Anti-Christian incidents in Indonesia nearly doubled in 2011

Attacks against Christians in Indonesia increased in 2011,
such as officials sealing this church in Bogor, West Java.
(Photo: Compass Direct News)

Acts of violence and intolerance against Christians in Indonesia almost doubled in 2011, reports Compass Direct News.

The Indonesian Protestant Church Union counted 54 acts of violence and other violations against Christians in 2011, up from 30 in 2010. The number of such incidents against religious minorities in general also grew, from 198 in 2010 to 276 in 2011.

The worst is perhaps yet to come if authorities continue to overlook the threat of extremism, said a representative from the Jakarta-based Wahid Institute, a Muslim organization that promotes tolerance.

Indonesia's hot-bed of extremism is West Java, the most populous province that includes the nation's capital city of Jakarta. This province alone witnessed 160 incidents against religious minorities. Churches in West Java, where there are approximately 520,000 Christians, also suffered the most last year.

On Christmas Day, two churches in West Java's Bogor city bore the brunt of growing extremism. "Islamist vigilantes screamed and yelled at us and threatened us, as we sought to hold a Christmas service," a leader of the Gereja Kristen Indonesia told Compass.

Please join us in prayer.

• Pray believers will be encouraged to continue to meet together despite opposition (Hebrews 10:23-25). 
• Ask the Lord to continue to grow His church in number, wisdom, understanding and faithfulness. 
• Pray for those who oppose the gospel in Indonesia.

Go to the Indonesia Country Report for more on persecution in Indonesia. 

Indonesia: Abandoned for coming to Jesus

"Lidya" (not her real name) is well aware of the cost to follow Christ in the Muslim-dominated nation of Indonesia.

Her story is not uncommon in the Muslim world, where some women are abandoned, tortured or even killed by their husbands for becoming Christians. But despite the cost, Lidya will not be intimidated from telling others about Jesus and what He has done in her life.

Watch this 4:15 minute video today to hear Lidya’s story.


For other videos about persecuted Christians, visit our multimedia site. To learn more about Indonesia’s suffering Church, click here.

Watching, praying for the persecuted at Christmas

By Carl Moeller, Open Doors USA. Article posted at Christianity.com.

As much of the world becomes more dangerous for Christians each day, many in the persecuted church defy the threat of terrorist violence and arrest by religion police simply by worshipping as a community of believers.

Last year violence marked Christmas celebrations in Egypt for the second consecutive year. Just days before Coptic Christians celebrated Christmas (Jan. 7 on the Julian calendar Coptic Christians use), as midnight Mass adjourned at a church in Alexandria, Egypt, a suicide bomber killed 24 Christians. Approximately 100 were injured in the New Year’s Day massacre. Militant Islamists also murdered six Christians and wounded nine others as they left Christmas Eve services at St. John’s Church in Nag Hammadi, Egypt.

In Jos, Nigeria, last Christmas Eve the al Qaeda-affiliated Boko Haram terrorist group killed at least 86 Christians with bombs and attacks that primarily targeted worship services. The victims included church choir members hacked to death with knives. On Christmas Day last year in the Philippines' Sulu province, Islamists detonated a bomb inside a chapel, injuring a priest, a 9-year-old girl and nine others.

Christmas is a favorite time for Iran's religion police to harass Christians. Two years ago Iran's mutaween, or religion police, carried out a wave of arrests of Christians, jailing dozens in a sweep of house churches in the days surrounding the holiday. On Dec. 23, 2009, in Mosul, Iraq, a bomb exploded near a church, killing two people; in Mosul on Christmas Eve, Islamists shot a Christian to death at his home.

In a season that for Christians represents great joy and peace, prevailing tension and strife may squelch the celebration. Christmas, like Easter, represents a window for abuse of Christians by persecutors. Believers in Iraq told me that in recent years even hanging traditional decorations in their homes has proven increasingly risky because it draws up reservoirs of hatred toward the church. That's why some Christians in Iraq and elsewhere have curtailed visible observation of Christmas such as lights, decorated trees and Nativity scenes.

