Proponents of the amendment say its purpose is to ensure foreign money is not misused to fund activities detrimental to national interest. However, John Pudaite of Bibles For The World states it would allow the Indian government to take control of assets from organizations that have had their FCRA registration canceled or suspended.

“The government could basically confiscate all assets you have were created with foreign contribution,” says Pudaite. “So an organization that had planted and built a number of churches, even if it was 20, 30 years ago—all of those churches could be confiscated if they were under scrutiny by the government.”

According to recent counts, approximately 22,700 organizations have lost their FCRA registration, and thousands are under suspension pending further investigation by the government. This bill would still apply even to assets surrendered by organizations outside of the country to their partner organizations within the country.

“It talks about the government being able to establish a designated authority there—that’s the words of the bill—that will take possession of those assets,” explains Pudaite. “So let’s say there’s a ministry that has a mission hospital, half a dozen schools, and 30 churches, and their FCRA has been suspended or canceled. The government, through its designated authority, can essentially take control of all of those properties if they if they have been created with even any percentage from foreign contributions.”

The bill did pass in the cabinet and went to the parliament floor—however, it received pushback and has been retracted. It’s expected to be resubmitted at a later parliament session.

“But that’s the type of thing that’s happening behind the scenes,” says Pudaite. “They’re trying to take over all the property of the church and of Christian ministries in India.”

Pray lawmakers in the Indian parliament would act in the best interests of fairness and religious freedom, and pray on behalf of Christian ministries within the country.

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Zoshua Colah via Unsplash.

According to the regulations, “collective religious activities organized by foreigners in China are restricted to foreign participants only,” with few exceptions.

“How it relates to us is that any foreigner or any foreign Christian organization, pastor, or church ministry group that wants to do any kind of direct ministry inside China has to get a permission ahead of time from their religious affairs bureau,” explains Erik Burklin of China Partner. “For this year, we did not receive permission by the religious affairs bureau to be hosted by a local church or a seminary. We were scheduled to do trainings in four different cities in May this year—two of them were Bible training centers, and then the other two were actually Bible schools or seminaries that officially run. And since they did not receive permission to host us as a foreign organizations to run our training seminars, we could not do them.”

Despite the restrictions, Burklin says Partner China is relatively optimistic: “We can’t do as much as we have done in the past, but we are thinking that in the future, we might be able to start our training seminars again. But right now, we just have to respect what the government is saying and not push against it so hard, but kind of go along with it, be patient, and wait our turn. And you know, by next year, things might have changed again. Who knows?”

According to Burklin, church leaders within China are even more positive.

“I think they are actually less concerned about some of these new restrictions being passed down than we are from the outside, and that always encourages me. I’m blown away with their positivity. They never mention anything about politics, about the party, or about what Beijing is deciding or not deciding. They’re just faithful to Christ. They’re so strong. They have an eternal perspective, literally. They know that this is not ideal. This is a system that’s very suppressive and oppressive and limiting, and they wish they had more freedoms, of course. But in the midst of all that, they are still staying faithful. They’re still spreading the gospel. They’re preaching God’s Word on a faithful basis every Sunday or during Bible studies or wherever they meet. And that’s very inspiring to me, and I want your listeners to be inspired by that as well.”

Burklin asks for prayers that God would help the Chinese church leaders to continue being faithful through the adversities they face, as well as for patience and wisdom for everyone at China Partner.

Header photo courtesy of China Partner.

Floyd Brobbel with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada explains, “It was quite unethical that the way they were trying to trap people into some sort of blasphemy against Islam or against Muhammad or against the Quran, and then making sure that those charges would go through.”

Days before stepping down, Aziz had blocked actions that exposed flaws in how blasphemy cases were being handled.

Christians in the legal crosshairs

Christians in Pakistan. (Photo courtesy of The Voice of the Martyrs USA)

This case is just one example of how Pakistan’s blasphemy laws are often misused to target minority Christians. Recently, the Lahore High Court pushed for an investigation into the growing number of blasphemy cases, raising concerns that organized groups might be behind them.

“We’ve seen a lot of Christians targeted, and other religious minorities in Pakistan would be targeted,” says Brobbel. “Certainly, I think those who are trying to expose the inner workings of this group could face a number of security challenges and issues. When other groups and lawyers or high profile government officials have tried to speak up on behalf of religious minorities and defend them, they have been assassinated in the past.”

With the resignation of Justice Aziz and growing pressure for investigations, there’s hope that Pakistan will take steps to protect minorities from these abuses. But without real legal reforms, many Christians still face a dangerous reality.

