Three American Christians Detained in Laos

Three American Christians Detained in Laos

(International Christian Concern) — International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that on April 8, three American Christians were detained by police in Laos as they visited villages north of Muang Sing in the Luang Namtha province. Wayne, Autumn, and Joseph were volunteering with the US-based Christian non-profit organization Vision Beyond Borders (VBB) at the time of […]

American Pastor Pleads for Rescue From Chinese Prison

American Pastor Pleads for Rescue From Chinese Prison

BEIJING (ChinaAid) — An American pastor serving a life sentence in China is begging his family to secure his release. David Lin, a Chinese American pastor, was placed under house arrest in China in 2006, when he tried to gain government permission to run a ministry within China. He was subsequently jailed, and authorities then […]

Christian Missionary Killed in Paraguay

Christian Missionary Killed in Paraguay

(Evangelical Focus) — American missionary Wayne Goddard was killed by several gunshots on Tuesday night in his residence, in the indigenous colony Mboijagua, 20 Km from the Paraguayan Villa Ygatimi district. Goddard had been working with natives for more than 25 years for the mission organization Ethnos360, formerly known as New Tribes Mission (NTM). The […]

Food Deprivation, Beatings and Jail as Christians Suffer in Jharkhand, India

Food Deprivation, Beatings and Jail as Christians Suffer in Jharkhand, India

HYDERABAD, India (Morning Star News) – A longstanding Hindu extremist practice of turning animistic villagers against Christians has intensified as elections get underway in India, with tribal villagers taught that Christianity is anti-Indian. Upset about tribal Adivasi relatives leaving the animistic Sarna religion to become Christians, 60-year-old Sanpitha Majhi attacked a 28-year-old Christian mother he believed had “forcefully converted” […]

Chinese Officials Release Elderly Minister Who Served Two-Year Sentence for ‘Provoking Troubles’

Chinese Officials Release Elderly Minister Who Served Two-Year Sentence for ‘Provoking Troubles’

QINGDAO, Shandong (ChinaAid) — Qingdao officials released an elderly minister on March 29 upon the completion of his two-year-and-one-month sentence for allegedly “provoking troubles.” Later that night, the released minister, Zhou Dixian, traveled to Beijing in order to protect his rights and worship at a church there. Before his arrest, Zhou founded a church that […]

Police Responsible for Disappearance of Pastor in Malaysia, Rights Commission Concludes

Police Responsible for Disappearance of Pastor in Malaysia, Rights Commission Concludes

(Morning Star News) – A human rights committee in Malaysia has concluded that police officers were responsible for the 2017 disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh, according to published reports. The prime minister of Malaysia told reporters late Wednesday (April 3) that the government would investigate the abduction of the pastor and the 2016 disappearance of […]

Third Phase of Sharia Law Implemented in Brunei, Christian Converts Expected to Go Into ‘Deeper Hiding’

Third Phase of Sharia Law Implemented in Brunei, Christian Converts Expected to Go Into ‘Deeper Hiding’

(Open Doors USA) — On Wednesday, the full extent of Sharia law went into effect in Brunei. The newest and third phase of the law is difficult news for Christian converts who are expected to have to go into deeper hiding in the small Sultan-ruled country on the Southeast Asian island of Borneo where conversion from Islam […]

Russia Suspends Activities of Baptist and Pentecostal Theological Seminaries

Russia Suspends Activities of Baptist and Pentecostal Theological Seminaries

(Evangelical Focus) — The main theological training centres of the Pentecostal Union and the Baptist Union in Russia have been forced to stop their activities. According to a Forum 18 report, Russian evangelical Christians see the increase of control over these kind of institutions as “a means by which the authorities are attempting to curtail […]

Chinese City Offering Rewards for Reporting ‘Illegal Religious Activities,’ Raising Further Concerns for House Churches

Chinese City Offering Rewards for Reporting ‘Illegal Religious Activities,’ Raising Further Concerns for House Churches

GUANGZHOU, Guangdong — Officials in the Chinese city of Guangzhou have announced that rewards are being offered for those who report “illegal religious activities,” a term that applies not only to terrorist activities, or those who “use religion to … undermine national unity,” but also those who “establish religious venues without authorization” or “conduct religious […]