Several situations from a recent trip to Asia with Hans-Henrik Johansen, Vice-President of the Danish European Mission, were straight out of a spy story. We met with our contacts regarding North Korea, who were staying in different hotels, so the connection between them was not obvious. And the most experienced of our contacts, who has been helping North Korean Christians for more than 30 years, made sure we were not being watched before he answered my questions.
How do North Korean Christians meet?
- Typically, they meet in small groups, not at a fixed time and place, so the authorities cannot uncover a pattern of meeting activity. Sometimes they eat together. The numbers are so many, that can meet in a room. No one gets suspicious when they meet with a natural and legitimate reason.
How do North Korean Christians experience, that God is close to them and gives the power under the extreme oppression?
- Although there are many clinics, they lack medicine, so the sick can often only be diagnosed, but not always treated. There are examples of poor patients being left to their own devices and dying.
Christians come together and pray for healing, even for incurable diseases like cancer. We hear about a thousandis of miracles. In a provincial hospital we have a Christian doctor who can legally visit people in their homes. We continue with to send medication for the doctor to use the one for natural healing. Non-Christians ask Christians for help and are touched by the love, the Christians show them, completely Free. Christian witnesses not the first time, with non-Christians, but when they have a deep and trusting relationship where they know, that non-Christians will not reveal them, they can share their faith. Christians must rely entirely on God's leading and encouragement to, When to testify.
Read also: Thank you letter from the underground church in North Korea
How many Christians are there in North Korea?
- There is an estimated 300,000 in total, 50,000-60,000 of which are in prison camps. Around 50,000 Christian is by the authorities been moved from city to country as part of the punishment for being a Christian.
What percentage of Christians are hhv. poor and upper middle class?
- My assessment is that 10% is upper middle class, lives in Pyongyang and is secrett Christians. The rest live in the rest of the country and need outside help. Christians in a desolate province grædwhen we sent them rice. De was deeply moved and cried out: God helped us.
Is it possible that North Koreane Christiane can be happy when they live under this persecution?
A contact said to me: Don't pity us - the living God provides for us. Several North Korean Christians say this, and their statements are consistent, despite the fact that North Korea is like hell on earth in many ways.
Are there pockets of economic prosperity?
- You can see supermarkets in Pyongyang with very expensive goods where ordinary people cannot shop.
Does every family have a plot of land?
- The public food supply has collapsed, All families have been given a plot of land where they can grow vegetables. However, the families often lack seeds and fertilizer, and the soil can be dry. They also lack water. Because of the lack of water, many will die next year if it doesn't rain. Therefore, we must pray for rain. This analysis of the drought is cross-checked with multiple sources.
Do some people renounce their Christian faith under torture in prison?
- Dem, who are holding on are the ones, who have persevered. Christians, that is discovered, are immediately sent to a political prison camp. For the glory of God, they undergo torture and martyrdom. There are only very few, who renounce their Christian faith under torture.
How can Christians stand firm in their faith under torture?
- I have thousands of letters from leaders in the underground church. In one letter I asked: If Christians are arrested and subjected to horrible torture - how can they then survive? The church leader answered me: We know, what we are subjected to. Therefore, firstly, believers prepare for torture in a very practical way. For example Christians are typically hanged with their feet strapped to the ceiling so that blood runs down their bodies. Some Christians are put in small cages, where you sit completely bent together. Some sit on needles where they are stuck. People in churches who know the pain themselves try to help, teach and prepare others as best they can for the torture, They will face in prison.
Christians, who have been in prison, secondly says that the others should pray for that moment, They are tortured. There are testimonies that some Christians do not feel pain during torture. It is as if their spirit and body are separated during torture. There are 7-8 methods of torture, authorities typically use against Christians.
Thirdly, Christians teach Bthe Bible by heart so they can always remember the verses. I've met three leaders in the underground church who knew large parts of the Bthe Bible by heart, concludes ourIt Contact.
Thank you to everyone who prays for the persecuted North Korean Christians.