“The blasphemy laws have been an issue, not only in Pakistan but in other Muslim countries. But in particular, in Pakistan, these blasphemy laws were used to incite hatred and incite unjust attacks on Christians and arrests of Christians,” says Brobbel.

“On the ground level, often imams in their mosque can incite their people through saying that a particular Christian was caught blaspheming…and they can incite a mob to attack Christians. We’ve seen this happen.”

The start of reform?

With blasphemy entrapment and false accusations now being called out in Pakistan, it’s a first step towards reform.

(Photo courtesy Voice of the Martyrs USA)

Yet, Brobbel points out, “The concern remains that while we can see some changes hopefully happening at a higher level, will it filter down to the grassroots level? Will those things be dealt with? That remains to be seen.

“We need to encourage that if authorities are trying to weed out and dismantle this blasphemy ring that’s happening, it also needs to go a step further and ensure that these blasphemy laws (or anti-blasphemy laws) will be dealt with completely…where people truly can be free from this type of thing. So we need to pray that that will continue to happen.”

Brobbel also urges, “We need to pray that the truth would continue to come forward, that people would be courageous in exposing what is happening with this group, and hopefully see that this group would be dismantled.”

Header photo: Lahore, Pakistan (Photo courtesy of Syed Bilal Javaid via Unpslash)

This latest draft law has been in the making for over a year. An earlier version was struck down in parliament in June 2024, but now it’s back and passed its first reading in December. If it passes into full law, it would require all places of worship to register with the government, among other impacts. 

“Imposing these new laws are creating greater restrictions [than those] that are already in place — for example, [laws that are already] forbidding evangelism and distributing religious literature publicly,” says Floyd Brobbel with Voice of the Martyrs Canada.

“Churches need to register, and they’re increasing the restrictions on how churches can register. Previously, you had to have about 200 adult members, and now they’re looking to increase it to about 500 adult members in order for the church to gain legal status.” 

That 500-member hoop would be a problem in many Western churches, let alone a Muslim-majority nation like Kyrgyzstan. Out of every thousand people in the nation, less than 40 are Christians, with only 3 being evangelical believers (see The Joshua Project).

“We could say, ‘Well, they could maybe move to home churches.’ But even those they (government leaders) are looking to make illegal, imposing heavier fines on any any religious violations that would oppose their laws or their bills,” Brobbel says. 

“So what you’re really seeing is that it becomes a judicial control. These laws are enacted and enforced, and they supersede the freedom of being able to gather, being able to worship, being able to share your religion with other people.”

If passed, the law could begin hampering gospel ministry as soon as February 1. If that happens, Brobbel says “we will see these restrictions [curtailing] the church from doing the work of the church — restricting the freedom of Christians on how they can worship, where they can worship, how they can share their faith, how they can be a witness to their neighbors and and and do good.”

Pray that Kyrgyzstan’s parliament strikes down this bill just like they did the earlier draft last summer. 

“[Pray] that somehow the Lord will intervene in this situation and give His church strength,” Brobbel says. 

Header photo: Parliament photographed from above. Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Photo courtesy of Nikolai Bulykin via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

But the pushback from India against this designation has been swift and sharp. A spokesperson for the nation’s Ministry of External Affairs referred to the report as “propaganda,” and called USCIRF “a biased organization with a political agenda.” 

So what is going on? Tim Landis with FARMS International says there has been a “ramping up of new anti-conversion laws.” 

India’s population is nearly 80% Hindu, 14% Muslim and 2% Christian. (Source: CIA Factbook) Photo courtesy of Ron Hansen/Unsplash.

Twelve states in India criminalize changing your religion, under certain circumstances. There are also concerns that India’s current government will make all of India a nationalist Hindu state. We’ll see who is in office after the general election results come in June. (More on the ongoing election here.)

For now, incidents of mob violence against Christians are on the rise, and FARMS is feeling it. One of their local partners had to move his family due to threats in their home area. 

“Church, believers, and families were persecuted, false accusations of saying that the businesses were giving people loans and beneficiaries loans to convert to Christianity, which is not the truth. It’s not even how FARMS operates,” Landis says. 

FARMS offers interest-free loans to Christians to help them work their way out of poverty. It doesn’t touch on conversion. Until recently, their work in India has not been under much threat.

“[Our partner] has had very good connections within the government, but that is starting to deteriorate, as the government kind of keeps pressing on these [anti-conversion] laws,” Landis says. 