This year Christians in the Middle East will mark Christmas for the first time since Arab Spring uprisings toppled entrenched dictators Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Moammar Gadhafi of Libya. As popular revolts geared up last year over Christmas we saw no decrease in violence against Christians. Indeed, attacks on Egypt's Coptic Christian minority have soared, even perpetrated by that nation's military.

Unrest continues in much of the region. Violence targeting believers is ongoing in far-flung places around the globe such as Iraq, India, Nigeria, Sudan and Indonesia. Christians are experiencing persecution in Vietnam, Burma and China. In mid-December North Korea threatened to bomb Christmas trees that South Korean Christians had erected at the nations' volatile border. Turkish authorities have uncovered a sweeping al Qaeda plot to bomb all churches in Turkey's capital, in addition to the Turkish Parliament and U.S. Embassy.

We are never privy to what lies around the bend, but we can pray to the Lord who is. As we hear the Christmas songs of joy and peace, we must remember the persecuted and support them through concerted prayer. Pray that new governments replacing toppled dictators in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia will give Christian minorities a proper and protected place in society. Pray that the hope that led to the Arab Spring uprisings will produce real fruit in the form of true freedom of worship. Should violence erupt, may Christians be protected.

Though the signs for Christians in places hostile to the gospel are not encouraging, the Holy Spirit can redeem any situation for God's glory. May the redemptive power of the baby Jesus born in Bethlehem transform these fears into a season of great hope and true peace.

Yubelina’s persevering faith

Yubelina was badly injured during an attack on her Christian village in Indonesia. As she ran from her attackers, she spilled a kerosene lamp that ignited and burned her face. That was in 2001.

During the past 10 years, our sister mission VOM-USA has walked alongside Yubelina. They paid travel costs from her remote village to the island of Java, where she received high quality care, and arranged for her to have plastic surgery.

Yubelina still bears the scars of her ordeal, not only on her face but also in her heart. Her husband left her, and she supports her two children by working on her brother's farm.

Every time a stranger gasps or recoils at her face, every time her daughter comes home in tears because someone called her mother a monster, Yubelina's suffering is renewed.

Yubelina's two older children, Vivi, 17, and Vandi, 15, study at a boarding school an hour and a half away. Her youngest child, 13-year-old Febi, is still at home with her. Since becoming more committed to her faith in 1999, Yubelina has prayed that her children will grow strong in the Lord.

As Yubelina and her two daughters sifted through more than 1,200 cards, letters, drawings and small gifts from VOM readers, she was overwhelmed by the love shown by her Christian family. "After the incident where I was burned and when my husband left, there was so much misery and suffering. But I received blessings from the Lord. I believe God has a plan for me."

In Philippians 4:17, the Apostle Paul says the church at Philippi receives fruit for helping him in his distress. As we see Christian persecution increasing around the world, we rejoice in the vital fruit that we receive through Yubelina's persevering faith.

Watch this two-minute video clip to hear Yubelina thank Christians around the world for their gifts and prayers. 



Please ask the Lord to bless Yubelina and her daughters. Pray that they will grow stronger in their faith and their trust in God. Pray that Yubelina’s testimony will encourage other Christians to look to Jesus in all things. To add a prayer for Yubelina on our Persecuted Church Prayer Wall, click here.

The January edition of The Voice of the Martyrs newsletter will share testimonies of other believers in Indonesia who are standing firm in their faith amid persecution. Be sure to sign up for your free subscription today.

The Overcomers: Indonesia

A bomber detonated eight pipe bombs by the main door of a church building in Central Java as worshippers were leaving the morning service. Watch this 1-minute video clip to find out more.


To watch other editions of The Overcomers, please visit out multimedia site at www.persecution.tv.

