Indian Pastor and Missions Team Beaten by Mob in Goa
An Indian pastor and members of a team from Operation Mobilization (OM) India were savagely beaten by a mob on the evening of November 18 in a small town in the state of Goa, India, after showing a film about the life of Christ.

Jesus Freak Phenomenon
Bethany House announces the launching of Jesusfreaks.net, a Web site to challenge and inspire "Jesus freaks"of all ages and to promote prayer for the persecuted church worldwide. Learn about the best-selling Jesus Freaks books by dc Talk, including the most recent "Jesus Freaks, Volume 2: Stories of Revolutionaries Who Changed Their World--Fearing God, Not Man," that includes bios on Bonhoeffer, Luther, the Booths, Mother Teresa, Corrie ten Boom and more. Read book excerpts, discover the inspiration behind the books by dc Talk, watch a video interview with the band, sign up for an e-newsletter and order the books online. Find also a prayer map and many other useful resources for supporting the persecuted church on November 10, 2002, the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

More than 350 Churches forcibly closed in Vietnam
By the end of September, 354 of 412 churches had been forcibly disbanded in Dak Lak province alone. By mid October, about 50 Christian pastors and elders in this province had been arrested or had "disappeared." It is expected that the remaining 58 churches in the province will soon be closed. This latest move against churches in Dak Lak is the most severe persecution since 1975, when churches were closed and church leaders put in re-education camps for years. Local Dak Lak television is reported by many to have broadcast "Ceremonies of Voluntarily Renouncing Christianity" and has shown pictures of Christians "voluntarily" giving their Bibles and songbooks to be burned. "All the Christians I met greeted me with tears, asked me to pray with them and then hurried me on my way lest something untoward happen to me," said a recent visitor to the area. "Even some sympathetic government officials received me with tears, recognizing the overwhelming sadness of what is happening." He added, "Many of the churches in Vietnam are praying night and day for this 'national tragedy.' Please pass this sad news to churches overseas as well so that they may participate in earnest prayer, beseeching the Lord to deliver us from this distress.

Churches Around The World To Observe Day Of Prayer For Persecuted Church
Churches around the United States and the world will focus on support of suffering Christians on Sunday, Nov. 10, during the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP). On that day thousands of church congregations from all denominations will join in prayer for the Persecuted Church. IDOP is one of the largest prayer events in the world and has been observed since 1996. A total of 10 Christian agencies collaborate to sponsor the event. “In my many talks with persecuted Christians around the world, I always ask them what can we in the West do most to support them in their walk with the Lord,” states Terry Madison, president/CEO of Open Doors USA. “And . . . number one on the list is prayer. They want us to pray with them and for them. But not just one day a year!”

PGP 8.0 Beta Released
James Evans writes "With a release date seemingly scheduled in December, the new PGP Corporation has today released PGP 8.0 Beta. It features Smart Card functionality, Unicode support, Novell Groupwise support, among other things.

New Google News
Google has launched a news searching service. Although still in beta form, it pools over 4000 news sources, ranking them for freshness, credibility and popularity. Because ordinary webpages don't get into any search engine database very fast, this sort of ability to search for fresh news is highly useful. Mission executives needing the latest international news will appreciate this service.

Chinese Internet Censorship Extended to E-mails
As e-mails containing certain keywords have begun to bounce back to Chinese senders, activists have realized that Chinese government capabilities to restrict access to information on the Internet are considerably greater than they had previously assumed possible and represent a significant violation of personal privacy, reports a Hong Kong daily.

Religion News Blog
If you're interested in keeping up to date with news and developments from the world of Christian apologetics, the Religion News Blog (RNB) is a resource you'll want to visit regularly. Every day, news stories and events related to religions and cults around the world are updated to help Christian apologists, professionals and researchers keep current with religious news and happenings. The RNB even features a free religion news ticker you can add to your own Web site. Visit the RNB daily and keep current with worldwide religious news.

Persecution Project Intervenes to Rescue Displaced Christians
Persecution Project Foundation completed an emergency relief intervention in Western Upper Nile (W.U.N.) initiated on Sept. 1 in response to desperate appeals from church leaders. Persecution Project's emergency relief mission involved seven flights and the distribution of more than 70,000 pounds of lifesaving supplies for the new IDP's (internally displaced persons).

North Korea Tops Open Doors' World Watch List
For the first time, North Korea has replaced Saudi Arabia as the country where Christians are most severely persecuted, according to the "World Watch List" released on Aug. 12 by Open Doors. The semi-annual World Watch List ranks countries according to the level of persecution Christians face for following Jesus Christ. :: This Religion Today report is submitted for your persecution (Matthew 24:8) files.

