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July
28, 2004
We will
continue looking at The Church in the Empire, but
I want to share something with you that I read this past week that
struck me. I receive, among many of the other reports and
things that come my way, a report from a Brother named Jim
Waldron. Jim works with Christians, works with churches in
India, and he actually works under the oversight of the Main Street
congregation in Crossville, Tennessee. He sends out a monthly
report on activities and things that are going on in India, and I
always find it quite interesting to read those reports. But
there was something that struck me in a particular way when I was
reading his report at the end of last week when it came. I
just want to share this entire section with you, because I know
that you will find it, at once, troubling, but also
encouraging. And then, there is something that I hope you
will draw a conclusion about, as I did, as
well. This section of the report has a title [and Brother
Waldron’s report follows]:
RELIGIOUS TEACHER
ASSAULTED
Last month I told you of our
thanksgiving to God that a secular party had been returned to power
in India and the anti-conversion law had been repealed in Tamil
Nadu. It is difficult for us in America to realize the joy
that this has brought to the saints in that country. Yet,
that does not mean that sporadic persecutions will not occur.
Note this report [from a newspaper]:
Namakkal, Tamil Nadu, S. India, the
“Daily Thanthi,”June 13, 2004:
“A Christian teacher was assaulted and beaten (June
11th) in Paramathi, Velur district. Sustaining
severe injuries, he was admitted to the Namakkal government
hospital where he is undergoing treatment. The police report
stated: S. A. Samuel (age 40), a Christian leader, is a
resident of Ma-ra-va-pa-la-yam…. He has organized a
church of Christ in San-dhai-pet-tai, where he is
ministering. Also, he is in the practice of visiting his
members’ homes and praying. In this manner, on the day
of the incident, he visited Man-o-har’s home for
ministry. Afterwards, in the night, he went to the Paramathi,
Velur bus station. It has been reported that some persons
caught him, pushed him to the ground, beat him severely and kicked
him. Because of this, he was admitted to the hospital day
before yesterday, where he is undergoing treatment. The
police are investigating.”
The report continued:
“The religious teacher, S. A. Samuel, said, ‘I am
doing this ministry for the last six years. Yesterday (June,
the 11th), at 8:30 p.m., I boarded the bus to go to
Ma-ra-va-pa-la-yam. Suddenly, some people caught my shirt and
pulled me down (from the bus) and slapped me. When I turned
back, I saw more than fifteen men. They told me “You
should not do this ministry hereafter,” and they beat me and
kicked me. Because of this, I suffered injuries to my back
and hip. Some church members came and admitted me to the
hospital.’”
[Brother Waldron continues:]
Brother Samuel came to see me on June 24th just two days
after getting out of the hospital. He said that he had
baptized 30 people out of the village of
San-dhai-pet-tai—someone from almost every house. But
three men had opposed him and stirred up the fanatics. Those
who attacked him were wearing the saffron yellow head scarves that
are a sign of the anti-Christian cult. [John Phillis says,
“Here’s what I want you to notice”—]
Their major complaint was that the new Christians were
refusing to pay the dues that they formerly paid to the temple of
their god. Brother Samuel is a graduate of the Dindigul
Bible Institute (1998) and is supported through the efforts of
Brother P. R. Swamy of Bangalore. We are helping his wife to
start her own goat raising business. He illustrates the kind
of men we need your help in training. There are just now more
than 175 in the Dindigul school, let alone our other eleven
preacher training schools. “How shall they hear without
a preacher and how shall they preach except they be
sent?” [Romans 10:14-15:
“How, then, can they call on the One they have not
believed in? And how can they believe in the One of Whom they have
not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written,
‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good
News!’”] [John Phillis
says,] Does that [statement, Their major complaint was that
the new Christians were refusing to pay the dues that they formerly
paid to the temple of their god.] remind you of something
that we have talked about in this study so far? You remember
that we have talked extensively about the persecution that our
brethren in the 1st Century underwent. They were
persecuted for any number of reasons—among them was
this very same reason that we read about
here. Going all the way back to the 1st Century,
you remember we had talked about how that in the city of Ephesus,
because of Paul’s teaching and converting of people from
their paganism, their turning to Christ, their becoming obedient to
the Gospel, they were no longer purchasing the icons, the images
that were manufactured there by silver smiths to the goddess,
Diana. And a group of silver smiths led by one named
Demetrius caused a riot in Ephesus over that. We can read
about that in Acts, chapter 19.
And then, in
the later centuries, in the 2nd and 3rd
Centuries, when persecution was being brought so heavily against
Christians by Rome, we saw there that among the reasons given for
this very severe persecution being brought against Christians was
because they refused to participate any longer in the pagan
rituals, visiting the temples and doing the kinds of things that
were expected of them, and thus, they were persecuted.
Well, I thought
it was quite interesting to read here about what had happened to
Brother Samuel just a little over a month ago in India.
There’s a brother in Christ who was beaten,
who was told by this anti-Christian cult, “Don’t do
this anymore.” And one of things that they were upset
about was because those who had been converted were no longer
paying money to the pagan temples. Some things don’t
change, do they?
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