Church closed and pastor arrested in Indonesia

At least 30 churches have been closed
or burned in Indonesia this year alone.

The pastor of an Indonesian church established almost a quarter of a century ago has been arrested for allegedly forcing people to attend church, reports VOM-USA. He faces up to three months in prison for the charges against him.

His church has also been closed. Officials allege that the Indonesia Pentecostal Church (GPdI) in Sumedang was using an illegal building permit. Officials had previously asked the church to cease conducting Christian worship and had also requested that the church move its services into a building belonging to the Institute of Public Administration (IPND).

An Indonesian Christian organization said the IPND cannot accommodate the congregations of any more closed churches, since about 14 churches have already been relocated to the building. At least 30 churches have been closed or burned in Indonesia this year alone, according to Jakarta Christian Communication Forum.

You can help by praying!

• Please pray that Christian brothers and sisters in Indonesia would continue to find the means to worship despite church building closures and the arrest of church leaders.
• Please pray that God would multiply the faith and love of His followers in Indonesia in the face of persecution.
• Please pray that this church would be reopened and its pastor freed.

For the full report, click here. To learn more about the persecuted Church in Indonesia, please visit the Indonesia Country Report.

Watch VOM's September Persecution Report

In the September edition of the Persecution Report, you'll meet a former colonel in the Venezuelan army who is warning of increased persecution of Christians in his country. Also, a former medical doctor in Indonesia who spent over two years in prison for teaching Muslim children about Jesus shares her story. You will also learn about how the imprisonment of Christians continues in the African nation of Eritrea and about two Christians who were recently killed by members of an Islamist sect in Nigeria. (Length: 11:11)



You can watch more videos like this one at www.persecution.tv.

Dangerous days for Christians in Indonesia

Religious liberty is seriously threatened in Indonesia and Christian security is increasingly tenuous, reports the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission.

Because Indonesia’s president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, depends on Islamist support in parliament, he is reluctant to challenge the issue of increasingly violent Islamic intolerance. Because the ascendant China is courting Indonesia, the US is reluctant to challenge Indonesia over its serious decline in religious liberty.

West Java is a hotbed of militant Islamic fundamentalism where Christians are less than two percent of the population. Last year Muslims there were called to form Islamic paramilitary forces in readiness for jihad. As tensions grow and protection diminishes, Christians in West Java and Papua become increasingly vulnerable.

Islamic zeal and belligerence will escalate as Ramadan progresses during August. A city council has threatened “mass mobilization” against the Christian population, for whom these are dangerous days. Please pray for God's intervention and for divine protection.

You can read the full report here.

Please pray that God will:

• draw his people into prayerful dependence, that they might “wait for him” (Isaiah 30:18) and see his salvation; through it all, may the Indonesian Church -- in grace and by the power of the Holy Spirit – be light, salt and yeast for the glory of God.  
• intervene for the protection of his people and the advance of the gospel in Indonesia. 
• expose the intolerance of Islam, while frustrating the schemes of the wicked (Psalm 146:9).

Mission training school attacked in Indonesia

A training school like this one
was recently attacked.

VOM USA is reporting that a mission training school was recently attacked by a mob of Muslims following a prayer meeting in Jonggol, West Java, Indonesia.

Approximately 85 Muslims rushed into the school and raided each class and dorm room, removing pictures of Jesus. They told the staff that the school must be closed. No students were on the premises, as school was not in session that day.

Several police officers and soldiers accompanied the mob from a nearby military base and neighbours did not recognize them as locals.

The school, which was established in 1999 with the purpose of training evangelists in Indonesia, has reportedly always maintained a good relationship with its neighbours.

At last report, mission leaders said that they were attempting to follow up on the incident in the hopes of helping to prevent further violence. The leaders also urged Indonesian Christians not to retaliate, but to remain calm and to pray.

You can help by praying!

