Today’s Headlines:

HINDU EXTREMISTS ATTACK CHURCH IN NORTHERN STATE OF INDIA

SAUDI TEACHER SENTENCED TO 750 LASHES FOR ‘MOCKING RELIGION’

Today’s Top Stories:

HINDU EXTREMISTS ATTACK CHURCH IN NORTHERN STATE OF INDIA

Hindu extremists attacked 62-year-old Pastor Feroz Masih in northern India’s Himachal Pradesh state on Friday, Nov. 4, accusing him of “forcibly converting” Hindus and beating him severely. The attackers then forced Masih to sign a document saying he was willing to participate in a ceremony in which all 60 members of his church would be converted back to Hinduism. If the pastor and other church members refused to take part, the extremists threatened to burn them to death. The attack and beating occurred as Masih, a former Hindu, was traveling from the town of Baijnath to nearby Norha village to comfort a believer who was mourning the death of a family member. Masih and his son lead a local chapter of the Believers’ Church which meets in their house in Baijnath. About 60 believers gather for weekly services. (Compass)

SAUDI TEACHER SENTENCED TO 750 LASHES FOR ‘MOCKING RELIGION’

A court in Saudi Arabia sentenced a teacher to 40 months in jail and 750 lashes for “mocking religion” after he discussed the Bible and praised Jews, reported the Saudi newspaper, Al-Madina, Sunday, Nov. 13. Secondary schoolteacher Mohammad al-Harbi will be flogged in public after he was taken to court by his colleagues and students. He was charged with promoting a “dubious ideology, mocking religion, saying the Jews were right, discussing the gospel and preventing students from leaving class to wash for prayer.” A U.S. State Department report criticized Saudi Arabia last week, saying religious freedoms “are denied to all but those who adhere to the state-sanctioned version of Sunni Islam.” Harbi said he will appeal the verdict. (WorldWide Religious News/Reuters)

Five soldiers who were arrested after the brutal beheadings of three teenage girls in Sulawesi, Indonesia, Saturday, Oct. 29, have been released, said Glenn Penner of Voice of the Martyrs Canada. “We were disappointed to learn that those five individuals were released due to lack of evidence,” he said. “To this point we still have no idea if anyone is ever going to be held accountable.” Penner suspects the murders may not have been motivated as much by faith as they were by politics. “For militants, they would like to see [sectarian fighting] reignited, if for no other reason than it creates instability in Indonesia. These militants do not like the present government, and this is a way of creating instability in the country again.” Christians have recently become the targets of militant action. Two more high school girls were attacked Tuesday, Nov. 8, near a Pentecostal church in Poso. One died, the other is in critical condition after being shot at point-blank range. Hundreds of troops have been dispatched to secure this high-tension area, but the attacks show the danger from militant Islamic groups hasn’t lessened. Penner says even with the persecution, it hasn’t stopped evangelistic activity, nor has it stopped the church from steadily growing. (Mission Network News)