Churches in the UK and Ireland were challenged over the weekend to take their services out into the open air, whatever the weather, to stand with Christians who are being persecuted for their faith.
‘Choosing to meet outside come rain or shine really brings home how precious our freedoms are,’ Mr Paul Robinson, the CEO of Release International, which supports persecuted Christians worldwide told USA media.
‘Taking time out to pray for the persecuted can spur us on to use our freedom to the full,” he added.
Around the world, the organisation says Christians are forced to meet in the open air because their church buildings have been destroyed, or their meeting places have been closed down by governments hostile to the Christian faith.
“Christians continue to be persecuted under Islam, militant Hinduism, and authoritarian regimes, and increasingly under communism. China is demolishing churches, tearing down crosses and seizing properties used for worship. And North Korea is widely regarded as the most hostile place in the world to be a Christian,” the organisation says.
In Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Christians are being accused of blasphemy as a way of settling scores and driving out Christian minorities.
‘Standing with the persecuted is as important as ever,’ said Paul Robinson. ‘And a great way of bringing that importance home is to set aside a single service a year to identify with believers who are forced to gather in secret or outdoors every time they meet. We could so easily be standing in their position.
“Churches who’ve taken part in the Great Outdoors Church Service tell us how this open-air act of identification has given them a taste of what it’s like for believers who have neither the comfort nor security of meeting in a building. It’s also a great witness to our local communities.”
Last month, Nigeria witnessed a mass wave of slaughter of Christians at the hands of radical Muslim Fulani herdsmen. At least 58 Christians were slaughtered in April, according to a statement by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference in Nigeria, which called for President Muhammadu Buhari to resign.
ChinaAid said earlier this month the local governments of Wenzhou and Shaoxing had banned all religious gatherings under the guise of fire safety inspections.
Wenzhou, which is known as “China’s Jerusalem” due to its large Christian community, has been especially targeted by the atheistic Communist government, which has banned Sunday School for Christian children.
In India this April, the state of Uttarakhand became the eighth state in the country to pass legislation that is officially named the “Freedom of Religion Act” but has the allegedly hidden intent to punish those who facilitate religious conversions, especially conversions from Hinduism to Christianity. The law carries a jail term of up to two years.
Christian persecution, which includes violent attacks, destruction of Christian property and false accusations, has risen in India since the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party won the general election in 2014. A report by an evangelical group in India described the year 2017 as “one of the most traumatic for the Christian community” in 10 years.
North Korea also continues to be the most hostile place in the world to be a Christian, and in Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Christians are being accused of blasphemy as a way of settling scores and driving out Christian minorities, Release International said.
Release International says out door services are a great opportunity to be prayer warriors for the persecuted.
Not all churches participated in the campaign held last Sunday, as the charity encouraged them to set aside any date that would be suitable while just suggesting that it could be held May 27.
Through its international network of missions Release International serves persecuted Christians in more than 30 countries around the world, by supporting pastors and Christian prisoners, and their families, supplying Christian literature and Bibles, and working for justice.
Added Reporting by Christian Post.
