• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
light magazine logo and tag

Light Magazine

Inspiring Faith For Everyday Life

Brian Stiller podcast
  • Arts
  • Community
    • Alberta Community
    • British Columbia Community
  • Faith
  • Family
  • Leadership
  • Life
  • Mission
  • Jobs
    • Job Dashboard
    • Post a Job
  • Events
  • Directory
  • About Us

Persecuted for their faith

June 17, 2024 by Voice of the Martyrs Leave a Comment

Mexico – For several years, leaders in the villages of Coamila and Rancho Nuevo, which are both located within the state of Hidalgo, have been pressuring members of the Great Commission Baptist Church to participate in religious festivals that go against their beliefs. In December 2022, one of the non-compliant Protestant believers was admitted to hospital after being tied to a tree and beaten. Additionally, since 2018, the children of church members in these villages have been banned from attending school.

Taylormotive post ad

After years of tension between village leaders and members of the Protestant community, matters came to a head this spring. On March 25, Pastor Rogelio Hernández Baltazar and other church leaders were arbitrarily detained for 48 hours. Subsequent to their detainment, five plots of land belonging to members of the church were taken over by village leaders in early April.

Alistair Young Nov 14 2024 post ad

Since then, church members have been attacked on several occasions, and three Protestant families were prevented from returning to their homes. Furthermore, 139 church members – including at least 70 children – were forced to flee their homes on April 26 after village leaders cut off their electricity. The church building was also vandalized, and guards were posted at the entry points of the two villages in order to keep church members out.

Clearbrook Golden Age Society post ad

The displaced Baptists are currently being sheltered in a municipal building in Huejutla de los Reyes where they are requesting assistance from the government. Local churches are providing humanitarian aid and have joined in the call for governing municipal leaders to intervene.

When speaking earlier in the year about the treatment of his church members, Pastor Rogelio stated, “When you convert from Catholicism, you lose all rights and all standing in the village.”

Indonesia – Two young women were slightly wounded when a mob attacked a Catholic prayer meeting on May 5 in the city of Tangerang, Banten Province. The group meeting, which consisted of 15 Catholic students who had gathered in a home for prayer, was disrupted when armed assailants forced their way into the residence, injuring two females during the intrusion. Some concerned local Muslims attempted to defend the students, with one of them sustaining a minor cut from the attack.

One of the intruders has since been identified as the local village leader – a Muslim man named Diding. According to police, the conflict began when Diding started shouting threats and statements of profanity in an attempt to incite other members of the community to attack the Catholic group. Diding claims that he was disrespected by the students, whom he had told earlier that worship was only permitted within a church building and not in a home. Four local residents, including Diding, were later arrested by police on charges of assault.

Religious gatherings in homes are frequently targeted by those in the predominantly Muslim country of Indonesia who are opposed to minorities. However, despite local opposition, there are no legal restrictions outlawing citizens from gathering for worship in private homes.

Kazakhstan – Police in the Shu district of southern Kazakhstan raided four worship gatherings during the months of March and April, resulting in a total of seven fines being laid. During the raids, officers filmed those who were present and demanded that they provide written statements explaining the reasons for their gatherings. These raids affected the worship activities of three unregistered Protestant churches.

On the morning of March 3, police invaded the home of Valter Mirau, whose residence is located in the village of Koneyeva, just before he and his fellow church members were about to begin their Sunday worship meeting. Valter was issued a fine for his “leadership of an unregistered, halted, or banned religious community or social organization.” Two other church members who had attended the gathering were also fined.

In another incident, police raided a Council of Churches Baptist meeting that was led by Pastor Andrei Boiprav in the village of Shu on April 14. While no fines were issued at the time, officers took photos and videos of the attending Christians and warned them to stop holding unregistered religious gatherings.

Police returned to Pastor Andrei’s congregation on April 28, claiming that they had received complaints from neighbours, though all nearby residents denied having contacted the authorities. One officer later appeared apologetic, explaining that the order had come from the Religious Affairs Department. Fines were issued against the congregants as a result of their involvement in an unregistered religious gathering. Immediately after raiding Pastor Andrei’s church, officers moved on to another Protestant community in the village known as ‘the Children of God.’

Religious groups in Kazakhstan are required by law to register with the government. However, the process to do so is very complex, expensive and restrictive. Some groups, such as those affiliated with the Council of Churches Baptist, choose not to register, sometimes due to concerns that it could lead to increased government interference – as was the case under the country’s former Soviet rule.

 – http://vomcanada.com

About Voice of the Martyrs

Voice of the MartyrsThe Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to defend the human rights of persecuted Christians.

View all posts by Voice of the Martyrs | Website

Filed Under: Faith Tagged With: Persecuted Church

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

CSB Boys Jun 2025 360
Clearbrook Golden Age Society
BC Christian Ashram
Better books and bibles web ad July 2025
sign up 2
BC Christian Academy 360
Lighhouse Harbour Ministries
FFC School of MInistry 360
Jan Stefanic 1
sign up 1
Visionvest
Christian Herald
Alistair Young Nov 14 2024

Secondary Sidebar

Upcoming Events

Jun 6
June 6 @ 8:00 am - August 30 @ 5:00 pm

Rosebud, AB: Dream, A new Canadian Musical at Rosebud Theatre

Jul 4
July 4 @ 8:00 am - July 20 @ 5:00 pm

Drumheller, AB: Badlands Passion Play

Jul 4
July 4 @ 8:00 am - August 30 @ 5:00 pm

Rosebud, AB: Every Brilliant Thing at Rosebud Theatre

Jul 11
July 11 @ 6:00 pm - July 13 @ 8:00 pm

Drumheller, AB: Badlands Passion Play

Jul 11
July 11 @ 7:00 pm - July 12 @ 5:00 pm

Ottawa, ON: National Day of Prayer for Canada

View Calendar

Recent Jobs

  • Director, Philanthropy Performance B2C

    • Greater Toronto Area, ON, Canada
    • World Vision Canada
    • Full Time
  • Before and After School Supervisor & assistants

    • 20098 22 Ave, Langley Twp, BC V2Z 1X4, Canada
    • Sonshine Street Preschool and Childcare Centre
    • Full Time
  • AIA Youth Initiatives Regional Director – Ontario

    • Ontario, Canada
    • Athletes in Action
    • Full Time
  • AIA Youth Initiatives Program Coordinator

    • BC, AB, SK, MB, ON, QU, ATL
    • Athletes in Action
    • Full Time
  • Youth Initiatives HUB Director – Grand Prairie

    • Grande Prairie, AB, Canada
    • Athletes in Action
    • Full Time

Directory

Businesses
201
Ministries
909
Schools
427

Articles Archive

Copyright © 2025 · Light Magazine · Website by Shannon Stange · Log in

Change Location
Find awesome listings near you!