Afghan Christians Remain Underground

Nina Shea, director of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom illustrates “the dirty little secret” of why no churches are being destroyed in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover. “There were no churches before the Taliban returned to power, Christians were already underground because of the constant threats to their lives, so they didn’t have any church buildings to blow up.”

The unfortunate Christians who did not manage to evacuate Afghanistan are facing even more danger. Most of the Christians living in Afghanistan are apostates. Conversion from Islam to Christianity is a sin punishable by death in the eyes of the Taliban. The terrorist organization hunts anyone who does not follow their extremist views, using torture and the fear of death to probe potential apostates and have them betray their friends and families.

Shea is urging the United States Secretary of State to grant admission to the Christians trying to flee Afghanistan into the US. She calls the current requirement of needing third-party testimony of personal threats “extremely unrealistic” and hopes to include religious minorities in those granted eligibility.

There are still thousands of Christians in Afghanistan in imminent danger because of their faith. a Georgia Congressman commented on the current situation in Afghanistan, saying that, “the environment under Sharia law creates an extremely dangerous situation for anyone who is of any other faith, the top of which are Christians… We’re in a serious fight for the clock right now, there are threats emerging by the hour.”

We pray for the Christians in Afghanistan who remain underground, yet stalwart in their faith in the face of torture and death.