Counting the Cost, Day 40

North Korea

Overview

North Korea was once a thriving center of Christian worship. Pyongyang, the capital, was known as “the Jerusalem of the East” in the early 1900s because of its 2,000- plus churches. But decades of rule by an oppressive regime, currently led by Kim Jong Un, has forced Christians to worship in underground settings. The communist-inspired dictatorship is founded uponJuche, a distinctly North Korean religious ideology that requires worship and subservience to the Kim family. Christianity is considered subversive and is brutally opposed. Anyone discovered to be a Christian or to express any interest in Christ or the Bible is considered an enemy of the state. The gospel is still proclaimed in North Korea through various creative means, including shortwave radio and bold evangelists who risk their lives to smuggle Bibles and discipleship resources into the country.

Major Religions 
The North Korean government allows for no religious freedom, requiring all North Koreans to follow the Juche religion.

Persecutor 
If discovered, Christians face harsh persecution from the government and from members of the community, who are required to serve as government informants. Even those who are aware of Christian activity but do not report it to the government are punished as enemies of the regime.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
Christians are sent to prison and labor camps, where they are starved, overworked and tortured. The government’s requirement that all North Koreans act as informants applies even to families, as children are taught to spy on their parents from a young age.

Therefore, North Korean Christians must be extremely careful in what they say, what they do and even how they pray. When a Christian is discovered, the government punishes the entire family in order to incentivize reporting. Despite the threat of persecution and heavy social pressure, Christians in North Korea hold firmly to their faith. Christian and secular analysts estimate that about 30,000 Christians are currently suffering in prison and labor camps.

Access to Bibles
Owning a Bible or even portions of Scripture is extremely risky in North Korea. Nevertheless, bold Christians work to bring God’s Word to the North Korean people, few of whom have ever had access to Scripture because of the regime’s unceasing efforts to restrict access. Most of North Korea’s underground Christians have found that memorization is the safest and most effective way to keep God’s Word. 

VOM Work
VOM provides Bibles via creative smuggling operations, broadcasts the gospel over a special radio network and ministers to North Koreans wherever they are found.

Counting the Cost, Day 39

Nigeria

Overview

Nigeria is geographically divided along religious lines, with a Muslim-dominated north and majority-Christian south. There are more than 80 million professing Christians in Africa’s most populous nation, the fruit of both pioneer mission work and freed slaves who returned to the continent from Europe with the gospel following the 1833 abolition of slavery in England. Foreign missionary activity in the north has declined significantly since 2008 as a result of the emergence of the Islamic militant group Boko Haram. Based in the north, Boko Haram is affiliated with al-Qaida and has also aligned itself with the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS). Although Boko Haram has weakened somewhat in the northeast, it still carries out devastating attacks in the Christian communities and on army units in the region. Toward the end of 2019, the Islamists began stopping commercial vehicles and removing Christians for execution and abduction. Boko Haram is also reportedly backing ongoing attacks on Christian villages by Islamic Fulani militia, who have concentrated their attacks in the central region of Nigeria. Terrorist groups and other Muslims in the north want to drive Christians out of the region and continue their push to create a separate Islamist nation governed by Islamic Sharia law.

Major Religions 
51 percent of Nigerians are Christians, including 26 percent evangelical. The nation is divided between Christians and Sunni Muslims, with most Christians in the south and most Muslims in the north.

Persecutor 
The Boko Haram Islamic extremist group and Fulani Islamic militants work together to attack Christians throughout northern Nigeria.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
Nearly all Christians in northeastern Nigeria have lost family members in attacks by Boko Haram or Fulani Islamic militants. Entire congregations have been displaced, and many pastors have been forced to leave the region. Being active in church looks much different than it did at the beginning of the 21st century. It now takes great courage and faith to openly worship and serve Christ. Thousands of Christians remain in camps designated for internally displaced people. With few schools able to function because of the violence, families are concerned about their children’s education. Life is a constant struggle, and in some places it is difficult for Christians to find food. Famine threatens farms in the north as a result of ongoing Islamist violence; Fulani Islamic militants kill farmers when they attempt to return to their farms.
In addition, many villages and farmlands have been taken over by the Islamist militias.

Access to Bibles
While Bibles are plentiful in the south, there is a great need for them in the north. Many Bibles have been lost in attacks and as people have been displaced. Most Christians in the north do not own their own Bible, and even if they were available, few in the north could afford them.

