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Hindu activists threaten Christian pastors in India

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Hindu activists threaten Christian pastors in India

One pastor in Chhattisgarh says his church members are very frightened and feel they are being targeted by extremists.

Hindu activists in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh have disrupted a prayer service and threatened two Christian pastors in the space of three days for alleged religious conversion.

In the first incident on July 4, Pastor Firoz Bagh was conducting a prayer service at his house in Raipur, the state capital, when 30-40 Hindus surrounded the house and started shouting anti-Christian slogans.

Police took the pastor into custody but released him after a few hours after the intervention of church leaders.

On July 7, Pastor Ramesh Manikpur of Sarora Gogaon was resting at his house in the evening when a Hindu group wrote a slogan hailing Hindu gods on his boundary wall.

“They accused me of religious conversion and even slapped my son. They were around 100 and passing through our lane in a religious procession,” Pastor Manikpur told UCA News.

Pastor Moses Logan, president of the Chhattisgarh State Christian Welfare Society, told UCA News that they had faced similar situations in the state but things were brought under control after the intervention of the administration.

The mob say they will not allow him to conduct any prayer service in the area in near future

“It is matter of concern and worry for us as some fanatic group members take us for granted and don’t even hesitate to harass and attack us in the name of religious conversion, which is not true,” he said.

“I spoke with Pastor Bagh and he said he has to visit the police station every other day for the investigation. He is very much worried for his family and his faithful. I hope the investigation is over soon.”

Pastor Logan said Pastor Bagh told him that after police took him to the police station, a mob even surrounded the police station and started shouting anti-Christian slogans and accusing him of forced conversions.

“The mob say they will not allow him to conduct any prayer service in the area in near future,” Pastor Logan said.

Pastor Bagh told Asia News that he has been in the ministry for 20 years with the St. Thomas Evangelical Mission, a registered organization.

“I have preached for the last two decades in a rented room and just two years ago I bought this house. Several local people come here for prayer services as it is open to all without any discrimination,” he said.

“My church members are very frightened and feel they are being targeted by extremists.”

When the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in power in the state from 2003, it enacted the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act, 2006, which provides that anyone who wants to convert must seek permission from the district magistrate at least 30 days in advance.

Hindu nationalists often accuse Christians of using force and surreptitious tactics in pursuing conversions

The district collector has the power to allow conversion only if threats or allurements have not been offered.

Anybody found guilty under the law is liable to imprisonment for up to three years and a fine of up to 20,000 rupees (US$270).

However, many critics say that after the BJP came to power in New Delhi in 2014, attacks on minorities have increased.

Hindu nationalists often accuse Christians of using force and surreptitious tactics in pursuing conversions, often storming into villages and leading reconversion ceremonies in which Christians are compelled to perform Hindu rituals.

Chhattisgarh is India’s most densely Hindu state with 98.3 percent of its 23 million people being Hindu. Muslims account for 1 percent, while Christians, mostly tribal people, account for 0.7 percent.

SOURCE: UCA NEWS

Christian in Algeria Sentenced to Prison, Heavy Fine

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Christian in Algeria Sentenced to Prison, Heavy Fine

A judge in Algeria on Thursday (July 8) sentenced a Christian to six months in prison and fine of 100,000 dinars (US$740) for allegedly accepting unauthorized donations to spread Christianity, the convert from Islam said.

Ahmed Beghal (name changed for security reasons) received the sentence at a court hearing in Khemis Meliana, in Ain-Defla Province, about 145 kilometers (90 miles) southwest of Algiers. He denies the charge and says related allegations – distributing Bibles, printing and distributing Christian literature and thus “shaking the faith of a Muslim” – are also all false.

“Accusations were brought against me by the National Gendarmerie to the court in a false and forged report,” Beghal told Morning Star News, adding that he has suffered emotionally “because of this injustice and pitfalls on the part of my family, society, court and security.”

Beghal’s wife and children left him in 2017 because of his conversion to Christianity, and he said he has faced persecution from others.

“I am going through a very difficult stage through these difficult circumstances, and direct public persecution,” Beghal said. “There is injustice towards me in my personal and social life.”

He said his lawyer, Maitre Kebatti, did not appear at court for the sentencing nor at a June 30 hearing. Beghal said he was forced to sign Gendarmerie report without reading it, and that the charges were based on this report.

Police detained Beghal on April 17 for no reason, telling him only that “there are many rumors and accusations circulating about you – you are very active, it seems,” according to Beghal. After officers questioned him, they took him to his home to search it.

