Religious freedom advocates are sounding the alarm as the Taliban’s power grab in Afghanistan all but guarantees the persecution of Christians in the country will intensify.
That’s why several evangelical leaders and faith-based organizations have called on the U.S. to take in Afghan refugees.
“As Christians, we believe that each person is made with intrinsic value in the image of God, and we cannot treat any person’s life as expendable,” read a letter signed by the leaders of groups like the National Association of Evangelicals, Bethany Christian Services, World Relief, and the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.
“There are many other Afghans likely to be at risk of persecution under Taliban rule, including Christians and other religious minorities, women and girls who have pursued the opportunity for education, and others associated with the U.S. presence in Afghanistan who may not qualify for Special Immigrant Visas,” the faith leaders wrote to President Joe Biden.
International Christian Concern, an advocacy group for persecuted believers, stated Monday that religious diversity “in a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan is not possible.”
“Prior to 2001,” the organization explained, “the Taliban’s brief rule was marked by extremism, violence, and discrimination against religious minorities. All activity deemed against Islam was monitored and banned by the Taliban regime and the oppression of women hit all-time highs with the Taliban’s strict enforcement of their version of Islamic sharia law.”
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To date, the Biden administration has resettled fewer than 500 refugees from Afghanistan and is on track to resettle under 10,000 refugees overall.
Below are three organizations to prayerfully consider giving to as Christians in Afghanistan face increasingly intense persecution.
Open Doors
Open Doors, established in 1955, is an advocacy organization that works alongside persecuted Christians by providing information and resources to governments and humanitarian and religious liberty organizations.
The faith-based advocacy group is responsible for the annual World Watch List, which details the most dangerous countries around the globe for Christians to live. Afghanistan is currently ranked as No. 2, and the persecution believers there face is described as “extreme.”
Based in Washington, D.C., Open Doors says its advocacy arm “works to address current religious freedom issues on Capitol Hill and elsewhere.”
“We are focused on building relationships with government officials who are positioned to assist persecuted believers through legislative efforts and policy development,” it states. “We also collaborate with a wide array of human rights and religious freedom organizations in order to speak with a united voice on behalf of all who suffer for their faith in Jesus.”
“We also regularly conduct trips to visit countries where persecution is an issue, in order to document firsthand the impact of religious repression on individuals, communities and countries,” Open Doors adds.
Voice of the Martyrs
VOM, founded in 1967, helps Christians who want to relocate from unsafe places and comes alongside believers facing persecution.
Todd Nettleton, chief of media relations and message integration for VOM, told the Mission News Network that, although they don’t anticipate the violence against Christians to be worse “in the level of persecution,” they don foresee it being “worse in the terms of the numbers, because there are more Christians in Afghanistan than there were 20 years ago.”
“Right now, a lot of what we can do is pray for our brothers and sisters because the situation is so fluid and because the delivery of aid on teh ground is so fraught with danger,” he said. “It is absolutely crucial that we lift them up in prayer.”
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There are many believers there, Nettleton said, who are confident God has placed them in Afghanistan for a purpose and want to stay there to help spread the Gospel.
VOM is not only a great resource to learn specific prayer needs, the mission organization also works directly with Christians under persecution.
International Christian Concern
Established in 1995, International Christian Concern not only provides educational resources to help better understand persecution as it’s happening in real time, but also actively works to end it.
One unnamed Christian leader in Afghanistan told ICC believers are being told “to stay in their houses because going out now is too dangerous,” as the Taliban seizes control of the country.
Believers there fear it’s only a matter of time before the deadly persecution begins.
“It will be done mafia-style,” the anonymous source told ICC. “The Taliban will never take responsibility for the killings.”
ICC works alongside the U.S. government “to bring persecutors to justice by collecting evidence on their actions and submitting that information to relevant government entities that will freeze their assets and prevent them or their families form traveling to the West.”
“It’s difficult and painstaking work, but worth it,” the organization states, “It allows us to push back against systemic persecution in the countries where we work. The primary took that we use to accomplish this is the Global Magnitsky Act.”
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