Open Doors Offers Training for Persecuted Church Leaders
From ASSIST News Service -- Training Christian pastors to help lead and equip their congregations. That is happening all over the world thanks to Open Doors with Brother Andrew, a ministry to the Persecuted Church. Most pastors in the United States have ample opportunities to obtain the training and tools they need to lead effectively. But in many countries where Christians are being persecuted for their faith, church leaders struggle to get vital training in the Bible. :: "Delivering God's Word is critical, but backing it up with solid teaching and instruction is vital in supporting and strengthening the Church," says Open Doors USA President Terry Madison. "Persecuted pastors and church leaders need to be equipped with the right resources to lead their congregations. They need instruction so they can teach others. This year Open Doors is training over 100,000 pastors and lay leaders in countries like Sudan, China and India and all over the world." :: In several African countries, a course known as the Timothy Training Institute is being used to train pastors. It is based on 2 Timothy 2:2 which instructs us to entrust Biblical truth to "faithful men who will be able to teach others also." Many of the students who have completed the course, which is held for one week each month 10 months out of the year, are now tutoring others. :: Currently working in 60 countries with 23 international offices and over 300 staff worldwide, Open Doors with Brother Andrew delivers Bibles and other study materials, provides literacy training and pastoral training and advocates on behalf of those who are persecuted for their faith in Christ Jesus. Open Doors will celebrate 50 years of ministry in 2005. To partner with Open Doors call 949-752-6600, go to its USA web site at www.opendoorsusa.org or write Open Doors with Brother Andrew, PO Box 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799.

China Reported To Crack Down On Internet Dissent
China's government is using old-style crackdowns and new-fangled cyber-tactics to stifle dissent on the Internet, the Rand think tank reported on Monday. :: This Reuters report is submitted for your persecution (Matthew 24:8) files.

Philippines Seeks to Rescue Hostages
AP reports the Philippine military flew its U.S.-trained counterterrorism unit to a southern island Saturday to help rescue four captive Jehovah's Witnesses.

Guerrillas Behead Two Preachers in Philippines
According to this AP report, Muslim guerrillas in the Philippines have beheaded two Christian preachers in a violent response to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's claim that the rebels were on the run and almost defeated.

Raising Awareness of Persecution
It's difficult for many Christians--especially in the West, where full-scale religious persecution is not a pervasive problem--to realize that for many believers around the world, the decision to follow Christ often comes at great cost. Persecution.org is a non-profit organization devoted to tracking and reporting on incidents of persecution around the globe. Among other features at their Web site is a comprehensive list of countries where Christians are persecuted for their faith, along with facts about each nation and suggestions for how you can help spread the word about religious persecution. If you have an interest in missions or in the plight of the worldwide Christian church, this site will prove useful and informative. Source: Internet For Christians

Pakistan's Christians Plan Protest
Pakistan's religious minorities--notably Christians--plan a protest Thursday against the growing number of attacks and other rights violations targeted at the country's Christian population.

Fearing More Attacks on Christians, Pakistan Seeks Militants
Pakistani officials are searching for members of an Islamic militant group who may be planning more attacks on Christian targets in Pakistan. :: This New York Times report highlights persecution in Pakistan.

The Bible and the Apocalypse
Time Magazine is devoting a cover story to Bible prophecy. It is not unusual for Time to consider religious matters, they have done previous cover stories on prayer, on Jesus and on Biblical archaeology. Of the national news magazines, I would say that Time has shown the most interest, and the most balance, in covering religious issues. So, I heartily encourage you to read this article while keeping in mind that it is from mainstream media. Still, God is very cool to use this forum to give people a heads-up on events.

For Chinese Missionaries
On Monday, China closed all the Internet cafes in Beijing, the capital of China. There was a deadly fire over the weekend in one Internet cafe, and the communist government has used that as an excuse to close all of them down. As you may know, Internet use in China is heavily regulated, monitored and censored and now public access is virtually cut off in that city. It is not a country with a lot of personal computer owners, after all. And, even those who have the luxury of a private PC must face the net filtering imposed on ISPs by the central government which delete politically suspect sites, including non-registered religious sites. However, as with anything, there are ways around Internet filtering. A company called Peacefire.org offers free downloads and details methods for circumventing filtering software. It may be of use for those operating in closed societies.

Burnham Bulletin: Gracia Doing Well
In an interview given just before she boarded a plane to return to the United States, Gracia Burnham gave the following message to those who have been praying for Martin and her: "We want to thank each and every one of you for every time you remembered us in prayer. We needed every single prayer you said for us during our ordeal in the jungle." She also thanked the military men who risked their lives to rescue her and Martin.

Vietnam: 14 Tribal Pastors Sent to Undisclosed Prison
A confidential contact told Christian Aid Monday that 14 Vietnamese pastors were arrested in that country's Central Highlands in the last two weeks. The exact location of these pastors is not certain. This brings to 26 the known number of Christian pastors laboring in Vietnam's rural prison system, including 12 who remain in the notorious brick kilns in the North.