Fourteen Churches in Zamfara State, in Northern Nigeria are now facing demolition threat by the state government, which claims that there are too many Christian worship centers in the state. Zamfara state, which spearheaded the adoption of Islamic law in northern Nigeria contrary to the country’s secular constitution, is predominantly Muslim, populated with less than a five percent Christian population.
Four Examples of Courage and Faith in 2001
There is no such thing as a “typical” persecuted Christian. Yet among the millions of persecuted believers worldwide, some qualities might be considered typical: courage, patience, persistence, and faithfulness. Below are the stories of four Christians currently under great pressure for their faith. They and their families have come to typify those very qualities. They would not claim to be “persecuted Christians of the year” or even desire it. They would only ask not to be forgotten.
Islam and Church Disunity Combine to Dull the Impact of the Church by Geoff Stamp BAMAKO, Mali (Compass) — For some time, Muslim city authorities in Magnambougou planned for a beautiful new mosque in this new suburb of Bamako, the Malian capital. They acquired land in the middle of the urban dwellings and began to build a mosque that would dominate the area and accommodate more than 2,000 Muslims for prayers, much to the distress and dismay of local Christians. The authorities had rejected the Christians’ repeated requests for permission to build new churches. “It is becoming harder as every … Read more
ZARIA, Nigeria (Compass) — Five Christian students died during a clash between Muslim and Christian students of the Kaduna State Polytechnic University in Zaria city in northern Nigeria.
The conflict broke out on Monday, August 27, during students’ union elections of the school, which saw the Christian students’ candidates sweeping the polls.
Expanding from 14 churches in 1993 to 50 today, one native ministry in Uganda reports that the gospel of Jesus Christ is making headway in that central African nation.
WASHINGTON (BP)–The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom received in its first hearing a variety of recommendations on halting the religious persecution and civil war in Sudan, but there seemed to be widespread agreement on one sentiment — the United States can do more.
LAGOS, Nigeria (Compass) — The head of the Nigerian Bible Society recently released the casualty figures of Christians killed and churches destroyed during the February and May religious clashes between Muslims and Christians in Kaduna, the capital city of northern Nigeria’s Kaduna state.
DAMBOA, Nigeria (Compass) — A Christian-Muslim conflict in Damboa in northeastern Nigeria’s Borno state resulted in the deaths of 15 Christians, and four churches were burned.
ISTANBUL, July 6 (Compass) — Officials from Egypt’s powerful State Security Intelligence (SSI) agency detained a Coptic Orthodox Christian for the fourth time in early June, interrogating him under torture on accusations of preaching Christianity to Muslims.
GARFIELD, NJ (ANS) — The indiscriminate slaughter of more than two million people, mostly black Christians, but also Muslims and animists, in southern Sudan, has been brought about by the National Islamic Front (NIF) who long ago declared a jihad (holy war) on the south. Human rights observers say that NIF violates almost every provision of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
A recent VOM report from Ghana tells of the needs faced by our Christian brothers and sisters who face persecution from animists and Muslims in the countryside. Recently VOM workers had to disguise themselves as they traveled into one region, as the local people view strangers with great suspicion. Believers there face being killed by their neighbours. They live in great poverty and have not nearly enough Bibles for the number of Christians. Bibles, Bible portions and Christian literature in the local language are smuggled into the area by Ghanaian believers at great risk. Recently 32 Christians were sent out of the region by pastoral leadership for fear that they might be killed because of their conversion to Christianity.
Screams pierced the air as invaders forced their way onto the farm just outside Gweru, Zimbabwe.
Officers from Brunei’s Internal Security Department (ISD) have questioned indigenous church leaders during the last few months about an organized prayer program authorities are concerned is a threat to the stability of the Southeast Asian Muslim sultanate.
Pushing aside years of internal disputes, churches in the West Africa country of Niger are finding unity is giving them a new boldness to face violent crime and a more aggressive Islam.
Five Nigerian Christians — two priests and three church members — are currently facing trial for assisting two Christian girls who escaped from arranged marriages.
Rev. Al Sharpton recently returned from Sudan after a fact-finding trip to address the issue of slavery in the Africa’s largest nation.
The Bauchi state government in northern Nigeria has threatened to demolish two churches for zoning violations.
Ethnic violence between the Bajju and Ikulu ethnic groups in the Zangon Kataf region of Kaduna state in northern Nigeria have led to the killing of a pastor and two others.
Every Friday, during the Muslim holy day, a special group of Christians meet in a house.
Christian leaders in northern Nigeria’s Zamfara state have accused the government of coercing Muslim converts to Christianity into attacking Christians and demolishing church buildings.