Thursday, October 23, 2008

"Convert Or We Will Kill You"



Hindu violence against Christians in India is getting worse:

Hundreds of Christians in the Indian state of Orissa have been forced to renounce their religion and become Hindus after lynch mobs issued them with a stark ultimatum: convert or die.

The wave of forced conversions marks a dramatic escalation in a two-month orgy of sectarian violence which has left at least 59 people dead, 50,000 homeless and thousands of houses and churches burnt to the ground. As neighbour has turned on neighbour, thousands more Christians have sought sanctuary in refugee camps, unable to return to the wreckage of their homes unless they, too, agree to abandon their faith.

Read the whole thing.

Seeing the photograph above reminds me so strongly of one of the villages I visited in Orissa in 2003. I worked with a Christian group while there and can't help but think that many of them are affected by all of this. I have two friends who recently returned from Orissa. Hearing their stories and knowing people in the region makes this all so incredibly sad.

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