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The Great Commission
The headlines we never see
By Frank Decker

I can hardly summon a more tranquil memory. I am perched on the rooftop patio of the Naik family home in eastern India as the aroma of ginger tea wafts from my cup. Watching the sunrise over the distant hills at the other end of the valley has become part of my early morning routine during this trip in which I am speaking at pastors’ conferences. Far from the rush-hour traffic of Atlanta, I think about how life seems so peaceful and uncomplicated as I observe the neighbors using ancient, non-mechanized methods to harvest their rice.

That was two years ago. Today, that peacefulness has been shattered and the home that holds those memories is now in ruins, burned by an angry mob. This house is among literally thousands that have been destroyed in recent sectarian violence in the Orissa state. While religious hostilities are not unknown in Orissa—this is the region where Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two young sons were burned to death in 1999—this recent aggression against Christians began in late August. It started after an outspoken Hindu leader, Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati, was gunned down along with four of his followers. Despite the fact that most reports indicate the murders were perpetrated by Maoist extremists, the result has been a backlash against Christians by angry Hindus. Saraswati was an outspoken critic of the Church, and especially of Hindus who had converted to Christianity. Thus, it has been assumed by his supporters that Christians were responsible for his killing.

The backlash against Christians has been brutal. Not only have over 4,000 houses been destroyed, Christian-owned shops have been torched and looted, and over 100 churches in the region have been vandalized or burned. In one report a paralyzed man was unable to escape his burning house and was killed. Several Christian orphanages have been torched and in one instance a young woman was burned alive after she was thrown inside the building when she tried to protect the children. A nun is among several women who have been gang raped, and another nun was burned alive.

Many believers have been threatened with death if they did not renounce Christ. One tactic that has been used several times is to pull a Christian off of his motorcycle, douse him in his own gasoline, and then set him on fire.

As of this writing in late September, the death toll is 45; Christian communities in about 350 villages have been attacked, and the number of people who have fled their homes to escape the violence is more than 40,000. I continue to receive new reports of violence on a daily basis.

Perhaps you have the same pit in your stomach as I have had while I have received these accounts over the past month. Perhaps you are also wondering why we hear few, if any, reports about events such as these in the American news media. Indeed, if I didn’t have friends who were close to the situation or know which esoteric websites to consult, I doubt if I would have heard much about this unrest. Instead, I turn on my television or open the paper, and what is in the headlines? Maybe it’s the latest rhetoric surrounding the forthcoming election or gloomy news about the economy with dire forecasts concerning our future prosperity. Perhaps it’s the war in Iraq or the latest trial of O.J. Simpson. As Americans, we may take pride in being a nation that is concerned about others, but it seems we rarely hear news from other lands unless it impacts our economy, while much of our domestic news is about celebrities.

How I wish we could—with neither bias nor ambiguity—clearly see the world through the eyes of heaven rather than through our various media sources. We would be more aware of the untold human suffering that takes place in unknown places, yet we would also hear so many stories of the faithful and see the faces of those who serve Christ in obscurity. We would hear of miracles and faith. And we would know the names of the martyrs.

This is a portentous season. In November we will elect the one whom we think will be the best choice for our country. Later in the month we will gather around a feast and thank God for our blessings. And in December we will remember that some shepherds in a field heard the angels’ proclamation of, “on earth, peace….” Nonetheless, even today, one may hear a voice from above while the person next to him says it was only thunder.

As much as we may long for a view of the world from God’s eyes, in this age we rely only on glimpses. Last week in response to the unrest in India, Christian leaders in Orissa declared a day of prayer and fasting as a peaceful response to the violence. One leader declared it “the sign of a new era,” encouraging Christians to continue to “respond to the violence with nonviolence, following the teaching of Jesus.”

That didn’t make the headlines. But then again, how often does our news sources report that which is of greatest significance?



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