The charges were based on Algeria’s 2006 law regulating non-Muslim worship, known as Law 03/06, which criminalizes any activity “which aim to undermine the faith of a Muslim.” Punishment can range from two to five years in prison and fines of 500,000 to 1 million Algerian dinars (US$3,745 to US$7,490).

In addition, Beghal said, National Gendarmerie in Oued Seli, Chlef Province falsely accused him of threatening his ex-wife and daughters, resulting in an interrogation for 15 hours and a search of his home. Police also arrested him at a café in Khemis-Miliana, Ain Defla Province, without cause and interrogated him for three hours, he said.

Beghal has eight days to appeal the sentence and said he plans to do so.

Islam is the state religion in the 99-percent Muslim country. Since 2000, thousands of Algerian Muslims have put their faith in Christ. Algerian officials estimate the number of Christians at 50,000, but others say it could be twice that number.

Algeria ranked 24th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2021 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, up from 42nd place in 2018.

SOURCE: CHRISTIAN HEADLINES

Italian bishops ask all to pray for migrants crossing the sea

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Italian bishops ask all to pray for migrants crossing the sea

With migrants and refugees continuing to arrive in Italy by sea and with others drowning in the Mediterranean while making the attempt, the Italian bishops have asked parishes throughout the country to add a special prayer for migrants to their liturgies July 11.

Calling them “sailors in search of a future of hope,” the prayer asks God to bless and “accompany all of them through the waves of earthly existence toward the port of your kingdom.”

“To the hearts of their families, who may never know for certain what has happened to their loved ones, may God whisper words of consolation and comfort,” the prayer says.

“May the Holy Spirit be upon the waters, so that they may be a source of life and not a place of burial,” it continues.

According to the U.N. Refugee Agency’s “operational data portal,” 37,853 migrants and refugees arrived in Europe by sea from Jan. 1 to July 6. Most of the migrants first made landfall in Italy, Spain or Greece.

The portal also estimated that 883 migrants and refugees attempting the sea crossing were “dead and missing” so far in 2021.

The prayer written by the bishops’ conference asks God to enlighten those who govern so that the Mediterranean would “be a bridge between the shores of the earth, an ocean of peace” and the setting for a true experience of the connections between people and cultures.

July 11 is the feast of St. Benedict, one of the patron saints of Europe.

SOURCE: UCA NEWS

First Christians Sentenced to Prison under New Law in Iran

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First Christians Sentenced to Prison under New Law in Iran

The first Christians to be punished under a newly amended law in Iran aimed at halting the growth of Christianity and other religious groups were sentenced to five years in prison for spreading “propaganda” against Islam after they refused to renounce Christ, sources said.

Amin Khaki, Milad Goudarzi and Alireza Nourmohammadi, all converts from Islam, were sentenced under Article 500 of Iran’s newly amended penal code, which states that “any deviant education or propaganda that contradicts or interferes with the sacred Sharia [Islamic law] will be severely punished.”

Members of the Church of Iran, the three men were informed on June 26 that they had each been given the maximum prison sentence allowable under the amended article and also fined 40 million tomans (US$1,600). Another member of the church, Hamet Ashouri, was told the same day that his appeal of a 10-month prison sentence on charges of “propaganda against the regime” had been denied. Ashouri is also a convert from Islam.

The three men have 20 days to appeal their verdict. Ashouri was given 10 days to report to Karaj Central Prison to start his sentence.

Along with increased prison terms, the law allows the state to take away certain basic rights, such as voting, for as long as 15 years. Religious freedom activists warned that the amendment, which was first proposed in 2020 and passed by parliament on Jan. 13, could be used to attack religious dissidents and minority groups. The amendment was signed into law by then-President Hassan Rouhani on Feb. 18 and went into effect on March 5.

An analyst for advocacy group Middle East Concern (MEC) said the sentence is the first sign of how the newly amended penal code may be used.

“We are still waiting to see how the amendments are going to be applied, and now we have the first indication with Amin, Milad and Alireza’s sentences,” said the analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Of course, it is up to the prosecutor, who is influenced by Iranian intelligence, to decide whether the charges are propaganda (Article 500) or action against the Islamic State (Articles 498, 499). What we can say is that someone convicted under Article 500 now faces a maximum jail term of five years rather than a typical term of six months that many Christians received previously.”

