Persecuted Christians Need Something More than Our Mere Prayers
St. Thomas, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ, was once a skeptic, but then he became a hero for all times, and the tale of St. Thomas is being told not only in India but all over the world during these two thousand years, both among the believers and the non-believers. The words which Jesus spoke in response to St. Thomas' assertion that he could not accept the story of Christ's resurrection unless he verified it by putting his fingers into His wounds, are meant for the whole of mankind, more particularly to those who disbelieve - “Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." John 20:27. These words are not only believed but lived out as countless Indians have chosen to follow Christ and take upon themselves His great mandate to tell the world fearlessly about the liberating power of His good news for the groping mankind. But those who are still not ready for the truth cannot stand the very sight of His followers, and so they want to hurt them, and even destroy them. Persecutions and hate crimes against Christians are a result of this refusal to see the truth, and in India, persecutions are swelling across the sub-continent by the day. In the meantime, the Arab Spring is also turning sour. The hope for a new democratic regeneration in the Arab world is still debatable as we witness daily an emerging scenario of intolerance and systematic oppression of the Christian minorities in those countries.

Under these trying situations perhaps it is too much to expect from our own government, to raise these issues, the plight of these persecuted minorities, especially the plight of Christians, and bring them to the forefront in the international fora. But, then however complicated the circumstances may be, silence and inaction are certainly not the options. As Martin Luther King famously said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends.” These persecutions of minority Christians in the Middle East and other regions in the world unfortunately are a phenomenon that continues to get worse with the passage of time. For that reason alone, Christians everywhere, as they practice their beliefs in a free and fearless atmosphere of freedom, need to be reminded of the suffering of their brethren and other minorities in these countries. These troubled minorities need not only our prayers, but also our tangible support in whatever form we can give it to them. Most evident support that we can extend is that we must continue to urge our governments without a pause, to do something very tangible for these persecuted people before the situation gets still worse.
In North Africa and the Middle East, the Arab Spring is turning into a nightmarish experience for many Christians. From Tunisia to Egypt, Islamist parties have, as many realists had already predicted, has steadily gained ascendancy. The leaders of these parties, despite being described optimistically by some high-placed western sources as being of moderate inclination, have already declared that Sharia will be the principal law in their countries. It is not improbable that, as they further consolidate their power, the Islamic parties will become even more radical and throw the initial caution to the winds.
In Egypt, now that the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party has overwhelmingly won the recent elections, it is expected that the party will continue to dominate the political scenario in the years to come. This reality has already affected the ancient Christian Coptic Community in Egypt. According to recent reports, since the removal of Hosni Mubarak from power, more than 100,000 Christian families have emigrated in fear of the anticipated reprisals against them, once the Islamic parties entrench their hold on power.
In Iraq, though the Christian minorities have existed there for two millennia, yet, the violence gripping the country now means that they face a terrible choice of either leaving the country or getting killed. Another stark choice is to get converted themselves to Islam. For many of these Christians, who still proudly speak Aramaic, the language of Christ, the level of threat is much higher. As a result, the numbers of Christians leaving Iraq is steadily growing to disproportionate levels.
It is estimated that there are a million Christians in Iran who live under constant oppression by the authorities that govern the country under a totalitarian Muslim theocracy. It is greatly feared and widely expected that the plight of Christians there will become even more perilous if, as is being strongly suggested by some influential personages, the western powers or Israel decide to attack Iran's nuclear facilities.
Syria, home to another estimated million Christians, has recently received the influx of hundreds of thousands of Christians fleeing sectarian persecution in Iraq. A take-over by Islamists after the expected fall of Bashar al-Assad in the not-too-distant future will make the life of Syrian Christians almost intolerable.
In Turkey, Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has often turned a blind eye to persecutions against Christians in the country despite his many successes in raising Turkey to new levels of prosperity and, at the same time, establishing a democratic and moderate Islamic party in government. This probably gains him more popularity and also wins him more votes.
When, recently, the question of Christian persecution in Islamic countries in North Africa and the Middle East was raised in the House of Lords, it was pointed out that Christians in the Anatolian peninsula were being banned from worshipping in public places. In the debate, there was criticism of the British government for showing lack of interest in the matter. Probably the British Government is toeing this line in order to preserve good relations between the two countries.
It is very unfortunate that, at present, the Western Governments are fully absorbed in an unending spiral of problems as they are hopelessly trying to grapple themselves with the financial and economic crises gripping many markets, which leaves them with little room to assert themselves in the world. The picture just now looks very gloomy, but with the resurrected Lord always by our side, it should look bright and ever optimistic for us. Also, Pope Benedict stressing upon the plight of persecuted Christians and other religious minorities in his annual address to Vatican-accredited diplomats on 9th Jan. 2012, comes like a ray of hope in the midst of ever encircling darkness.
Addressing the 179 diplomats accredited to the Holy See from around the world, who were gathered at the Apostolic Palace, the Pope said, “In many countries Christians are deprived of fundamental rights and sidelined from public life; in other countries they endure violent attacks against their churches and their homes.” He recalled that “In the past year religiously motivated terrorism has also reaped numerous victims, especially in Asia and in Africa,” and that religion “cannot be employed as a pretext for setting aside the rules of justice and of law for the sake of the intended 'good.'” The Pope also warned against secularist policies “aimed at marginalizing the role of religion in the life of society, as if it were a cause of intolerance” rather than a source of “human dignity, justice and peace.”
Dr. Sajan K. George
National President
Global Council of India Christians
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