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Orissa Christians Still Face Violence

29th December 2009

In a state that has begun to slowly rebuild itself after being torn apart by abuse toward Christians in 2007 and 2008, torment and persecution still arise. A year later, Christians living in Orissa, India, still must be on their guard.

On November 30, 18-year-old Kundan Dutta was brutally beaten when a group of 50 anti-Christians barged into his village and attacked the church there. Five other believers escaped the abuse of the mob, but Kundan took the brunt of the violence.

The young man was taken by his captors to the temple of one of their traditional gods. They demanded that he bow down before the idol and eat the food offered it, but Kundan remained loyal to his faith and refused to comply with their demands. As a result, he was attacked and beaten once again before being released. Kundan is recovering but still has some pain.

In a separate incident, 70 Naxalites (members of a Maoist rebel group) interrupted a Gospel for Asia–supported film team showing a movie about Jesus on December 4. They abducted two pastors and 25 believers and took some audio-visual equipment, including the projector and generator. The Naxalites did not harm any of the Christians and released them the evening of the following day.

Naxalites usually follow more of a political agenda rather than deliberately targeting Christians, which seemed to be the case in this instance.

The believers in both these areas of Orissa ask for prayer concerning safety and protection. They also ask for a faith that remains firm even in the most difficult of circumstances, and that their persecutors would come to know the Lord's love.

  Read more persecution stories.