Pray against the fear Christians are facing of losing their crops, livelihoods or lives to community attacks spurred on by anti-conversion laws.

Learn more here about how you can come alongside Christians around the world with FARMS International.

Header image is a representative stock photo of India courtesy of Akshat Vats/Unsplash.

The response from officials has been vicious. “The government really are brutal in how they’re retaliating to what the people are doing,” Silk says. “They are killing, raping, torturing, and detaining. They’re intimidating and threatening the young people of Iran and their families.

But even in death, the voices of the oppressed demand to be heard. Silk recently learned about a young woman who was arrested during a protest against mandatory hijab laws. Because of her defiant behavior, she was tortured and abused. 

“So she recorded a video that was essentially saying, ‘I don’t think they’re going to let me go, I don’t think their response to my actions is finished. If I was to disappear if I was to be arrested, tortured, martyred […] please remember this, remember us.’ And she specifically says, ‘Be our voice. We need you to be our voice. We need you to empower this movement.’”

After releasing the video, the young woman disappeared. Officials arrested and beat her parents. The abuse she predicted became a reality.

So what happens now? Right now, young people who are fighting for their freedom are experiencing immense trauma and pain because of their resilience. Transform Iran hopes to step into those challenges and provide the tools for standing strong. “[Through digital media], we offer a whole lot of teaching on identity, on healing, on how to have victory over addiction, on overcoming the pain and struggle from trauma,” Silk says. “Then through that process, we invite people to connect with us [via audio or video calls] and have one-to-one counseling, particularly in relation to trauma that they’ve experienced.”

Transform Iran is asking for support for those branches of their ministry, especially as they look to add a new cohort of specialist counselors. 

They’re also asking that you continue watching and listening. Pay attention to the stories of Iranian young people. Pay attention to the way young people seek freedom, both physically and spiritually. And pay attention to the ways God is working even amidst the violence of Iran.

Header photo courtesy of Transform Iran

“We’ve been sending [Bibles and Christian books] to India now for over 65 years,” says Woolford. “But we’re seeing things intensify like we’ve never seen before, even in the last four months, to where the government was starting to put pressure on containers that we sent there.”

In particular, anti-conversion laws in 11 Indian states are making it harder to ship and distribute God’s Word.

(Photo courtesy of Mission Cry)

Mission Cry’s recently attempted to send a shipment of Christian literature to India. One of their local contacts received a threatening message, along with others in the shipping industry.

“We just heard yesterday that he was warned…that if any [shipping containers] are opened and found with the Word of God, they will immediately go to prison.”

However, Indian believers are firm in their commitment to share the Gospel, and Mission Cry is committed to equipping these believers for outreach wherever they are.

“In the midst of all that, these people, our brothers and sisters, are still asking for the Word of God — a used Bible, Christian book, seminary materials — because they understand the power that’s found in the Word.”

Woolford says, “We have another partner that we’ve worked with that is a business owner who has taken containers in the past. So we’ll have to send into some of the other states where this anti-conversion law is not happening and we’ll have to be very strategic with it. We’re not going to stop trying to get the Word of God, especially when they’re trying to stop it from coming in.”

Pray for open doors to God’s Word in India. Ask the Lord to soften the hearts of those who don’t know Jesus Christ with biblical truth.

Learn more about Mission Cry’s ministry.

Header photo courtesy of Mission Cry.

“The Bible very clearly says, ‘Seek justice and defend the oppressed,’” George says.

Read more about the Sui Juris Law firm here.

India’s constitution theoretically protects religious diversity, but the new laws against forced conversions have made any Christian activity a target. Learn more in this story. Even so, God is growing the Church.

The law firm’s co-founder, Ramchand Saranu, says, “The number of people coming to the Lord, during this past two to three years actually increased. So we have seen more coming to the Lord, receiving Christ, reading the Word, the past two years.”

The lawyers recently helped one new believer who was arrested during a private prayer meeting. He came to know Christ in a surprising way.

George says, “He was going through the YouTube, and his family accepted Christ through the social media platform.”

Personal evangelism can trigger violent attacks against Christians and arrests for allegedly breaking anti-conversion laws. Meanwhile, the Gospel continues to spread online. Saranu thinks social media was an important means for leading many Indians to Christ during the pandemic lockdowns and will continue to be a critical tool.

Pray for believers to share the Gospel with more Indians through social media.

George says, “More Gospel content should be produced in social media, so that the gospel is communicated to the new literate community which is larger in India.”

