**News Release***
Fleeing Christians Face Violence All Over Again
Members of New Save the Persecuted Christians Coalition Advocate on Behalf of 215 Million Christians Facing Persecution Worldwide
WASHINGTON—Christians who are able to safely flee their home countries where they are facing severe persecution for their faith often face violence all over again in their temporary new homes.
For instance, National Review reported that with an influx of both Muslim and Christian refugees in Europe, hatred against Christian minorities is commonplace. Germany saw nearly 100 anti-Christian attacks in 2017, mostly against asylum-seekers in refugee homes, and concerns for the safety of Christians are growing. Likewise, Open Doors Deutschland, which supports and advocates for persecuted Christians, recorded 743 incidents of threats and violence in 2016.
National Review reported a similar pattern of threats, sexual assaults and direct violence against Christian refugees in Sweden, which, like Germany, has taken in a disproportionately high number of refugees of all faiths. Most of the victims, many of who were Christian converts from Islam, did not file reports with law enforcement for fear of reprisals and because they assumed the police would take no action on their behalf.
One organization that is taking action on behalf of persecuted Christians is Save the Persecuted Christians (STPC) Coalition, which advocates on behalf of the 215 million Christians worldwide who are facing heavy persecution.
The STPC Coalition’s immediate task is to disseminate information about ways in which Americans can help those being persecuted. One of the ways Americans can render support is by encouraging their faith leaders to visit www.SaveThePersecutedChristians.org and join the hundreds who have already ordered free banners to display in front of places of worship.
These simple banners feature the Arabic “nun” character, which has become an international symbol for the oppression of Christians since the Islamic State used this first letter of the Arabic word for “Nazarene” to designate homes of followers of Christ targeted for persecution.
Raising awareness is an important first step, especially as Christian persecution occurs so routinely it rarely makes headlines. For example, according to Open Doors, 255 Christians are killed worldwide every month. 104 Christians are abducted. 180 Christian women are raped, sexually assaulted or forced into marriage. 160 Christians are detained or imprisoned without trial. And 66 churches are attacked. Every month.
The STPC Coalition is a movement akin to one in the 1970s that helped free Soviet Jews suffering from heavy persecution. The aim is to impel policy changes that will hold the persecutors accountable and increase penalties and costs for their crimes against humanity. Building such a movement will no doubt provide hope, and ideally safety, for—among many others—those refugees in Europe who have thus far been unable to escape being persecuted merely for their belief in Jesus Christ.
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