Our world has over 4,200 religions and beliefs in total. The major religions (calculated by followers) are Christianity, Islam, and "non-religious". While Christians try to spread the word of God and share the Gospel, they face hardships such as religious persecution from other religions. Let's take a look at some countries where Christians are persecuted the most.
Ruled by a Communist dictatorship government, Christian persecution in North Korea reached the highest rank on earth. As an atheist/tradition belief country, no room was left for another religion to root. North Korea is an isolated country where no news can easily leave or enter the country. Although it is difficult to spread Christianity through its strict borders, several brave Christians risk their lives to spread the good news about Jesus. If tourism in North Korea is very difficult, spreading the Gospel in Korea is almost impossible. Tourism in North Korea is allowed but there are restrictions and guided tour to lead you through the trip. They never allow you to see the "real" North Korea, but only the good and prosperous areas were seen. From my point of view in spreading the Gospel in North Korea, some visitors probably left the tours and ran elsewhere, risking their lives for the Koreans. Through underground Christians and illegal doings, small amount of North Korea's population has heard of Jesus and became devout Christians.
News of Christianity spreading in North Korea is an exciting topic. But without the Bible, how can they further learn and understand God? Bibles in North Korea is illegal and prohibited. Several organizations smuggle Bibles into North Korea through bribery, taking the risk of harsh consequences if they were caught (consequences include torturing, beating, executing, etc).
According to World Watch List, 50,000-70,000 Christians were imprisoned in labor camps. Anyone found involved in illegal and secret religious activity may be arrested, disappeared, tortured, or publicly executed.
Stories of Victims:
Kim Tae Jin - a runaway from North Korea and curretly lives in Seoul
"Freedom of choice is unknown in North Korea" As a North Korean, they were told to do but never chose to . He believes North Koreans never knew what is freedom because they never get the chance to choose. Kim wants to see more of the world, so he flees to China where he heard about Jesus Christ and read his first Bible. In four months, he was arrested and deported back to North Korea, and was sent to the Yodok labor camp. Life was miserable in these labor camps. They were tortured, beaten, threatened. Working was their life, with thin blankets at night and little food during day. "Anyone captured trying to escape was publicly executed. Prisoners were treated worse than cattle." One day, a Christian approaches Kim in Yodok and he was told to confess his sins. Kim was too afraid to talk about God, recalling a good friend of his that almost died in the hands of North Korean soldiers. Kim eventually escaped again on April 10, 1992 to China. He got baptized in China and now lives in South Korea. "My personal message is this, show an interest in my country. Pray for it. We need your support."
- prayer
For more information about North Korea, you can watch "Seoul Train"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_religions_and_spiritual_traditions
http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html
http://www.worldwatchlist.us/world-watch-list-countries/north-korea/
http://www.billionbibles.org/north-korea/north-korea-bible.html
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