VOM Work
VOM supports widows who have lost their husbands in Islamist attacks, and trains and equips pastors in the north. We also provide study Bibles, New Testaments, and Christian discipleship literature to believers.

Counting the Cost, Day 38

Nepal

Overview

The government of Nepal is taking an increasingly strong stand against religious conversion. Despite the 2015 constitution that guaranteed religious freedom, Parliament passed a bill in 2017 criminalizing conversion to Christianity. In 2018, the prime minister and other government officials publicly declared that anyone found changing his or her religion would be expelled from the country and any charitable organizations engaged in preaching would be shut down. Christian communities are small, but they boldly witness for Christ despite harassment and risk.

Major Religions
84 percent of Nepalis are Hindus. Hinduism is more prominent in the south, along the Indian border, and Buddhism is more prominent in the north. There are small Muslim and Christian minorities as well as a growing Marxist (atheistic communist) movement.

Persecutor
Families, communities, Marxist groups and Hindu groups pressure Christians, who also experience some government interference. Muslims and Buddhists also persecute Christians, especially in response to evangelism and conversions in rural areas.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
There is a small, visible Christian community in Nepal, but believers experience opposition from extremists among the Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist and Marxist groups. Christians face harassment and beatings from local Hindu nationalists who envision Nepal becoming a “pure” Hindu nation. 

Access to Bibles
Bibles are legal, but many people cannot afford them. Distribution is difficult in Nepal’s remote, mountainous areas.

VOM Work
VOM distributes Bibles, trains pastors and provides Christian literature and tools for evangelism.

Counting the Cost, Day 37

Myanmar

Overview

Christian faith in Burma traces its roots to the missionary efforts of Adoniram Judson, who arrived in 1813 with his wife, Ann. The revised Judson Bible translation into Burmese is still the standard used by churches. Most Christians are from the Chin and Karen tribal groups, while relatively few of Myanmar’s Burman ethnic majority have come to faith. Myanmar has many Bible schools, even though most are illegal, and indigenous church planters and missionaries boldly proclaim the gospel. Churches are growing despite widespread persecution by the government and the Buddhist majority. The Burman ethnic majority dominates and oppresses the other tribal groups. While political change has been frequently discussed, only superficial change has occurred and the military still effectively controls the country.

Major Religions 
Most Burman tribal members are Buddhist, while the Chin and Karen people groups identify as Christian and are oppressed by the government. Rohingya Muslims are a small but significant group that has suffered devastating human rights violations in recent years at the hands of the military government.

Persecutor
The government, in cooperation with Buddhist monks, is the main persecutor in Myanmar, but local officials and tribal militias also persecute Christians. Families and villagers who practice animism often persecute those who convert to Christianity.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
The widespread, long-running civil war directly affects Christians when they are targeted for attack by the warring factions.
Villagers with animistic beliefs take vengeance on Christians, claiming they are angering the local spirits. Church gatherings and church buildings are allowed in many parts of the country, but tolerance varies from state to state. Active believers who share their faith face difficulties. Within tribal groups, families oppose conversion, and new believers are subject to close government monitoring. Buddhist monks have actively opposed new Christian converts and evangelists. Pastors face arrest and are usually held for a few days at a time.

Access to Bibles
Bibles can be purchased and owned legally in small numbers, but most people cannot afford them. While bookstores in large cities sell Bibles, they are unavailable in many regions. Most Burmese Bibles are smuggled into the country.

VOM Work
VOM provides materials for the growing church, distributes Bibles and provides training for Christians.

Counting the Cost, day 36

Morocco

Overview

Morocco is ruled by a monarch who is purportedly a direct descendant of the prophet Muhammad and intends to govern the nation with Islamic principles. The North African country has experienced over 1,100 years of Islamic oppression since Morocco’s historic people group, the Berbers, were forced into Islam by invading Arabs in the eighth century. Today, only a fraction of 1 percent of the population is Christian. The growth of Christianity has been slow, with a major setback occurring in 2010 when hundreds of missionaries were forced to leave the country. With the rise of digital technology and social media, more Moroccans are coming to faith in Christ.

Major Religions

Nearly all Moroccans are Sunni Muslims.

Persecutor

The government is the main persecutor. Family, friends and communities also persecute Christian converts.

What it Means to Follow Christ

There are no church buildings in Morocco. Bible distribution and missionary activity are not allowed in the country. Christians have difficulty finding fellowship, but networks of underground churches have developed. A number of Christians have been imprisoned on charges of apostasy and proselytizing.

