Across the world, Christians are being attacked, displaced, imprisoned and killed because of their faith. This reality sits uneasily beside the image many hold of Christianity as culturally dominant or politically powerful. Yet for millions of believers—especially in parts of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East—Christian identity is not a source of privilege, of danger.
According to the World Watch List 2025 published by Open Doors International, more than 380 million Christians experienced high levels of persecution or discrimination in 2024, the highest number ever recorded. This persecution ranges from social exclusion and legal harassment to extreme violence. During the same reporting period, 4,476 Christians were killed for faith-related reasons worldwide, a figure that reflects only verified cases and likely undercounts the true scale of violence.
Nigeria remains the most lethal context for Christians. In 2024 alone, over 3,100 Christians were killed, accounting for the majority of global faith-based Christian deaths. Armed groups—including Islamist extremists, militias, and criminal networks—have repeatedly targeted Christian villages, churches and clergy.
Last June, the village of Yelwata in Nigeria’s Middle Belt witnessed a mass killing, where between 100 and 200 civilians were reportedly murdered, forcing thousands to flee their homes.
The drivers of violence in Nigeria are complex, involving poverty, land disputes, weak governance and insurgency. Yet repeated documentation shows Christian communities are often targeted during worship or church gatherings, raising serious concerns about violence shaped by religious identity rather than incidental conflict. Central Africa offers another devastating example.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, armed groups affiliated with the Allied Democratic Forces—linked to the Islamic State—have carried out repeated attacks on Christian civilians. This past July, a Catholic church in Komanda was attacked during a night vigil, killing dozens of worshippers, including women and children. While the country remains engulfed in broader conflict, the deliberate targeting of a church underscores how religious identity can mark communities for violence.
In the Middle East, ancient Christian communities continue to shrink under pressure from war, authoritarian rule and sectarian hostility. Countries such as Yemen and Libya rank among the most dangerous places in the world to practice Christianity openly. In Syria and Iraq, communities that survived centuries of upheaval have been hollowed out within a single generation, threatening the disappearance of some of the world’s oldest Christian traditions.
Asia presents a different, but equally troubling, picture. In India, Christians—who make up a small minority—have faced rising hostility linked to anti-conversion laws and mob intimidation. In 2024, more than 1,600 Christians were detained or arrested, often following accusations related to worship or religious activity.
In Pakistan, blasphemy laws continue to justify prolonged imprisonment and mob violence against Christian individuals and families.
In authoritarian contexts such as North Korea and Eritrea, Christianity is effectively criminalized. Believers are forced to worship in secret, with discovery leading to imprisonment, forced labor, or death. These cases show persecution is not confined to war zones but is often embedded in legal and political systems.
Beyond killings, the scale of suffering is vast. Tens of thousands of Christians worldwide are physically assaulted, threatened, or subjected to psychological abuse each year, while churches are burned, closed, or confiscated. Millions have been displaced, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where religious violence intersects with political instability.
These realities raise uncomfortable questions for the global church. Why does such widespread suffering often receive limited sustained attention, especially from Christian institutions in the West? Why are responses frequently confined to brief statements or private concern rather than consistent public advocacy?
Some hesitation may stem from Christianity’s association with power in Western contexts. Speaking about persecuted Christians can feel complicated where the faith is seen as dominant.
Yet defending religious freedom for Christians does not diminish the suffering of others. It strengthens the broader struggle for human dignity and freedom of belief for all.
Theologically, silence is especially troubling. The gospel centers the persecuted and the forgotten.
Jesus himself was executed by the state, abandoned by institutions, and silenced by violence. The early church survived not through proximity to power but through costly witness and solidarity.
Prayer and pastoral care matter. But when hundreds of millions live under persecution, and thousands are killed each year, quiet concern is not enough.
Public faith demands public witness. When Christians are killed for their faith, indifference is not humility. It is absence.
A church committed to justice must find its voice, because where faith is criminalized, human dignity itself is under attack.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Jerome Enriquez John is an author and human-rights advocate whose work appears in Roy’s Reports, Youth Ki Awaaz, Healed Nations, and Christian Writers. He has published multiple books on Amazon and is known for commentary that blends rigorous research with a commitment to justice and marginalized communities.
