, they stripped
him and locked him in a room.
16 PERSECU ION.org
JUNE 2017
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN