Roughly 215 million Christians are being persecuted due to their faith, according to a new report released by the Open Doors USA — that’s one in 12 Christians worldwide.
The president and CEO of Open Doors, David Curry unveiled the 2018 World Wide List (WWL) of the top 50 “most dangerous” countries to worship Jesus at the National Press Club Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
Each year, the WWL provides a searing glimpse into the 50 places around the world where it costs the most to be a Christian. In some countries, familial and social pressure make it terribly difficult to follow Jesus, while in other places, faith in Christ is threatened by daily risk of violence and physical oppression.
Alabama 4th District U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt attended the event and said the news from the report was not good.
“Sadly, the news from the event was not good. The number of Christians who are facing persecution around the world is increasing,” said Aderholt. “North Korea continues to be at the top of the list of countries where Christians are persecuted and strictly prohibited from openly worshipping. The following is a list of the top ten countries where Christians are persecuted: North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Pakistan, Eritrea, Libya, Iraq, Yemen, and Iran.”
Aderholt shared many of the most vulnerable of those persecuted are women.
“The Open Doors report highlighted that women are particularly singled out and abused for their faith,” Aderholt added. “There were reports of 2,260 women who were raped, sexually harassed or forced into marriages through threats of death. It’s believed this number is greatly under reported. I should also point out this is an issue that women, men and children all face around the world.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to this evil and the United States must continue to hold our friends – and our enemies – accountable. I will continue to discuss these issues with my colleagues in Congress to help ensure that the Administration has all the tools it needs from those of us in Congress who understand the severity of this issue.”