Access to Bibles

About 35 million people live in Morocco, but few printed Bibles exist in the country. It is difficult to get a Bible, but believers access Scripture through creative methods such as digital files on SD cards, which they can use on their mobile phones and tablets.

VOM Work

VOM supports various forms of outreach and provides assistance to new converts.

Counting the Cost, Day 35

Mauritania

Overview

Mauritania is dominated by Islamist leadership and struggles with poverty and corruption. Located on Africa’s western coast, Mauritania has strong connections and cultural similarities to its North African neighbors. Slavery still exists within tribal groups, with Christians commonly subservient to the majority-Moor people groups. There are currently no national churches in Mauritania. In 2009, an American missionary was killed in Mauritania, and many mission agencies subsequently removed their workers from the country. Some Christian workers, however, are starting to return. Mauritania has been staunchly Islamic for more than 1,000 years, and the security risks for both national Christians and foreign missionaries remain obstacles to reaching Muslims with the gospel.

Major Religions
Nearly all Mauritanians are Sunni Muslims.

Persecutor
Families, tribes, communities and the government persecute those who leave Islam in Mauritania.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
Fewer than 150 believers are known to live in the country, and only foreigners can worship openly. All indigenous Christians converted from Islam, though conversion is illegal. Jobs are difficult to obtain in the poor economy, especially for Christians. Believers have been arrested.

Access to Bibles
It is extremely difficult for Christians to get Bibles, which must be hand-carried into the country at great risk. No Bibles are printed in the country, and the importation of Bibles is restricted.

VOM Work
VOM supplies audio Bibles, provides training for Christians, and supports the underground church.

Counting the Cost, Day 34

Mali

Overview

Mali is a poor but growing country that remains predominantly Muslim. Although missionaries arrived in the early 1920s and have worked in most areas of the country, there are few evangelical Christians. Small congregations of believers continue to worship in towns known to be centers of Islamist activity. Several missionaries have been kidnapped in Mali or have been kidnapped and brought to Mali from neighboring countries since 2016. Most are still in captivity today. In 2017, threats by Islamist groups led some mission agencies to withdraw workers from the country.

Major Religions
88 percent of Malians are Sunni Muslims, with most also practicing animism. 3 percent are Christians, including less than 1 percent evangelicals.

Persecutor
Islamic extremist groups persecute Christians in Mali.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
During Mali’s 2012 civil war, believers fled to the south as extremist groups in the north sought to create an Islamic state. Churches and pastors’ homes were destroyed. Christian converts from Islam face harassment from family members and their communities. Open and active churches exist in the north, but some believers are still leaving for the south as the Islamist threat worsens. One pastor was forced to leave after receiving several death threats; his wife is still dealing with related trauma. Evangelists have been imprisoned for short periods after being accused of proselytizing.

Access to Bibles
Bibles are scarce and difficult to obtain outside the capital, especially in minority languages.

VOM Work
VOM provides Bibles, pastor training and assistance for persecuted Christians.

Counting the Cost, Day 33

Maldives

Overview

The Maldives is one of the most restricted nations in the world, with fewer than 10 known believers. Any Maldivian who follows Christ must remain secret or face imprisonment or expulsion from the country. The Maldivian government seeks to eliminate or greatly minimize outside influences that could affect its citizens’ cultural identity, which includes complete commitment to Islam.

Major Religions
Even though many Maldivians have little knowledge of the Islamic faith, all Maldivians are officially required to be Sunni Muslims, and the government enforces this rule without exception.

Persecutor
The government is the main persecutor, and Maldivian society is aligned with the country’s commitment to ensuring that every Maldivian remains a Muslim. In addition to government persecution, seekers and converts receive tremendous pressure from their families and communities.

What it Means to Follow Christ 
The country’s oppressive anti-Christian government and culture make it one of the world’s most challenging regions for Christian work. Seekers and new converts experience extreme social pressure. Small, close-knit island communities enable the government to maintain tight control over the population.

Christian converts have been imprisoned in attempts to pressure them to renounce Christ and return to Islam, and they are usually forced to leave their homes and perhaps even the country.

Access to Bibles
It is illegal to import Bibles, but some Maldivians access Scripture through the internet. Translation of the Bible into Dhivehi, the main language of the Maldives, is ongoing, but the work has been difficult and slow because of the small number of Christian converts.

VOM Work
VOM uses creative, covert methods to share the gospel inside the Maldives.