Michael F. Haverluck – February 17, 2020
Whether they reside in Iran, China, Nigeria, or North Korea, the world is quickly becoming less tolerant of Christians.
According to findings from Open Doors‘ latest World Watch List (WWL) featuring the 50 least-safe nations to practice Christianity, the world has become a much more dangerous place for hundreds of millions of Christians.
“In the top 50 countries alone, 260 million Christians face a level of persecution measured as extreme, very high, or high,” Open Doors announced over the weekend. “In total, one in eight Christians worldwide face persecution measured as extreme, very high, or high – a 6% increase from 2019.”
Under Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, the Hermit Kingdom’s communist dictatorship only allows citizens to honor and bow down to the state.
“North Korea remains the most dangerous place for Christians, having been number one since the inception of the list in 2002,” the global outreach serving the persecuted Church reported. “Something as simple as owning a Bible can mean a person is arrested and taken to one of the country’s infamous labor camps – never to return.”
In other communist, Islamic and Hindu nations, things aren’t much better for those living out their faith in Jesus Christ.
For example, China is 23rd on the World Watch List. As the country with the world’s largest population of 1.3 billion, it is leading the way in the proliferation of “digital persecution”; with the second-most populous nation, India – with 1.2 billion residents – having a Hindu-led government that is also using this high-tech ability to weed out Christians.
“China has begun to utilize AI and biometric measurement to increase their surveillance and control of religious believers – as seen with their surveillance of Uighur Muslims, [and] at least one major church now has facial recognition cameras to record worshippers’ presence,” Open Doors revealed. “India (10) is also set to make use of these technologies.”
In sub-Saharan Africa, terrorism at the hands of Islamic fundamentalists is on the rise.