Intolerance

Prayercast: Indonesia. A special prayer in Indonesian and English with video from Indonesia. (for those reading this in an RSS reader or on your email you might need to click on the link to the blog to see the video)

"A Christian, a Muslim and an atheist sounds like the beginning of joke. Instead, it could be the beginning of a broader-based struggle for freedom of religion and belief, in the face of rising religious intolerance around the world."

That is the opening paragraph from this recent story in the Huffington Post about increasing intolerance in Indonesia. In the article the author shares three stories of intolerance against an atheist, a church, and a Muslim sect in Indonesia.

Enshrined in the Indonesian Constitution is a model of tolerance and moderation. With 6 recognized religions (Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism) and 768 people groups, it is key to keeping the peace.

Recently, however things have been changing. Several churches have recently come under persecution for not having the correct permits due to a change in law requiring that they have support of the neighborhood around them. This has led to problems like those faced by the Filadelfia church in the Huffington Post article as well the church in this article from The Jakarta Post.

Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) describes Indonesia as a hostile nation. On the VOM web page (under restricted nations) you can read more stories about persecution. Please be praying that the government of Indonesia would recommit themselves to guaranteeing religious freedom. Please also be praying that Christians in Indonesia will not be intimidated or discouraged. Finally, please be praying that the darkness will be lifted from the hearts and minds of the lost and that the light of Jesus will be revealed to them.