Listen to the full conversation with Ramchand Saranu and Sushil George on VOM Canada’s Closer to the Fire podcast.

Header photo courtesy of VOM Canada.

Anti-blasphemy laws make it incredibly difficult for Christians to gather in worship or share their faith at all in Pakistan. Insulting Islam or its prophet is punishable by death. Other laws punish lesser offenses with considerable jail time or fines. However, despite the oppression they face, Christians are being encouraged with the Gospel through Keys for Kids storyteller mp3 players.

Greg Yoder with Keys for Kids shared that their partners in Pakistan have distributed every one of the 3600 units they had previously loaded with devotions in the Urdu language. These have been greatly encouraging to Christians across Pakistan and even have opened opportunities for Gospel change.

Ayesha’s Story

One team was providing the storytellers to Christian families who work at brick making factories. They live onsite and work seven days a week. Whole families work, even underage children, to make between 1000 and 2000 bricks a day. This device provides joy and connection with other believers for these families. However, they weren’t the only ones listening to the team who distributed them.

A little girl named Ayesha saw the team distributing the storytellers. She asked the team if she could have one also. However, she comes from a Muslim family and because of the laws against proselytizing, they told her that she needed to bring back an adult or else their lives would be in danger.

Yoder shares, “She ran and grabbed her mother. Her mother came over and the FMI team basically told the mother was on it and shared the gospel. And she said, ‘Well, we can’t do this. We’re a Muslim family.’ The little girl would not take no for an answer. So now this Muslim family has a Keys for kids storyteller in their home!”

Heart Change in a Rebellious Boy

A few weeks later, the team was working in the northern area of Pakistan among Afghan refugees. They were able to give a unit to a kid who had a reputation as being rude and rebellious. A few days after listening to the storyteller his attitude began to change!

Yoder says, “His father, who was the village chief in this Muslim community wanted to know what was going on. He said, ‘Well, I’ve been listening to the stories about Jesus, and I believe in it!’ His father said, ‘Well, we have got to have more of these.’

(Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids Ministries)

“So just a few weeks ago, they were able to distribute 300 of these units to this Muslim village, because this village chief saw such a change in this young man’s life.”

These stories are occurring all over Pakistan. Yoder continues, “What’s amazing [is] many of these kids are memorizing the Keys for Kids stories, which at the end, include a Bible verse. So, they’re literally memorizing the stories that they’re telling their friends, because they don’t have necessarily have a storyteller, but sharing the Gospel as they do it. It’s amazing.”

More Storytellers Needed!

God is working, the FMI team is out of storytellers. They have said they could use about 2400 units every month. With each unit costing around $50, Keys for Kids needs increased support to meet this demand.

As Keys for Kids heads into a week-long push for fundraising, they are looking to raise about $60,000 for this program and for other international support. Every donation gets them closer to their goal and is matched, dollar for dollar during the campaign.

If you would like to help provide storytellers to spread the Gospel in Pakistan, please click here.

Yoder also asks the Church for prayer, “We can only pray that God would bind the hands of those that are trying to attack Christians. That he would deliver those that maybe even are in prison now and allow them to get out or even use that opportunity in prison to be able to share their faith in a very, very dark place.”

Header photo courtesy of Keys for Kids Ministries.

But this attitude may end up turning the general population away from Islam. John Weaver performed humanitarian aid work in Afghanistan in the late 1990s. He spoke to The Voice of the Martyrs Canada on the topic. “If I’m a follower of Islam, and I see all the fighting and all the oppressiveness, it actually can turn me away from my own worldview. I become discontent or dissatisfied with my own worldview, and therefore I’m open to something else.”

Weaver says the Taliban and their supporters want to see their country flourish. They genuinely believe strict Islamic law will make that happen. Ask the Holy Spirit to change many hearts in Afghanistan.

Mary’s story

Weaver tells the story of one Afghan woman. “Mary, like many Afghans became discontent with her own worldview. She became open to asking questions and discovering spiritual truth. Long story short, God spoke to her in a dream, and she became a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. And now she wants to share the story of God with others.”

Mary travels to the homes of other women to share about Jesus. On the way, she wears her full burqa. But when she arrives, Weaver says, “she’s greeted by some women who are expecting her. They go into the room and take that thing off. And now they’re not hidden. [They celebrate that] God sees them. God loves them. God is with them.”

Mary starts at the Creation story, sharing the truth these women have heard before. She then tells them about the full and final revelation of God in Jesus Christ.

Photo courtesy of Amber Clay from Pixabay.