The recent election of Ebrahim Raisi, chief justice of Iran, to the presidency, “would appear to indicate that Iran will continue to follow a hard line when it comes to upholding Islamic values,” the analyst said. “His history suggests that we should not expect to see moderation or toleration shown to anyone who ‘deviates’ from Islamic revolutionary aims, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that Christian converts will be a primary focus for correction. The amendments to Articles 499 and 500 were made under his watch as head of the judiciary, of course.”

On Nov. 11, 2020, Iranian intelligence agents in Fardis raided the homes of the three Christians and those of other unidentified converts. No one was arrested during the raids, but the agents seized Bibles, cell phones and computers and ordered the group to stop all Christian activities.

Khaki, Goudarzi, Nourmohammadi and the other members of the Fardis group stood firm and refused to stop pursuing their faith, and on May 5, the three Christians were charged under the amended Article 500. They were each ordered to report to the police every week for six months and released on a 250 million toman (US$9,940) bail.

On June 21, the three men appeared in the 4th Branch of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj to stand trial. The judge, Mehdi Zeinali, denied them access to their attorney, and the defendants had to represent themselves, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW). Zeinali claimed their lawyer had not been properly registered. The hearing lasted less than an hour.

The three Christians will appeal the decision, according to human rights groups following the case.

This is not the first time that the three members of the Fardis group have been imprisoned for their faith; all had served time in prison on charges of “propaganda against the state.” Khaki, the last to be freed, was conditionally released on March 2, 2020 because of a COVID-19 outbreak in the Karaj Central Prison. COVID-19 levels in the prison to which he and others have been ordered to return is not publicly known.

Ashouri was arrested in Karaj on Feb. 23, 2019, and his home was raided by security agents who confiscated Bibles, Christian literature and a computer. He was detained for 12 days. Officials held Ashouri in solitary confinement for 10 days. He was beaten and offered bribes to
become an informant, which he refused, according to human rights group Article Eighteen.

Hamed was forced to undergo Islamic “re-education,” but when he quit after four sessions, charges were filed against him for “propaganda against the regime.” On March 7, Hamed was summoned to Karaj Revolutionary Court to stand trial.

Iran was ranked eighth on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2021 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian.

SOURCE: CHRISTIAN HEADLINES NEWS

Pastor in Northern India Killed for His Faith, Sources Say

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Pastor in Northern India Killed for His Faith, Sources Say

A suspected criminal recently released on bail in northern India killed a pastor on Wednesday (June 30) for sharing the “love and forgiveness of Christ” with him, sources said.

Sonu Kashyap, a Hindu of Sangoi village in Karnal District, Haryana state, attacked pastor Vinod Kumar with a wooden roof truss at about 8 p.m., sources said.

After leading online worship at his house church that evening, the pastor received a call from Kashyap’s brother to visit a sick villager and was attacked as he was about to leave the ill person’s home, Pastor Kumar’s wife said. Sunita Kumar said Kashyap was waiting in ambush as her husband was about to start his motorbike.

“He attacked Vinod unaware from behind,” she told Morning Star News. “He hit him hard on his head three times even after he fell from the motorbike. He hit him till his skull broke open.”

Senior Pastor Sompal Kalre, the slain church leader’s mentor who led him to Christ 25 years ago, said neighbors found Kashyap standing with the wooden beam in his hand as Pastor Kumar lay dead. They immediately informed police.

“But before the police arrived, the villagers caught hold of Sonu and started hitting him,” Pastor Kalre said. “The police arrived in time and rescued Sonu from the hands of the angry villagers, or else the mob would have killed him.”

They took the pastor’s body to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Pastor Kumar was a Hindu before putting his faith in Christ. While police have made only terse mention of “animosity” as a motive for the killing, Sunita Kumar said the pastor had been talking about God with Kashyap for two-and-a-half months, and that she believed this upset him.

Kashyap would occasionally visit Pastor Kumar in his shop, where the Christian leader would talk about God’s love, forgiveness, and His saving grace, Sunita Kumar said.

“Kashyap had also visited our home to get himself prayed for,” she said, adding that Kashyap had requested the pastor pray for his deliverance from drug addiction. “I do not know what came upon him that he took such a drastic step of killing Vinod so brutally.”

Station Head Officer Baljeet Singh of Sadar police station told Morning Star News that the motive for the killing “was some trivial animosity, and further interrogation is underway,” and that he could not comment further.

Sunita Kumar noted that police have also charged Kashyap’s father and brother for “concealing the plan and thus being partakers in the same.”

