30.03.19
Vietnam's Hmong Christians are persecuted for their beliefs.
In Vietnam, more than a million people are part of the Hmong group. Over the last 30 years, increasing numbers of Hmong have converted to Christianity from the group's traditional religion of animism (belief in the spirit world and the interconnectedness of all living things). As this article shows, turning from animism to believe in Christ and share His gospel can come at great cost. The Vietnamese government has reacted to the surge in conversions by publishing anti-Christian propaganda and maintaining restrictive policies, making it almost impossible for churches to register. The government says its new Law on Belief and Religion, due to come into effect in January 2018, will help its administration of religious affairs—for example, it will theoretically simplify the registration process. However, Vo Tran Nhat, executive secretary of the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, told World Watch Monitor last year that the law will add another layer of repression and control to an already pressurized Church.
Credit: Vietnam Civil Rights Project
Credit: Vietnam Civil Rights Project
Poverty deprives people of adequate education, health care and of life's most basic necessities- safe living conditions (including clean air and clean drinking water) and an adequate food supply. The developed (industrialized) countries today account for roughly 20 percent of the world's population but control about 80 percent of the world's wealth.
Poverty and pollution seem to operate in a vicious cycle that, so far, has been hard to break. Even in the developed nations, the gap between the rich and the poor is evident in their respective social and environmental conditions.
Poverty and pollution seem to operate in a vicious cycle that, so far, has been hard to break. Even in the developed nations, the gap between the rich and the poor is evident in their respective social and environmental conditions.
