Top Countries where Christians face Egregious Persecution for their Faith

Jews and Christians of faith are under siege globally. It is important to understand in which countries Christians, and likely Jews, face terrible persecution.

To understand this we looked at two reports:

  1. The Open Doors World Watch List 2017 and
  2. United States Commission on International Religious Freedom 2016 Annual Report

What inspired us to write this story are two missionaries. The first works to save persecuted Christians and the second to bring the Gospel of Jesus to countries that do not allow missionary visas.

The first man goes to the Middle East to save families captured by ISIS, many of them women and children who are sold in slave markets.

The second has just completed his missionary training and will be traveling to a predominantly Muslim country to bring the people the Gospel of Jesus of Nazareth.

Both are brave men. Both deserve our prayers and support.

While there are those who are fighting against President Trump’s “extreme vetting” of individuals from foreign countries,  many of these same countries have their own brand of “extreme persecution.” Persecution not only of visitors, but of their own natural born citizens.

In many of these countries becoming a Christian leads to persecution and prison or at worst is a death sentence.

Each year, Open Doors publishes the World Watch List to highlight the plight of persecuted Christians around the world. The list represents believers in Jesus Christ who are arrested, harassed, tortured — even killed — for their faith. Here are the top 50 listed by Open Doors:

COUNTRY                 SCORE

1. North Korea ——– 92/100
2. Somalia ————- 91/100
3. Afghanistan ——– 89/100
4. Pakistan ———— 88/100
5. Sudan ————– 87/100
6. Syria —————- 86/100
7. Iraq —————– 86/100
8. Iran —————– 85/100
9. Yemen ————- 85/100
10. Eritrea ————– 82/100

11. Libya —————- 78/100
12. Nigeria ———— 78/100
13. Maldives ———- 76/100
14. Saudi Arabia —— 76/100
15. India —————- 73/100
16. Uzbekistan ——– 71/100
17. Vietnam ———— 71/100
18. Kenya ————— 68/100
19. Turkmenistan —- 66/100
20. Qatar ————— 65/100

21. Egypt ————— 65/100
22. Ethiopia ———— 64/100
23. Palestinian Terr. — 64/100
24. Laos——————— 64/100
25. Brunei ————— 64/100
26. Bangladesh ——– 63/100
27. Jordan ————– 63/100
28. Myanmar ———– 62/100
29. Tunisia ————- 61/100
30. Bhutan ————- 61/100

31. Malaysia ———— 60/100
32. Mali —————– 59/100
33. Tanzania ———– 59/100
34. Cen. Afr. Rep. —– 58/100
35. Tajikistan ———- 58/100
36. Algeria ————- 58/100
37. Turkey ————– 57/100
38. Kuwait ————- 57/100
39. China ————— 57/100
40. Djibouti ———— 57/100

41. Mexico ————- 57/100
42. Comoros ———– 56/100
43. Kazakhstan ——- 56/100
44. United Arab Em. – 55/100
45. Sri Lanka ———– 55/100 (New)
46. Indonesia ——— 55/100
47. Mauritania———- 55/100 (New)
48. Bahrain ———— 54/100
49. Oman ————– 53/100
50. Colombia ———- 53/100

NOTE: For in-depth research, stories, prayer updates and more for all 50 countries on the 2017 World Watch List, visit ODUSA.org/WWL

United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) 2016 Annual Report states, “The incarceration of prisoners of conscience – people whom governments hold for reasons including those related to religion – remains astonishingly widespread.”

The report lists 31 countries where religious persecution is extreme. These countries are broken down into Tier 1 and Tear 2 countries of particular concern as follows:

TIER 1 – Any country whose government engages in or tolerates particularly severe violations of religious freedom that are systematic, ongoing and egregious.

In 2016, USCIRF recommends that the Secretary of State re-designate the following nine countries as Countries of Particular Concern (CPC):

  1. Burma,
  2. China,
  3. Eritrea,
  4. Iran,
  5. North Korea,
  6. Saudi Arabia,
  7. Sudan,
  8. Turkmenistan,
  9. and Uzbekistan.

USCIRF also finds that eight other countries meet the CPC standard and should be so designated:

  1. Central African Republic,
  2. Egypt,
  3. Iraq,
  4. Nigeria,
  5. Pakistan,
  6. Syria,
  7. Tajikistan,
  8. and Vietnam.

TIER 2 – Countries where the violations engaged in or tolerated by the government are serious and are characterized by at least one of the elements of the “systematic, ongoing, and egregious” CPC standard. 

In 2016, USCIRF places the following ten countries on Tier 2:

  1. Afghanistan,
  2. Azerbaijan,
  3. Cuba,
  4. India,
  5. Indonesia,
  6. Kazakhstan,
  7. Laos,
  8. Malaysia,
  9. Russia,
  10. and Turkey.

It is important to note the similarities of the lists. Evil is rampant in these countries. Antisemitic, anti-Christian, persecution, hate, intolerance are the rule rather than the exception.

Matthew 10:22 reads, “And all nations will hate you because you are my followers. But everyone who endures to the end will be saved.”

RELATED INFOGRAPHIC:

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Image processed by CodeCarvings Piczard ### FREE Community Edition ### on 2017-01-11 14:59:11Z | http://piczard.com | http://codecarvings.com

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