“It was a well-planned murder,” she told Morning Star News. “He received a call from Sonu’s brother, who called him there to check on a sick patient, while Sonu was ready to attack Vinod.”

Chandigarh pastor and mentor Reji K. George said police also cited “old animosity” as a motive, but that he saw the attack as a clear case of anti-Christian persecution.

“In fact, the villagers and the police entered into an argument when the police declared that it was because of personal animosity that Sonu Kashyap killed Pastor Vinod,” Pastor George told Morning Star News. “The villagers retaliated and claimed that it was false.”

Kashyap has a reputation as a criminal with three court cases pending against him, Pastor Kalre said.

After police arrested Kashyap and registered a First Information Report at Sadar police station in Karnal, eight miles from Sangoi, a court remanded Kashyap to jail for two weeks, Singh said.

Pastor Kalre said Pastor Kumar’s father and brothers cremated him the same day according to Hindu rituals, as they are all Hindus. He was 42.

Pastor Kumar is also survived by an 11-year-old daughter.

‘NO ENEMIES’

Pastor Kumar was the only Christian in his family. His parents and four brothers were upset with him for following Christ, Sunita Kumar said.

“Vinod was the second follower of Christ in the village, after Pastor Sompal, and was unmarried then,” she said. “He has faced opposition many times from his family and the villagers, but one could not imagine that something like this would happen with him.”

After deciding to follow Christ, Pastor Kumar received training at a Bible college in Rewari and went back to his native Sangoi to minister there.

Local leaders and the entire village respected him, said village chief Angrez Singh Saini. He spoke of how gentle Pastor Kumar was, saying he never entered into the slightest scuffle with anyone.

“He has a good testimony and name here,” Saini said. “He was serving humanity. His life was such that he wronged nobody, nor did anybody dislike him.”

Saini said villagers addressed Pastor Kumar, a Registered Medical Practitioner, as “doctor.”

“Doctor was so humble that he went home to home treating the sick, and if someone did not have money to pay him, he would treat the patient free of cost,” he said.

Sunita Kumar was in shock at how someone could kill a man like her husband.

“He had no enemies,” she said. “The entire village was at his cremation, and they all wept for him.”

Pastor Kalre said 700 to 800 people attended the pastor’s cremation ceremony. Besides the fellowship he began in his village in 1999, Pastor Kumar ministered in 18 villages, and families from these villages attended the church that met in his house.

Sunita Kumar said she will continue his work.

“I have resolved to carry on the work my husband was doing, and I want to live his dream out,” she said. “Vinod became a martyr for his faith, and I too will die for my faith.”

The hostile tone of the National Democratic Alliance government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, against non-Hindus, has emboldened Hindu extremists in several parts of the country to attack Christians since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took power in May 2014, religious rights advocates say.

India ranked 10th on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2021 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, as it was in 2020. The country was 31st in 2013, but its position worsened after Modi came to power.

SOURCE: CHRISTIAN HEADLINES

Jailed Canadian Pastor Tim Stephens Released: ‘Today Is a Very Thankful Day’

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Jailed Canadian Pastor Tim Stephens Released: ‘Today Is a Very Thankful Day’

Tim Stephens, the latest Canadian pastor to be arrested in Calgary, Alberta, was released from jail Thursday after being arrested for leading outdoor church services.

The Fairview Baptist Church pastor was arrested after police in a helicopter discovered where Stephens was holding worship services. Soon thereafter, law enforcement officers showed up at Stephens’ home and arrested him as his onlooking children cried.

Initially, Stephens was slated to remain behind bars at the Calgary Remand Centre until at least July 12, but plans changed when the court order under which the minister had been arrested was rescinded July 1.

Alberta has lifted most of its pandemic restrictions as it moves into “Stage 3” of its mandates, according to the Edmonton Journal.

Rebel News, a conservative outlet based in Canada, filmed Stephens’ release.

“Today is a very thankful day,” the pastor told Rebel News. “I’m thankful that the restrictions are done and rescinded, including the court orders that go along with that.”

Stephens went on to express gratitude for the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, which is representing him.

“[M]ost of all, I’m thankful for God,” he said. “I’m thankful that He’s built His church, that He’s sustained our church at Fairview Baptist Church. I’m thankful that He strengthened me, my wife, and our family, and that, through this, people have come to know the saving love of the Lord Jesus Christ. People have been strengthened in this country and around the world, and so, for these many reasons, I’m thankful.”

