India blog

I’m going to be a bit vague in this blog, so as to not say anything that could incriminate any individuals or locations. Suffice to say I am in India, in a very urban area, where I can’t go out of the compound due to political unrest, but I am safe. I am at a conference with about 25 others, all of us follow the same faith. There is a contingent from the UK, and others are from different states of the host nation, and we have partners from Bh_tan, N_pal, and Phi_ippines. We also have partners joining us on-line from P__istan and T__iland

The conference has had some very good times of teaching, and sharing of best practice. And it has had some beautiful times of networking, and sitting and listening to each other’s stories. One of the things that has really stood out for me is the experience of so many regarding the challenge of practicing their faith in this region, and particularly in this country.

Some of those here have been imprisoned for talking about their faith, others have taken a massive beating. Ch__ches have been driven underground in many places as it is too dangerous to meet in the open. As a result, gatherings take place in homes (providing it’s not in a rental home where the landlord has forbidden gatherings), and the opportunities for bigger gatherings are very limited.

Government is making moves to wipe out votes in order to make things even more difficult – some of the participants here don’t know if they have a vote still. Always it is those who admit to being non-Hindu whose votes are being wiped. Each time that a population survey is done, they have to say what is their faith. If they say anything other than Hindu, their benefits and access to support are taken away. Therefore many are scared to say that they are Chr__tian, even though they are.

Many times they will also lose access to assets that they need in order to earn money (shop, equipment etc), or risk losing their job. One woman I heard of was told that her job description was changing from 5 days to 7 days, and if she didn’t work every day then she’d be fired. Her response was that going to church on a Sunday was more important than keeping that job, and so she is now unemployed.

Also, in some states it is illegal to prosletyse and so church leaders take a risk every time they speak about Ch__st to anyone, as they do not know if that person is a Hindi spy.

But, despite this, and many other examples of the persecution that is taking place, interest in the Ch---ian faith is growing. In part this is because those who are from the Hindu faith are intrigued to know what it is about Ch___ity that is so compelling that people will endure the beatings, the persecutions, the attacks. And as the interest grows, so the conversions increase, even if some of them are quiet and not publicly admitted to for the above-mentioned reasons.

The situation here is very tough, very risky, and not for the faint hearted. But, strength comes from testing, and so can be seen here – strong, vibrant, deep faiths, full of the love of Ch__t that reaches out to those around them in many ways.