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Today's Christian, July/August 2005
After the Tsunami
In Sri Lanka, religious repression continues, even as the country struggles to recover from the worst natural disaster in its history.
By Jerry Dykstra
The most powerful earthquake in 40 years erupted under the Indian Ocean near Sumatra on December 26, 2004. It caused giant, deadly waves to crash ashore in nearly a dozen countries, leaving 300,000 dead or missing.
A long stretch of Sri Lanka's coast was devastated by the killer waves, leaving almost 40,000 dead and 2.5 million people displaced. Among the displaced were 1,060 children who lost both parents and 3,414 children who lost one parent. It is the worst human disaster in the history of Sri Lanka, a large island of 20 million located off the southeast coast of India.
Pastor Lawrence lost his daughter, who was walking to her father's church that fateful Sunday morning. She was swept away by a gigantic wave. But even in his mourning, Pastor Lawrence reached out to the distraught families of his congregation who also lost loved ones.
Once a member of the feared rebel military group Tamil Tigers, Pastor Lawrence became a Christian in 1984. He says the tsunami has helped Christians gain respect in the Buddhist-dominated country because they are showing the love of God to people of all faiths, even to those who had formerly persecuted them.
Persecution of Christians has increased in Sri Lanka over the last several years. Statistics from the World Evangelical Alliance show that from January 2003 to March 2004 more than 140 anti-Christian incidents were recorded. These incidents ranged from mild threats to death warnings, arson, and the destruction of church buildings. Church leaders are especially at risk. There are currently efforts by Buddhist monks to pass an anti-conversion law.
Approximately 70 percent of Sri Lanka is Buddhist, 12 percent Hindu, 7 percent Muslim, and 7 percent Christian (including 1 percent evangelical Protestant). Despite the persecution, Protestant Christianity has grown. But there is a huge need for more evangelists to minister to rural areas, as 35,000 villages have never had contact with any Christians.
Persecution Report is presented in cooperation with Open Doors USA, which serves the Persecuted Church through training, Bible distribution, and community development. For more information, call 1-888-5-BIBLE-5 or visit www.odusa.org.
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What to pray for:
• The Christian community, as it reaches out to people of all faiths in wake of the tsunami.
• More Christian missionaries and evangelists to minister to those in rural areas.
• Freedom for Christians to worship in peace without fear of anti-conversion laws.
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Copyright © 2005 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today's Christian magazine.
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July/August 2005,Vol. 43,No. 4,59
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