SOURCE: CBN NEWS

Woman Beaten, Poisoned by Father and Relatives in Uganda After Converting to Christianity

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Woman Beaten, Poisoned by Father and Relatives in Uganda After Converting to Christianity

A woman in eastern Uganda, who recently converted to Christianity, is recovering in the hospital after her Muslim father and family members attacked her and forced her to drink poison.

Hajat Habiiba Namuwaya, 38, fled her home in Namakoko village and sought refuge at her pastor’s house after finding out that her father had tracked her down.  

“My mother warned me that the family was planning to kill me,” Namuwaya told Morning Star News from her hospital bed. “I shared my fears with the pastor, and the pastor together with his family accepted to host me, and freely I openly shared my new life in Christ with friends on WhatsApp, which landed me in trouble.”

On June 20, she was confronted by her father and angry relatives who began beating her. 

“He started beating and torturing me with a blunt object, inflicting bruises on my back, chest, and legs, and finally forced me to drink poison, which I tried to resist but swallowed a little of it,” Namuwaya explained.

Neighbors heard her cries for help and that’s when the Muslim relatives left the scene. 

“The pastor was not around when the attackers arrived, but a neighbor telephoned him,” Namuwaya said. “He feared to come immediately but later came and found me fighting for my life. I was rushed to the nearby clinic for first aid, and later I was taken to another place for treatment and prayers.”

Namuwaya’s children, ages 5, 7, and 12, have been with their father, while she continues to heal from her injuries.

“I am restless with continuous pain in my stomach,” she said.

And she has not reported the incident to police out of fear that her family will retaliate and make up false charges against her.

Namuwaya found faith in Jesus Christ on Feb. 24 after she was reportedly healed from breast cancer following prayers from her pastor.

Attacks against Christians are not uncommon in this region of Uganda.

CBN News reported last month that a 70-year-old pastor was killed in Uganda after a group of radical Muslims stopped him and his wife on their way home from a market.

Earlier this year, a mob of radical Muslims killed a man in Uganda one week after he converted to Christianity.

And last September, a 13-year-old Christian girl, and her 11-year-old brother were reportedly abducted by a radical Muslim woman and sold to a witch doctor for ritual sacrifice.

SOURCE: CBN NEWS

Over 400 Church of the Almighty God Members Arrested amid Chinese Communist Party’s 100th Anniversary

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Over 400 Church of the Almighty God Members Arrested amid Chinese Communist Party’s 100th Anniversary

On the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, the CCP issued a crackdown targeting members of the Church of the Almighty God (CAG).

According to religious liberty magazine Bitter Winter, arrests of CAG members have exceeded 400 people between April and June of this year.

The CAG is considered a new religious movement, and according to Bitter Winter, it is also the most severely persecuted religious group in China.

In a document issued by the Office of State Security in Shanxi Province, the arrests were made in the name of the maintenance of social order during the 100th-anniversary celebration of the CCP.

Under the guise of anonymity, a government employee in Henan Province told Bitter Winter that the central government was ordered to arrest CAG members as key targets in preparation for the celebration. At least 265 CAG members were arrested in the Henan Province from mid-April to mid-June.

In another account shared with Bitter Winter, a released CAG member explained that during interrogation, she found out that some police officers had disguised themselves as cleaning workers and surveilled her house for three months before she was arrested. The police also showed the woman surveillance screenshots of two other CAG members and forced her to reveal their whereabouts.

Police have also carried out unified operations in order to arrest members of the CAG in Baotou city, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Within two days, Bitter Winter reports, at least 70 CAG members were arrested as a result of the joint operations.

From May 19 to 25, police in the southern province of Guandong arrested nearly 160 members across several cities, including Foshan, Guangzhou and Zhuhai.

In another unified operation in April, at least 116 CAG members were arrested. In addition, at least 750,000 RMB (about $ 116,000) of church and personal assets were looted.

According to a government insider, the government in the northern province of Shanxi launched a unified effort targeting CAG members on June 15 that may last until the end of July.

As of June 26, 403 CAG members had been arrested, including 124 in Changzhi city, 83 in Lüliang city, 67 in Jinzhong city, 96 in Linfen city, and 33 in Datong city.

SOURCE: CHRISTIAN HEADLINES NEWS

‘Ambush’: Bomber Attacks Church Service in Democratic Republic of Congo

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‘Ambush’: Bomber Attacks Church Service in Democratic Republic of Congo

A bomb exploded inside a Catholic Church in Beni, in the Democratic Republic of Congo Sunday, just before a children’s confirmation ceremony was set to take place. 

