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Bangladesh: Pastor’s home and church attacked
Please pray for a pastor and his wife in Bangladesh after they were attacked by a large gang. Their house and church were destroyed and they continue to be threatened.
The gang of some 25 attackers arrived at the couple’s home at around 8pm on Sunday 18 October. “We, Christians, are a minority here,” Pastor Badal Day pleaded with them. “We are not against anybody. Please do not do this. Please have mercy on us.” Despite this, both Pastor Badal (57) and his wife Josna Rani Day (50) were beaten up.
The gang raided the house, breaking all the possessions they could find. Then they turned their attentions to the nearby church, breaking down the door, smashing the windows and destroying the pulpit. As if that wasn’t enough, they set fire to the church and to Pastor Badal’s house.
“I begged them not to destroy the church,” Pastor Badal explains. “I begged, holding their legs, saying, ‘Please, do not attack the church. We worship here.’ But they refused to listen to me.”
Before leaving, the perpetrators issued a fresh warning. “You leave this place by tonight,” they said. “If we see you here tomorrow, then you will be killed. Leave this place soon if you want to survive.”
Image: The outside of Pastor Badal’s church and home
What caused the violence and threats?
Pastor Badal later discovered that the gang were acting on the orders of a powerful local political leader. The politician had aggressively took some of the pastor’s land and built a mill on it a few years ago. The pastor had tried to reclaim the portion back but failed; instead, he was threatened for taking legal action.
The pastor believes that they are trying to forcefully grab all his land. He has informed the local police. At first, they did not want to file the case, presumably because of the politician’s power, but later they agreed to it.
Pastor Badal and his wife are currently living in a small tent, at the corner of their broken house. He continues to receive threatening, anonymous calls telling him to not proceed with the case, otherwise they will suffer greater repercussions.
Pray now…
- For Pastor Badal and his wife Josna – ask that God would protect them and give them strength and healing.
- For the threats and violence to stop, and that he’ll be able to protect all his land.
- For the church community in the area to be strengthened and encouraged to keep following Jesus, despite the risks.
Raise money for vital support: Choose to lose!
Could you get sponsored to choose to lose something you love for a short time to raise vital funds for Christians like Pastor Badal who have been forced to give up so much to keep their faith in Jesus? Sign up and we’ll send you an awesome fundraising pack in the post!
We support people who are beaten, tortured,
imprisoned, falsely accused, and hated simply for following Jesus.
