According to Lee DeYoung with Words of Hope, Rev. Chander Mani Khanna–accused of bribing Muslim young people to convert to Christianity–is free, and the case against him is dismissed for lack of evidence. 

The bad news is: the . . . → Read More: Mixed News for Christians Coming Out of Jammu and Kashmir States]]> India (MNN) ? There's a bright spot amongst all the news coming out of India's Jammu and Kashmir states.

According to Lee DeYoung with Words of Hope, Rev. Chander Mani Khanna–accused of bribing Muslim young people to convert to Christianity–is free, and the case against him is dismissed for lack of evidence. 

The bad news is: the stress silenced the pastor. "He retired officially from the only open church in Kashmir, (that is the All Saint's Church in Srinagar), in mid-January. The church is still there, but at this point, it seems as if Christian activity has been driven completely underground and has been severely curtailed."

DeYoung confirms the Compass Direct News report saying because no charges were filed against him, the state's High Court on Feb. 11 halted proceedings in the police complaint of "promotion of religious enmity by conversions" against Khanna.

Khanna can now travel because the order binding him to the state was lifted, as well. The court asked the government to file its response by March 14, and then it will set the date for the next hearing.   

What's odd is that while Kashmir's sharia (Islamic law) court has no legal authority in India, the committee charged and convicted three church leaders of "luring the valley Muslims to Christianity." As part of their sentence, the trio was ordered to leave the state, and the state government was told to take over the management of all Christian schools in the region. 

DeYoung says, "Local Christians say that the Sharia court is continuing to pursue Christians. Newspaper announcements are posted, naming suspected or known Christians and urging people to turn them in."

As a result, life has been extremely difficult for Kashmir's Christians since the verdict. First, there's the intimidation. "They're also seeking to prevent conversions and to re-convert Christians," says DeYoung. "Committee members of this Islamic Sharia court are visiting Christian homes and allegedly pressuring them and their families to return to Islam."

Then, there are the threats, which have to be taken seriously. DeYoung says they're taking steps to keep the staff safe. "Words of Hope's radio broadcasts in the Kashmiri language, which had been on the air for a number of years, are going to be suspended at the end of March–in part, because the people who have been recording the programs, the production effort has been disrupted by this persecution."

The fifteen-minute program, "Ray of Hope," airs four days a week and includes music, a health segment, and a Bible-based message. Personal contacts have been made with listeners. The few seekers who respond to the program need support and encouragement to stand for their faith in their own community.

The decision to pull back a little is not limited to Words of Hope. "The shortwave transmissions of FEBA radio are going to cease to the Indian subcontinent at the end of March. We are continuing to pursue other opportunities, and we hope that it will be possible to restart this ministry sometime in the future."

As noted in an earlier interview with another Words of Hope staffer, for all practical purposes "active ministry has ceased for the moment, as far as we know, and the Christians who were involved in that have had to flee for their lives."

There was openness to the Gospel, so keep praying for opportunity. DeYoung says the story isn't over yet. "[We] seek the prayers of God's people for an easing of this illegal persecution and for the work of the Gospel to continue–and hopefully increase."

Source:  Mission Network News

Persecution Blog

Monday . . . → Read More: Persecution News Week in Review]]> Today I thought that I would give you a recap of the stories we shared with you this week, just in case you missed something.   We have so much to pray for and rejoice in the Lord over.  Please share this with your friends and family who care about the persecution of Christians around the world.

Monday we shared with you a devotion called He Actually Chooses Affliction, a story coming out of Laos and the persecution happening there, and and Persecution Podcast 103 where we focused on prayer for Laos, Pakistan and Azerbiajan.

Tuesday was Valentines Day so we shared with you a letter from Tom White about Asia Bibi, a little history about Valentines Day in our post Valentinus Beheaded in Rome, and
and about a revival happening in Egypt.

Wednesday we shared some news from Pakistan and a new blasphemy charge for Dildar Youcaf , we asked you to help us write 416 more letters to Gao, who is still in prison and we gave you more information on the blasphemy charges from our friends at Mission Network News, concerning Dildar Youcaf.

Thursday we shared some praise coming out of China because of our Bibles Unbound program, as well as some news about a few priests who were abused and released from prison in South Sudan, and a video report from CBN News about the 200 Christians who died in fire in Honduras.

Thank you for reading our blog and for caring about the needs of Christians worldwide.  I pray the Lord blesses you, as you remember that we are bound with them!

Persecution Blog

Tuesday marked Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s first visit to the US in more than five years. The leader stayed away after a falling out with former President George W. Bush over Egyptian human rights issues, but that topic is not . . . → Read More: persecutionnews: Churches meeting in New York schools must move out by next Sunday. http://t.co/P33YQSIW ^is]]> persecutionnews: Churches meeting in New York schools must move out by next Sunday. http://t.co/P33YQSIW ^is
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Tuesday marked Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s first visit to the US in more than five years. The leader stayed away after a falling out with former President George W. Bush over Egyptian human rights issues, but that topic is not going away. While Mubarak and President Barack Obama met at the White House, Egyptian Christians were outside protesting the persecution of the Egyptian church. Coptic Christians in Egypt have faced harsh treatment by Muslims and Mubarak’s own government. Egyptian Christians want the White House to pressure Cairo to stop the attacks, prosecute anti-Christian violence by Muslims and stop the abduction, rape and forced Islamization of Coptic teenage girls. During Mubarak 28-year rule, there have been thousands of violent attacks against the Egyptian Christians. “The Coptic people are the indigenous people of Egypt and unfortunately they’re underrepresented in the government and on a regular basis persecuted by Islamic extremists,” explained Caroline Doss of the International Coptic Federation. “And that persuction is tolerated by the government.” Egypt’s Christians cannot build churches without government permission and Muslims face persecution if they convert to Christianity. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom’s Dwight Bashir also told CBN News anti-Christian violence has increased. “We’ve seen an upsurge in recent weeks and months unfortunately,” he said. The State Department says Secretary of State Hillary Clinton talked …
Video Rating: 4 / 5

DO NOT QUIT. . . . → Read More: persecutionnews: Sudanese armed forces bombed a Bible school built by Samaritan Purse. http://t.co/YsOxVsB9 ^dg]]> persecutionnews: Sudanese armed forces bombed a Bible school built by Samaritan Purse. http://t.co/YsOxVsB9 ^dg
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DO NOT QUIT. JOHN 16:33