Police told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that the explosion occurred in the morning and that the makeshift bomb had been “set up for an ambush.” At least two people were injured.

“I had just entered the church, I hadn’t even managed to sit down. I heard ‘Boom’… Blood started flowing from my mouth,” one of the injured women, Antoinette Kavira, told AFP.

Beni’s vicar general, Laurent Sondirya said crowds of people were expected to arrive for the confirmation ceremony.

“They were targeting a large crowd because the ceremony would bring together children, their parents, and the faithful,” he told AFP.

After the explosion, blood was found at the entrance to the church, and glass was scattered throughout the inside.

“I lost four teeth and was injured in the arms,” Kavira added.

The second victim was wounded in the leg.

No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing but some believe the terrorist group, Allied Democratic Forces is behind the attack.

Now, a curfew has been imposed on residents of the town as authorities continue to investigate the incident. 

“I don’t want to see anyone in the street,” declared Mayor Narcisse Muteba on Sunday after announcing the curfew. “Everyone should go inside because we have information that something else is being planned.”

The government of the DRC denounces “with the utmost energy the explosion of a homemade bomb this morning at the Catholic Church of Butsili in the town of Beni (North Kivu) causing injuries and material damage,” said the Ministry of Communication.

The ministry added that the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) are “more than determined to end the activism of armed groups in this part of the country.”

SOURCE: CBN NEWS

South Korean Church offers free health care for homeless

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South Korean Church offers free health care for homeless

Seoul Archdiocese inaugurates Raphael Nanum Homeless Clinic within Myeongdong Babjib, a soup kitchen.

Seoul Archdiocese in South Korea has expanded its charitable services for the vulnerable homeless community to offer free health care in addition to free meals.

The archdiocese inaugurated Raphael Nanum Homeless Clinic within Myeongdong Babjib, a popular soup kitchen for homeless people, at historic Myeongdong Cathedral Church in capital Seoul on June 13.

The clinic is a joint collaboration between the archdiocese and the One Body One Spirit (OBOS) movement, a faith-based organization that believes in hope, life and love. Inspired by the 44th International Eucharistic Congress in Seoul in 1989 and Catholic social teaching, it works to make a peaceful world according to the spirit of the Eucharistic sacrament.

In January, Myeongdong Babjib was launched as a joint venture with OBOS to provide free packed lunches to some 1,400 people every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday with support from the Energy and Chemicals Division of SK Group, a leading conglomerate in South Korea.

From May, the soup kitchen has been serving cooked meals instead of packed lunches. On average, 500-600 homeless people visit the soup kitchen to get free meals on each of the three days.

The free health clinic is staffed and run by volunteers who are doctors, nurses, medical students and lay Catholics from the Lay Apostolate Society of South Korea.

Let us welcome and embrace our homeless neighbors as the angels of the Lord

Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung, archbishop of Seoul, blessed the clinic at its launch.

“Let us welcome and embrace our homeless neighbors as the angels of the Lord. I deeply thank each and every one of you for devoting your time and effort to this amazing work. I sincerely ask of the Lord to come into your lives and offer you special grace,” Cardinal Yeom said.

The idea of the homeless clinic came into being as many hospitals designated to serve homeless people are no longer able to provide medical care due to the pandemic, according to a press release from Seoul Archdiocese.

The clinic draws inspiration and support from the Raphael Nanum Foundation, a medical charity that has been pursuing its goal to relieve the needs of medically underserved populations, both domestically and internationally, providing free medical checkups and assistance to immigrant workers and developing countries.

On every Sunday, volunteer doctors are available for checkups and to prescribe medication to homeless patients. They also help those with urgent health needs to be transferred directly to an emergency medical center.

On the first day, the clinic had 13 visitors and it soon increased to 80 patients per day.

Teresa Curie Ahn, director of the board of Raphael Nanum Foundation, said its mission to support the socially excluded group will continue.

“We will do our best to continue improving the health status of socially excluded groups by reaching out to them,” she said.

Despite South Korea being an economic powerhouse, about 16.7 percent of its people live below the poverty line, according to a report from the France-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Based on 2019 data, the organization ranked South Korea fifth among 33 developed nations for relative income poverty.

About half of the elderly people in South Korea live in poverty due to no income and savings, noted the Borgen Project, a non-profit organization tackling poverty and hunger globally. It reported that there were about 11,000 homeless people in South Korea in 2017.

SOURCE: UCA NEWS

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