Sunday, January 29, 2006

Bible Students Beaten to Near Death

01/28/2006: Three Gospel for Asia Bible college students were severely beaten, threatened with death and their literature burned while witnessing in Bihar state during India's annual Republic Day celebration.

The first-year students, Michel, Jaipal and Balkishore, were visiting homes in a village near Purnia when they were attacked by a group of anti-Christian militants. The radical Hindus beat the students, then took them to a youth hostel where they tied them to a tree and encouraged others in the hostel to urinate on them.

When the hostel residents hesitated, the militant youth beat the Bible students with bamboo sticks and kicked them before they were rescued by the residents.

Amid the celebration of India's independence from Britain, the radicals accused the Christians of being "agents for the British," and set fire to all of their literature.

"If you ever come again to our area, we will burn you like we burned these books," they warned the Bible students.

When the victims finally reached their Bible college that evening, they were described as "half dead" by their teacher. After being treated at a local hospital, the three returned to the school, their faces still swollen and their joints aching from the assault.

GFA President K.P. Yohannan asks Christians around the world to pray that the Lord will heal these courageous students, and that those who attacked them will come to know the love of Jesus instead of the fear that drives their blind hate for the Gospel.

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