The Parish Magazine September 2021

the parish noticeboard — 4
The Persecuted Church
India in turmoil: Christians are being persecuted and Covid is rife. What sort of world can these
young people be looking forward to?
Devendra Rawat, dreamstime.com
Persecution and Covid in India
This month Colin Bailey focuses on India, from where there are reports of anti-
Christian agitation and violence along with the deadly impact of Covid-19 on
Christian ministry.
The Evangelical Fellowship of India
Religious Liberty Commission's
half-yearly report records 145 cases of
persecution, including three murders,
and attacks or desertion of 22 places
of worship. The violence against
Christians stems, they say, 'from an
environment of targeted hate'.1
The UNHRC (United Nations
Human Rights Council) has received a
report by the WEA (World Evangelical
Alliance) denouncing the spreading
of false information about Christians
in India and Nepal. It addresses
the 'ideological and identity-based
disinformation promoted by Hindu
nationalist groups in India and Nepal',
with the aim of harming 'religious
minority groups, particularly local
Christians'.2
DYING
The Sukma Superintendent of
Police in Raipur has instructed his
subordinates to monitor the activities
of Christian missionaries and
converted tribal Christians.3
In Gujarat, the state government
has introduced a new anti-conversion
amendment, making it illegal to
persuade somebody to convert with
the promise of 'divine blessings'.
This means that Christians could be
prosecuted for telling non-Christians
that repenting and believing in Christ
will bring forgiveness for sins and
everlasting life.4
In Orissa, the homes of eight
Christian families have been
destroyed, and the inhabitants forced
to leave their village. The president of
the Global Council of Indian Christians
(GCIC) has strongly condemned
the attack on Christians by Hindu
extremists.5
Many Christian leaders in India
and Nepal are dying of Covid. Reports
from Barnabas Fund partners indicate
that the number of pastors and other
leaders who have died in India is well
over 2,000. The Covid strain that
has overwhelmed India has produced
'a health and economic crisis of
unprecedented proportions', according
to one Indian Christian doctor who
wrote to Barnabas. Many Christian
ministries are in danger of closing as
there is no one to lead them.6
Barnabas Fund has launched a
Coronavirus Appeal for India and are
working with Indian Christian medical
institutions to provide assistance. You
can donate at:
http://www.barnabasfund.org or 024
7623 1923 quoting CIB 05/21, so your
donation goes to this fund.
Please pray for India, and the
Karun orphanage and school that St
Andrew's Church supports.
Sources and further reading:
1 Evangelical Fellowship of India https://
efionline.org/2021/07/23/religious-libertycommission-half-yearly-report-2021/
2 Evangelical Focus Europe https://
evangelicalfocus.com/world/12165/in-indiaand-nepal-disinformation-on-social-mediais-rife-and-used-to-further-stigmatisechristians-and-other-minorities
3 New Indian Express https://www.
newindianexpress.com/nation/2021/
jul/13/sukma-sp-orders-surveillance-ofchristian-missionaries-activities-in-tribalareas-2329667.html
4 Barnabas Fund Prayer Focus Update
July 2021 https://barnabasfund.org/news/
prayer-focus-update-july-2021/
5 Asia News http://www.asianews.it/newsen/Orissa,-8-Christian-families-attackedand-expelled-from-their-village-53379.html
6 Barnabas Fund https://barnabasfund.
org/news/over-2-000-covid-deathsamongst-pastors-and-christian-leaders-inindia-a/
The Parish Magazine - September 2021 13
We still need
the rainbow
By Kate Masden, Shirley Methodist Church
God promised Noah: ‘When the
rainbow appears in the clouds, I will
see it and remember the everlasting
covenant between God and all living
creatures of every kind on the earth’.
What child hasn’t thought about the
pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?
Dorothy sang Somewhere over the
rainbow, dreams come true and troubles
melt like lemon drops. But this magical
place cannot be found: Birds fly over the
rainbow — why then, oh why, can’t I?
Some cultures see it as a bridge. The
Ancient Greeks called it Iris, a beautiful
young maiden who linked heaven and
earth. Indonesian societies believe it's a
celestial river for souls as they journey
to the spiritual realm, while in Japan
the creators of the world descend on a
rainbow, the Bridge of Heaven, to create
land from the chaotic ocean.
The rainbow-serpent is a powerful
spirit throughout Aboriginal culture;
thought to be the oldest religious belief
in the world. It is depicted in rock art
at least 10,000 years old. In North
Queensland, they believe it is put in the
sky by enemies to stop the rain falling.
CRACK IN THE SKY
Buddhists say that you can become
a spiritual rainbow body — the highest
state before Nirvana and in Hindu
legend it's an archer’s bow used by
Indra, the god of thunder and war. For
some Chinese it was a crack in the sky
made by five coloured stones cast by the
mother goddess, Nüwa.
While many marvel at and worship
rainbows, others fear them. Meso-
American societies believe they are bad
omens and hide their children from
them. The Burma Karuns believe a
rainbow is a dangerous demon that eats
children; whereas Bulgarian legend has
it that walking under a rainbow causes
someone to change gender.
The artist, Gilbert Baker, created
the rainbow flag in 1978 to depict
pride, defiance and hope for respect,
acceptance, and equal rights.
Whatever the myth or legend, there
can be little doubt that God created the
rainbow for a purpose and that must be
to reassure us that he watches over us.
We are still needing his rainbow!