Christian believers executed in N. Korea, Pakistani Christian Released

Christian believers executed in North Korea
'Refusal to worship Kim Jong-il, being caught worshipping God' brings harsh

Posted: January 21, 2007

Reports about four Christians being executed for their faith in North Korea are circulating in the Christian media.

According to Mark Kelly of Baptist Press: "The Democratic People's Republic of North Korea is well-known as a country where Christians are persecuted for their faith. Because the government there keeps a tight lid on communication, however, only rarely does specific information leak out."

Quoting the World Bible Translation Center's Gary Bishop in a conversation with Mission Network News, Kelly reports that one man who worked as an evangelist was executed after being caught with two Korean New Testaments in his possession.

He said: "A man that's known to be an evangelist. He's probably not an evangelist to anyone other than his family members, but he was caught with two of our Korean New Testaments in his possession and he was executed for that."

Kelly writes that Bishop also told Mission Network News: "A woman and her grandmother were washing clothes when a New Testament fell out of the woman's clothing. Somebody reported it, and both she and her grandmother were quickly executed. And an army general who had become a believer was caught evangelizing men in his unit and was executed by a fellow officer."

CLICK HERE to Read Entire Article - wnd.com

Pakistani Christian Released from Prison after Six Years - January 19, 2007

On Friday, January 19, 2007, Shahbaz Kaka, was released from prison after serving six years of a life sentence. According to a statement issued by justice Ejah Ahmad Chaudry (High Court Lahore) Shahbaz will spend a month under medical care and then return home.

Shahbaz was arrested in June 2001 after he used the bathroom at a mosque. “Qari Rafique, the head of the mosque, asked him why he was using the toilet that was adjacent to the mosque. He quizzed Shahbaz on whether he was a Christian because he was wearing a cross around his neck,” a VOM source said. The source added that after the conversation, Rafique initiated false allegations against Shahbaz. A complaint was made to the authorities stating Shahbaz disgraced the Quran by tearing pages out, cutting them into pieces and trampling them under his feet. Shahbaz was arrested and later charged with blasphemy. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2004.

For the first 18 months of his imprisonment, Shahbaz’s mother was not informed of the charges against her son or his whereabouts. She eventually learned that he was still alive and of his arrest from VOM workers.

The Voice of the Martyrs learned of Shahbaz’s case in 2003 and has helped him and his family. In addition, VOM workers have met with and encouraged Shahbaz’s family during this time of hardship and grief.

“We rejoice with Shahbaz Kaka and his family at his release,” said Todd Nettleton, VOM’s Director of Media Development. ”Yet we wonder about the injustice of his arrest and the six years he spent in prison. We are concerned for other Christians who still face persecution in Pakistan, and encourage the Pakistani government to provide true religious freedom in their country."

The Voice of the Martyrs, founded in 1967, provides Christian literature, humanitarian aid and other assistance to Christians in Pakistan and 40 other nations where Christians suffer for their faith.

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. ~ Matthew 5:10-12, ESV

Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. ~ Hebrews 13:3, ESV