Top Ten Christian Persecuters
Category: The Persecuted Church...
Posted Tuesday, August 30, 2005 at 02:19 PM [GMT-6]

Since 1955, Open Doors International has been providing assistance and advocacy for Christians around the world who are being persecuted, discriminated against and harrassed because of their faith. There's no such thing as a closed border or society to Open Doors; in its own words, "We go where others do not go, and do what others do not do."

The organization publishes the semi-annual "World Watch List," which ranks countries according to the level of persecution Christians face for actively pursuing their faith. In the latest list, North Korea has supplanted Saudi Arabia at the top of the list for the first time.

Laos comes in at number three. The rest of the top ten are Vietnam, Turkmenistan, Maldives, Bhutan, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Somalia. Five of the top ten countries are governed by Islamic regimes. Bhutan is predominately Buddhist, and four -- North Korea, Laos, Vietnam and Turkmenistan -- are communist-ruled.

Don't be surprised to see Saudi Arabia assert its lead once again in the future, however. According to AsiaNews, persecution of all non-Muslim religions is growing worse since the death of King Fahd.

Technorati tags: Persecuted Church | World Watch List | Christianity