Modern Witnesses: Adivasi Tribal Christians
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This week, our Sunday School teacher taught us about a group of Christians in India who are suffering because of their faith in Jesus. They are part of the Adivasi tribe, and they live in the state of Maharashtra, which is in the part of India that goes from about the middle of India westward to the Arabian Sea.
The first attack happened last December. A group of Adivasi Christians met at a church in the village of Tamsai. They wanted to pray and worship God. But a bunch of angry people broke into the church and started beating everyone up—the men, women, and even the kids. They told them that they should pray somewhere else, and they tore up Bibles.
The mob stayed for about an hour, when other Christian leaders in the area came and took the victims to the police. But the police didn’t do a lot to help the Christians, and many of them were very scared. Some of them left their homes and moved someplace else. The villagers who stayed were threatened. The other villagers told them they wouldn’t be allowed to get water at the village well or get firewood. At last, the police started an investigation.
The Christians met again in the middle of January, and this time, they had the police with them. A mob gathered, but they didn’t attack when they saw the police. Later that day, everyone met together and agreed that there would be peace if the Christians agreed only to have prayer meeting in their homes. A peace was agreed on. The Christians would be allowed to get water and firewood.
But the peace didn’t last. The very next day, when three women were getting water, a 12-year-old girl was playing a Christian song on her phone. The villagers were furious! They attacked the women and the little girl.
Can you imagine making someone so angry that they wanted to beat your family up—just because you played a Christian song on your phone? How would you feel if someone said the only place you could have a church service was in your home? What would you do if someone said they wouldn’t let you go the store for the food and water you need because you are a Christian?
Please pray with me that God will help the Adivasi Christians love Him and pray to Him no matter what. And please pray that the other villagers will hear and understand how much Jesus loves them.
“Dear God, please help the Adivasi Christians in India to love You more than anything. Please help and heal the ones who were hurt in the attack. Help everyone who is scared. And please help the police and the other people in charge to work hard to make sure that everyone is treated fairly. Thank You. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
The facts of this story are based on World Watch Monitor news articles published on January 31, 2013.
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