• Pray God will touch the hearts of the attackers, leading them to repent and recognize Christ as Lord.
• Pray a spirit of trust and peace will govern the hearts of Indonesian Christians and guard them against fear.
• Pray Christians in Indonesia will be a bold testimony of Christ's love to those around them.

Violence increases against Indonesian Christians

Mission Network News recently spoke with Todd Nettleton of our sister-mission VOM USA, regarding increasing violence against Christians in Indonesia.

Take a few moments to read the story below and then pray for our suffering brothers and sisters.

Easter threats against Christians reveal a grim trend in Indonesia

There has been a marked increase in the level of violence against Christians throughout Indonesia.

It's a trend revealed in the bold bombing attempt at Christ Cathedral Church. Bombs were found beneath a gas pipeline and in bags near the church entrance. Police reports indicate the suspects planned to detonate the explosives with a mobile phone on Good Friday, when the church would be at its fullest.

Todd Nettleton with VOM USA says animosity toward Christians has been at a high level over the last several years, but this is a new direction for the Muslim extremists. "These radical Islamic groups seem to be targeting churches and targeting Christians. It seems to be a little bit of a shift to targeting native Indonesians who are Christians as opposed to targeting foreigners."

Nineteen were arrested in connection with the foiled plot. It's the mindset that's more troubling, says Nettleton. "It does indicate that there is some organization and that there is some effort being made to create disharmony, to create the appearance that there's animosity towards the church."

Other recent attacks in February appeared to come from disgruntled Muslim neighbours over believers meeting in homes. There, too, is an effort to stir up trouble. VOM team members say that militants were trucked into one area from as far away as 80 miles, just to protest a church. The real culprits behind the disruption are hard to find, because their message can be presented without any local relevance. "They're able to recruit troublemakers to come in from out of the area when they need an angry mob to march and shout slogans. They're able to recruit people to join that mob."

Nettleton says they've also noted a corresponding development that could be real trouble in the near future. "One of the things we've seen over the last five years is a shift to of what I would call ‘government persecution.'"

While there is no official state religion, Islam seems to be gaining strength politically, often at the expense of religious minorities such as Christians. Christians say they are being marginalized in society and increasingly persecuted.

Many house churches have been closed. Government officials have been more recently citing legal code and infractions as they close churches. It's unsettling because there's no recourse. "It's one thing when there are criminals and lawbreakers who make trouble. It's another thing when it IS the law that's making trouble. That's what we've seen sort of a shift to. Again, it's not everywhere in Indonesia, but it has become more and more common in the stories that we're reporting persecution there."

However, Nettleton says, "The good news is that the gospel continues to spread. Even in the stories about the potential bomb attack over Easter, many of the comments from the Christians were ‘Church is where we want to be on Easter, and if there's a risk, there's a risk.'"

That attitude is encouraging. VOM has been reaching out to support the persecuted church in Indonesia for years, but in times when oppression is coming from more than one direction, Nettleton says, "That spirit says the future of the church is bright and strong. There is need for prayer though, and there's need for prayer for protection for the Christians. There's also need for prayer for the Muslims, particularly I think for government officials."

Light sentence for attack on Christians in Indonesia condemned

Rev. Luspida Simanjuntak
after the September attack.

A West Java court’s light sentence for Islamic extremists who injured a church pastor and an elder will encourage more violence and religious intolerance, said human rights and Christian leaders.

Those involved in the September 2010 clubbing of Rev. Rev. Luspida Simanjuntak and the stabbing of elder Hasian Lumbantoruan Sihombing of the Batak Christian Protestant Church in Ciketing received sentences of only five to seven months, reported Compass Direct News.

The Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace released a statement asserting that the judges’ panel was acting under pressure from Muslim extremists. “The public will think that violence, intolerance and obstruction of worship are part of their religious worship and duties,” the institute stated regarding the February 24 sentences.

