Is the persecution of Christians an affront or a condition?
Persecution of Christians is typically observed from a legal perspective, with indignation and outrage, as a violation that should be stopped. This rights-based perspective is important because it holds the majority to its obligation to protect those who believe and think differently.
But at the same time, there is another biblical perspective on the opposition to Christians, not only as an affront, but also as a condition. For the persecution Christians face is linked to Jesus' own suffering.
Read here about the relationship between Christian persecution as a violation and conditions...
Are Christians the most persecuted religious group in the world?
Particularly years ago, the claim that Christians are the most persecuted religious group in the world could be made. The challenge, however, is that this claim cannot be substantiated.
Read an analysis of whether Christians are the most persecuted religious group in the world...
What is Christian persecution?
But what is persecution? Read this description of three different definitions of persecution - one narrow, one broad and one in between...
Danish European Mission works with the following definition of persecution:
Persecution of Christians is violent and judicial attacks against Christians, Christian groups and congregations because of their Christian beliefs and practices. Violence is understood to include physical harm, lack of state protection, theft of land and property. Judicial is understood as discrimination in legislation in the form of blasphemy and apostasy laws.
This definition was developed by Professor Peter Lodberg at Aarhus University. The reason why the Danish European Mission has chosen to work with this definition is that it is precise and that we aim to communicate as nuanced about Christian persecution as possible. With a precise definition, Christian persecution as a phenomenon can be distinguished from other forms of suffering and resistance. This helps to provide clear criteria for determining what lies within and outside the concept and helps us to focus our work on precisely those Christians who are persecuted.
Because when is it actually Christian persecution? It's a complex question.
Do Christians suffer because of their faith alone?
One question is whether Christians suffer solely for the sake of their faith, or whether other reasons come into play, such as living in dictatorships, conflict zones or countries with clan structures.
In the public debate, much has been said about the exodus of ethnic Christian minorities from the Middle East and how the cradle of Christianity is being emptied of traditional Christians. This development is tragic and a loss for the Middle East, as Christians have contributed positively to their home countries in areas such as health and in some cases assumed leadership positions.
But is the reason for the exodus of Christians solely due to Christian persecution, or do other factors also have explanatory power? Not only discrimination, but also conflict and relatively few job opportunities are causing well-educated Christians to leave Iraq and Syria for the West. During the Syrian civil war, the school system partially collapsed in some places, causing Christian parents to consider their future in Syria as they wanted to give their children the best educational opportunities.
It can therefore be difficult to determine when it is Christian persecution and when suffering and resistance are due to other causes. Christian persecution can be the main cause of suffering, but it can also be one of several causes.
If Christian persecution is overdramatized, it can weaken popular and political support for persecuted Christians. Conversely, persecution of Christians should not be neglected either, as that would be just as factually wrong. The suffering of persecuted Christians must be taken seriously and their faith and sacrifices can be an important source of inspiration for the church in the so-called free world.
How many Christians are persecuted?
Think Tank for Persecuted Christians, where the Secretary General of the Danish Mission to Europe is the resource person, published in May 2022 the report The extent of the persecution. According to this report, it can be documented that 80,000 Christians were persecuted for their faith in 2020. Those 80,000 are documented cases, and there is likely a hidden number, for example if Christians are discriminated against, harassed or persecuted but do not have contact with the outside world so that others know what they are being subjected to.
The think tank found that at least 10,000 Christians died in 2020 for their faith, while 70,000 were abducted, raped, forced into marriage or had their civil rights violated because they were Christians. In total, 310 million Christians live in countries where they are at risk of discrimination, harassment or persecution, according to the Think Tank for Persecuted Christians.
Lack of evidence-based knowledge
Communicating about persecuted Christians, including their suffering and numbers, is complex. But it is a condition of working among persecuted Christians, as in many countries Christians cannot meet freely and legally, but must meet in underground churches. The more isolated they are from police, intelligence and terrorist groups in civil society, the safer they are.
