360 Million Christians Persecuted in Muslim and Asian Countries
The horror story no one talks about
At a time when Islamophobia has become a major talking point in the media and political circles, no one dares to address a much more serious issue: Christianophobia. The anti-Christian sentiment in the world is not a figment of our imagination, as the latest report from Open Doors, a charitable organization, reminds us.
The Open Doors study spans 50 countries and covers the period between October 1, 2021, and September 30, 2022. According to that study, out of the 760 million Christians living in those 50 countries, 360 million suffered “serious and continuous” persecution, and 5,621 were killed just for practicing their faith.
Among the 10 countries with the worst record in this matter, 7 of them (Somalia, Yemen, Libya, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Sudan) are predominantly Muslim. The other ones are North Korea, which sits at the top of the list, as well as Nigeria and Eritrea. Only 4 countries (Colombia, Cuba, Mexico and Nicaragua) out of the 50 analyzed by Open Doors are located outside of what used to be called the Levant.
Palestine was not included in the study, which is unfortunate because the situation there is more than critical. Christians accounted for 15% of the population in the Palestinian territories in 1950, but that number has dropped to 1.5% today, as I mentioned in this article. Since the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas took power, violence and persecution against Christians in Palestine have steadily increased.
Open Doors defines persecution of Christians as “any hostility experienced as a result of one’s identification with Christ. This can include hostile attitudes, words and actions towards Christians.”
The West Not Immune to Anti-Christian Acts
It is clear that those who follow or adhere to Christianity are not welcome in many Asian and Muslim countries. But what is most degrading is that they’re not necessarily safe where their community is predominant.
For instance, out of the nearly 1,400 anti-religious acts recorded in 2021 in France, 686 were committed against Christians and their institutions. In comparison, 171 Islamophobic acts were perpetrated on French territory for the same period.
In Spain, a group of underage refugees disrupted a Catholic procession in Granada in the middle of Holy Week last April. Thanks to the quick response of the police, no one was injured. The procession had been following its itinerary for about an hour and a half when projectiles were thrown at the attendees. These projectiles came from a shelter for migrants.
A last example: from spring 2021 up until recently, “71 Christian churches in Canada have been vandalized, burned down or desecrated”, as TNC reported. The issue has so far never been discussed within the government.
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