From Bethlehem to Iran, Remember Persecuted Christians This Christmas
As we gather to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ this Christmas, we should all take a moment to pray for those Christians who will spend this holiday in prison or in fear of their lives.
The Muslim “Palestinian” authorities who control Bethlehem, the city where Jesus was born in Israel, canceled public celebration of Christmas this year to honor the vicious Hamas terrorists who were killed after brutally raping, torturing, and murdering Israeli men, women, and children. The Christians of Bethlehem can kneel on the very spot where Jesus was born 2000+ years ago, but they are a persecuted minority, as Christians always are in Muslim-controlled territory.
For instance, in the radical Islamic, terrorist-sponsoring dictatorship of Iran, some Christians are spending Christmas in prison. The Iranian regime hates non-Muslims (and even other Muslims who don’t agree with their bloody brand of sharia), and Iran made the list of the top most dangerous countries for Christians this year. That list—mostly Communist or Muslim-majority nations—included Nigeria, North Korea, India, Iran, China, Pakistan, Eritrea, Algeria, Indonesia, and Azerbaijan. Nigeria is the most dangerous country in the world for Christians, still suffering from a decades-long genocide. Other countries which have recently experienced persecution of Christians include Armenia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, and Sudan. Even here in America, devout and law-abiding Christians are among the tortured and abused Jan. 6 political prisoners.
For many of us, the present and future seem increasingly dark, even in America. But we can be thankful this year that most of us aren’t in imminent danger of prison, torture, and even death because we are gathering to celebrate the birth of the Divine Child Who would become the Savior of the world.