7 Ways Churches Could React to Violent Persecution
Palitha Jayasooriya
1 Timothy 2:1-2
Introduction:
It was Sunday morning and a sense of calm prevailed outside as I entered our church sanctuary. Inside the building was the beautiful sight of people worshipping God. I was scheduled to preach at the service and looked forward to it as it was Easter Sunday, the day on which Christians celebrate the glorious Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The first person to meet me at the door was one of our young Leaders who said, ''Shocking isn't it Pastor?'' His tone of voice and the look on his face told me that something serious had happened. To my horror, I learned that bombs had gone off in two churches a short while earlier. Over the next 30 minutes, news came trickling in that one more church and three tourist hotels had also been devastated by suicide bombers. The damage was extensive and the death toll kept rising. It was an Easter never to be forgotten by Christians since an attack of such magnitude against churches had never happened before. A total of eight bombs were exploded by suicide bombers that day.
As Sri Lanka slowly struggles to come back to a state of normalcy, the final death toll stands at over 250 with more than 500 injured. A heavy price to pay!
As I was reflecting on what happened, I was left wondering how Christians and the Church should react to attacks of this nature, which are becoming all too frequent around the world. After the Sri Lanka bombings, we have heard of gun attacks on two churches in Burkina Faso. Over ten people have been killed, including possibly two Pastors. This recent article by the BBC indicates that the persecution Christians are facing today could be reaching 'alarming levels'. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-4814630
Proposition: Steps needed when reacting to violent attacks
So, after some discussion with other leaders, I have put down the following 7 suggestions on how we could react to such events. ...
Palitha Jayasooriya
1 Timothy 2:1-2
Introduction:
It was Sunday morning and a sense of calm prevailed outside as I entered our church sanctuary. Inside the building was the beautiful sight of people worshipping God. I was scheduled to preach at the service and looked forward to it as it was Easter Sunday, the day on which Christians celebrate the glorious Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The first person to meet me at the door was one of our young Leaders who said, ''Shocking isn't it Pastor?'' His tone of voice and the look on his face told me that something serious had happened. To my horror, I learned that bombs had gone off in two churches a short while earlier. Over the next 30 minutes, news came trickling in that one more church and three tourist hotels had also been devastated by suicide bombers. The damage was extensive and the death toll kept rising. It was an Easter never to be forgotten by Christians since an attack of such magnitude against churches had never happened before. A total of eight bombs were exploded by suicide bombers that day.
As Sri Lanka slowly struggles to come back to a state of normalcy, the final death toll stands at over 250 with more than 500 injured. A heavy price to pay!
As I was reflecting on what happened, I was left wondering how Christians and the Church should react to attacks of this nature, which are becoming all too frequent around the world. After the Sri Lanka bombings, we have heard of gun attacks on two churches in Burkina Faso. Over ten people have been killed, including possibly two Pastors. This recent article by the BBC indicates that the persecution Christians are facing today could be reaching 'alarming levels'. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-4814630
Proposition: Steps needed when reacting to violent attacks
So, after some discussion with other leaders, I have put down the following 7 suggestions on how we could react to such events. ...
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