Sri Lankan church attacked
On November 5th a mob of about 200 persons surrounded the Jesus Never Fails Good News Centre in Koswatta, Sri Lanka at approximately 12:45 in the afternoon and hurled stones at the building, damaging the building exterior, windows and air conditioning units and the gate. They shouted threats to kill the pastor, accusing him of unethical conversions and demanding he stops conducting healing services. A large protest march led by members of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) including some of their party M.P. monks preceded the violent attack. The protest and the attack were a reaction to the death of two women who were brought to an open air healing service conducted by the pastor of the church on the 31st of October 2009, at the Vihara Mahadevi Park in Colombo. A spokesman for the church said the women came of their own free will, seeking divine healing and they died on admission to hospital and not at the healing service. Police were called in to stop the attack but were unable to prevent damage to the building. No arrests have been made so far.
December 22, 2009
Length: 4:58
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VOMC supports persecuted Christians who are serving as faithful witnesses for Christ among hostile environments through the provision of Biblical training, legal aid and advocacy, as well as rehabilitation and emergency assistance.
Project Funds: Relief and Development, Legal Defence
Country Information
Population
23,044,123 (July 2021 est.)
Ethnicity (%)
Sinhalese (74.9), Sri Lankan Tamil (11.2), Sri Lankan Moors (9.2), Indian Tamil (4.2), other (0.5)
Religion (%)
Buddhism (70.2), Hinduism (12.6), Islam (9.7), Roman Catholic (6.1), Evangelical Christianity (2.0)
Leader
Ranil Wickremesinghe (July 2022)
Government type
Presidential republic
Legal system
Mixed legal system of Roman-Dutch civil law, English common law, and Jaffna Tamil customary law
Source: CIA World Factbook
Pray for Sri Lanka
Let's unite our hearts in prayer for those in Sri Lanka who are being persecuted for their faith, thanking God for what He is accomplishing despite the opposition. Ask that His people will be encouraged, strengthened and equipped by the promises of the Bible – the Sword of the Spirit – knowing that He is watching over His Word to perform it (Ephesians 6:17; Jeremiah 1:12). May they not only overcome the strategies of the enemy, but also serve as effective witnesses to those in need of eternal salvation and deliverance from spiritual captivity.
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