What? Were the "Coexist" bumper stickers not working?
Or maybe they just haven't made it out of the United States yet, because religious persecution is on the rise worldwide and no one is being targeted more than Christians.
A new report from International Christian Concern (ICC), along with a new survey from Pew Research, show that disciples of Jesus Christ are being targeted more and more, particularly by Muslims.
The greatest concentration of 'Red Zone' nations, countries with the most severe actions taken against Christians, including torture and death, were found in a strip of land in Africa known as the Sahel, which includes places like Mali, Niger and Chad. However, other significantly dangerous nations for the Christian faith were identified as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and North Korea.
There is a mounting trend that shows authoritarian policies are on the rise globally - particularly as geopolitics enter an increasingly fragile period - and has meant more nations are clamping down on religion.
Authoritarians are finding out that Christianity is a legitimate challenge to their totalitarian way of ruling the people, therefore Christianity has to be marginalized.
When Christ is King, then Caesar isn't.
'In many authoritarian states, Christianity is seen as a proxy for Western influence and values, which regimes often reject as imperialistic or destabilizing,' King told Fox News Digital. 'Christianity and other faiths emphasize allegiance to a higher moral authority, which inherently challenges authoritarian regimes that demand complete loyalty to the state.'
While the report shows that Muslims are also persecuted at a high rate, followed by Jews, Christianity is targeted in more countries than any other religion in the previous few years.
Following Christ has always meant persecution (see John 15:18-25), but Christian persecution is spreading more and more outside of the traditional places that you would think of first.
Technology like social media in many ways has improved freedom of speech and access to information worldwide, but the expansion of other technologies has also increased oppressive authoritarian systems of hyper-surveillance - even in regions not traditionally seen as religiously oppressive, like Latin America.
'Countries like Nicaragua and Venezuela, traditionally Christian-majority nations, saw a big increase in hostility toward religious groups critical of authoritarian regimes,' King said. 'The targeting of religious citizens and suppression of dissenting voices marked a new and alarming trend.'
Yes, even formerly Christian areas like Latin America are seeing hatred of Christianity rise from the state and from individuals.
Pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ to withstand the tribulations to come. ✝️
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