But it also means that it is difficult to gather research-based knowledge about the persecuted church, both in terms of numbers, but also examples of discrimination, harassment or persecution due to the major consequences of publicly professing Christianity. A characteristic of good research is that it can be verified by other researchers through verification or falsification. But basic descriptive knowledge can be very difficult to gather among underground Christians. Reliable conclusions require accurate information about the conditions of Christians, which can be difficult to gather. And different definitions and operationalizations of the phenomenon of Christian persecution mean that there are different assumptions underlying the literature in the field.
A good example is the Convert Church in Iran. Traditional Christian ethnic groups such as Assyrians and Armenians can legally meet in buildings as long as they do not hold services in Persian and share their faith with the Muslim majority. It is therefore possible to get a rough overview of the number of churches and number of Christians from these cultures. But this is not the case for Muslims from the Persian majority, who must meet secretly if they become Christians.
It is therefore inherently difficult to know how many Christian converts there are in Iran and the extent to which they face discrimination, harassment or persecution.
A good example is the convert church in Iran. For some years, estimates of the number of convert Christians in Iran have been floating around, some as high as several million. Conversely, there are those who cite the latest official figure from the Iranian clergy of 117,700 Christians in total. But as a researcher, can you trust official statistics from a dictatorial state that restricts ethnic Christians' freedom of expression and fights hard against the convert church? And therefore has no interest in highlighting if this fight fails or is even counterproductive?
However, church growth in Iran has become a phenomenon that researchers are dealing with anyway. The only figure that is not an estimate, but based on a poll conducted by secular researchers according to social science criteria, is from Gamaan in 2020, which indicates that there are 1.2 million Christians in Iran in total. However, the survey does not say whether the respondents' answers are more an expression of a rejection of the regime than an embrace of the Bible's message. Several other countries face similar challenges in determining the number of persecuted Christians. This uncertainty about numbers is important to highlight.
Another source is researcher Alexander Duane Miller and Patrick Johnstone's article Believers in Christ from a Muslim Background: A Global Census from 2015. It was published in a scientific journal, Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion, which means that the article is peer-reviewed, so other researchers have evaluated its overview of the number of Christian converts with a Muslim background.
Implications
Danish European Mission draws a number of conclusions from the above reflections on the lack of research-based knowledge about Christian persecution.
Firstly, we are cautious when commenting on numbers. In our communication, we point out if there is uncertainty associated with the figures we publish, we strive for visibility of sources and use research-based knowledge whenever possible.
We also try to avoid generalizations. Persecuted Christians are a very inhomogeneous group with a wide variety of conditions and situations. For example, are they convert Christians or ethnic Christians? Do the persecuted Christians we are talking about live in a strong state where the authorities are largely successful in protecting them from physical attacks by terrorists, but there is intense surveillance and they may experience discrimination? Or do they live in a fragile state with weak institutions where physical attacks occur? The Danish European Mission tries to highlight these conditions in our communication so that our readers, users, donors and other interested parties can relate to the area on as informed and objective a basis as possible.
Selected books and articles about persecuted Christians
Berhane, Helen (2021). Song of the Nightingale. A personal account of faith and persecution in Eritrea
Brunson, Andrew (2019) Hostage of God - a true story of persecution, imprisonment and perseverance Andrew Brunson had been a missionary in Turkey for 23 years when he unwittingly became a hostage in a grand political game between Turkey and the US. He was wrongfully imprisoned for two years in Turkish jail on false charges of espionage, terrorism and arms smuggling before he was finally released in October 2018.
Miller, Duane Alexander and Patrick Johnstone (2015). Believers in Christ from a Muslim Background: A Global Census Published in Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion.
Schirrmacher, Thomas (2008). The persecution of Christians concerns us all - Towards a Theology of Martyrdom. The book provides a good theological introduction to persecution.
Taylor, William D., Antonia van der Meer, Reg Reimer (2012). Sorrow & Blood. Christian Mission in Contexts of Suffering, Persecution, and Martyrdom.
Wurmbrand, Richard (1967). Torture - for Christ's sake - the martyr church of our time: a testimony of the underground church behind the iron curtain and its suffering.
Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand spent several years in prison for his ministry as a pastor during the Cold War, when Christians were persecuted in the Eastern Bloc. The book is a classic for anyone interested in persecuted Christians. Wurmbrand's testimony and theological reflections have been highly influential, and he also contributed to the development of the work of the Danish European Mission in the late 1960s.