Saor Siagian, attorney for the church, told Compass that the alleged planner of the attack, Murhali Barda, head of the Bekasi chapter of the Islamic Defenders Front, received a sentence of only five months and 15 days for “disorderly conduct” even though he should have been prosecuted for incitement and joint assault.

Judges of the State Court in Bekasi, West Java, handed down a seven-month sentence to Adji Ahmad Faisal, who stabbed church elder Sihombing. Ade Firman, who clubbed Pastor Simanjuntak hard enough to send her to the hospital for treatment, was given a six-month sentence.

Pastor Simanjuntak said the light sentences showed that the state was unable to fully enforce the law. “This country is more afraid of the masses than standing for justice,” she said. “That’s what happened in the state court in Bekasi. With heavy hearts we accept the verdict.”

Angry Muslim crowd attacks churches in Indonesia

Pray for believers in Indonesia today!

More than 1,000 Muslim protesters stormed a courthouse and burned churches in central Java, Indonesia, on February 8, reported VOM sources.

The attacks in Temanggung happened after Antonius Richmond Bawengan, a Christian man, was sentenced to five years in jail for distributing leaflets deemed insulting to Islam.

BBC News reported that Indonesian police said the crowd considered the sentence too lenient and were demanding the death penalty. A police spokesperson told BBC that the angry crowd began attacking the court building after the verdict was read.

At least three church buildings were vandalised. Indonesia Bethel Church was set ablaze. Part of the school building inside the church's property was burned, along with six motorbikes. Arsonists also burned Temanggung Pentecost Church. The extent of the damage has not yet been reported. Santo Petrus Catholic Church and Santo Paulus Catholic Church received damage to their doors and windows as the mob threw stones at them.

In early October 2010, Antonius handed out books and tracts with writings that are considered an insult to Muslims. He was arrested on October 26. He was found guilty of violating the Criminal Code on insulting Islam and received the maximum sentence for the offense—five years in jail.

Pray for the Lord's protection to be upon Antonius while he is in prison. Thank the Lord for his efforts in spreading the gospel. Pray he will have opportunities to be a witness for Christ even while in prison. Pray the Christian population in Indonesia continues to grow and unite in their love for Christ.

House churches forcibly closed in Indonesia

VOM partners in Indonesia are reporting that seven house churches were forcibly closed down in West Java, Indonesia, due to local Muslims' objections to the buildings being used for "illegal church meetings."

On December 12, between 200 and 300 Muslim militants from hardliner groups such as the Islam Protector Front (FPI), Moslem Forum (FUI) and the Islamic Reformation Movement (Garis) gathered outside seven houses and performed sudden inspections of the buildings.

The house churches were being used by members of the Protestant Batak Christian Huria Church. The militants said the buildings could not be used for Christian worship services and told the congregation to meet elsewhere.

The police high commissioner adjutant, Hendro Pandowo, denied the news, saying the Muslim fundamentalists raided some churches. The security troops of Bandung city were following up on that report by sealing the seven house churches.

The owners of the houses were told they could remain in their homes but were forbidden from opening their homes for Christian worship services.

Ask God to use this ordeal to strengthen the members of this church. Pray that they will demonstrate Christ's love to those who oppose them and that their faith will be a light which helps lead others to the Lord. Pray that Indonesian Christians suffering for Christ will keep their eyes on Jesus, persevere in their faith and not grow weary or lose heart (Hebrews 10:32-39; 12:1-3).

Take a look at this video on the dangers of being an evangelist in Indonesia (length 4:30).



For more videos about the suffering of Christians around the world, visit Persecution.TV.

Even your family will reject you

Dewi, an Indonesian woman, knows very well what Jesus meant when He said that if you follow Him even members of your own family may turn against you (Matthew 10:34-36). However, Dewi had no idea of just how high the cost would be. Watch God turn her heartache into passion for serving Him!



To see more Christians speak of how God is moving in their lives, visit VOM's multimedia site, Persecution.TV.