Man’s inhumanity against man is as old as time itself. The strong persecute the weak. The powerful oppress the powerless. Countless numbers of people have lost their lives for no other reason than the prejudices and whims of tyrants. Today, entire groups of people are being dehumanized, persecuted, and annihilated simply because of their ethnicity, or their religious or political beliefs, in ways that are reminiscent of the Holocaust.

This century alone has seen the death of millions of innocents at the hands of despots like Stalin, Lenin, Hitler, and Hussein. Today, 2.7 billion people are living in nations where freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom of association are foreign concepts of a reality they do not know or understand.

Although Christians have always suffered persecution, nearly two-thirds of all Christians today suffer some form of persecution for their faith in Christ. Some of the worst nations form the border of this commentary.

In Saudi Arabia a person could face arrest if they are found involved in a Christian worship service. The Saudis have a religious police called muttawa that search for Christian activity, opening doors of private homes if more than a few cars are parked outside. The Saudi government offers a $10,000 reward to anyone who discovers a house church.

Many Islamic countries have laws on the books that make it illegal for Christians to discuss their faith with a Muslim, calling it "blasphemy against Mohammed." The punishment for violating these laws is often death. In Pakistan, law 295c is one such law. Some charged with violating this law have been killed by mobs even after being acquitted. Violence against Christians in Pakistan is widespread. In February 1997, armed thugs attacked and burned the Christian villages of Shanti Nagar and Khanewal, leaving 15,000 people homeless. Tom White, director of Voice of the Martyrs, personally witnessed Christians awaiting death by hanging in Sargodha, Pakistan, in 1994.

Violence against Christians is rampant on the continent of Africa. In the Sudan, the Popular Defense Force is making constant raids of villages. The heavily armed forces move through Christian villages, burning and looting. The people are dragged into the streets. The raiders kill the men, sever the women’s breasts to eliminate their ability to nurse, and the children are forced into slavery. The girls, even the very young, are often forced into sexual slavery. Through drought, famine, and this mass slaughter, two million have died in the Sudan since the late 1980’s. In the Sudan, a human being can be purchased for $100-$500.

Christian persecution is growing. More Christians are persecuted and martyred for their faith in this century than all previous centuries combined. Over 160,000 were killed last year alone. Yet, the Church in America is strangely silent as Christian brothers and sisters are persecuted.

This summer, thousands will face jail, enslavement, and death while we water-ski, sunbathe, and barbecue. The main stream media will be silent. They were silent while North Korean, Kim Il Sung, ordered the death of Christians who were slowly run over, feet first, by steam rollers because they would not renounce their faith.

In the absence of political expedience, the politicians will be silent. They were silent when the Chinese government began violently enforcing its one child policy. They were silent as the barges carried tens of thousands of the slaughtered in Rwanda down river for disposal. How can the choice be made to let these die, but fight to save others? How do we impose sanctions, against one oppressive regime or drop bombs, and offer Most Favored Nation Status to another? In the secular world it always is decided on the basis of economics and politics.