Edging forwards 01/09/2008
Over the past few years, Vietnam has made some impressive steps forward in religious freedom. However, Christians in the traditional problem areas – including the northern and central highland regions – still face threats of harassment, discrimination and sometimes worse. Here, one pastor in central Vietnam recalls his experiences.
“What are you doing here? Who sent you? Who gave you these materials?” For three days the police asked Pastor Nguyen the same questions over and over again. He had been picked up while visiting local villages as part of his pastoral work and was accused of “illegal evangelism” and the distribution of illegal materials.
The pastor fasted and prayed throughout his three-day ordeal and eventually, after being taken to the district police office, he was released and allowed to return home. That was in 2006, at a time when arbitrary detention and mistreatment were the norm. For a period of two years before this, he became used to being summoned to the local police station for questioning. He would be called in three or four times a week, usually in the afternoon, in an intentional strategy to keep him from working in his fields to support his family.
Tough beginnings
From the start, Pastor Nguyen was especially aware of the costs of following Christ. He came from a family of proud Communist Party members; his parents wore the medals they had received for their good service over the years and his conversion came as a shock to them. His brothers refused to speak to him and his parents went to the local People’s Committee to announce that they no longer considered him to be their son. “They were very sad about me,” he said. “They thought someone paid or bribed me to do this and that I was very stupid”.
The pastor and his family were forced to move away from his hometown. They started a church in their new home but government opposition was so strong that they could only meet in the early hours of the morning. From 2002-03, the group of believers would gather from 4-5am to read the Bible, study and quietly pray. Singing was impossible.
Ongoing pressures
Over the years, the church became more firmly established, growing in strength and numbers. It has now proudly erected a cross over the gate, which Pastor Nguyen has staunchly refused to remove. The authorities have backed off somewhat, although they continue to place impossible obstacles in the way of registering the church, meaning the pastor and local Christians are forced to operate illegally. Existing in this legal grey area, the Christians simply don’t know what the future will hold.
The authorities’ change in approach may be more a case of them giving up on a battle they know they cannot win rather than a change in mentality, according to local Christian leaders. Sometimes, new Christians and their churches continue to face serious hostility, showing that the attitude towards Christians is still one of suspicion. The question now is whether the authorities will show the good faith to register the church and allow it to exist legally and freely.
Transformation
Despite these obstacles, Pastor Nguyen has seen the faithfulness of God, not only in his Christian work but in his own family. His mother who was initially so hostile to his new faith has now become a Christian. And before he passed away, his father stood up at a public meeting to say, “My son follows a religion that I don’t know much about. But one thing I know, before, he was a gangster, he beat people and no one would stand up to him because they knew his family were Communist Party members; but now, he is a good man. Only religion can do that. The Party and the government cannot make a man like that.”
Life for many Christians in Vietnam has got much easier in recent years. Forced renunciations of faith are uncommon nowadays, and most churches experience relative freedom to meet together for worship. But the registration of churches has virtually stalled, and many like Pastor Nguyen continue to face challenges and live in vulnerability to further harassment or discrimination. And it is for those people that CSW continues to work, ensuring that everyone can enjoy the freedom of faith they deserve.
What you can do
Pray
Please pray for Christians in Vietnam using the Prayer Diary.
Protest
The EU regularly raises human rights issues with the government of Vietnam. Please write to your MEP to ask for continued representations to be made in the area of religious freedom. Particular challenges to be addressed include: the slowdown in registration of congregations and denominations; failures to grant identity documents recognising the religious affiliation of Protestants; inadequate training of Party officials in policy on religion; and the return of land confiscated from the Catholic Church and South Evangelical Church of Vietnam.
Provide
Please consider making a donation to CSW to help us do more for Vietnam’s Christians. Visit the donation page or phone