India's federal government has formally warned Orissa and Karnataka to control the anti-Christian violence that has continued into its fifth week following the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati by suspected Maoists (click here for more information). The warning came through Article 355, which states: "It shall be the duty of the Union to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance and to ensure that the government of every State is carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution." If the warning against the two states goes unheeded, the federal government could impose Article 356, which grants the federal government emergency rule.

Despite the warning, VOMC continues to receive reports of attacks on Christians in both states and throughout the country. In Orissa's Kandhamal district, a Christian man was hacked to death by militants who stopped him and his wife while they were fleeing to a relief camp in the town of Phulbani on September 20. His wife was able to escape the scene unharmed. Arson attacks on at least 10 houses and kidnappings of Christians have been reported. A young Christian woman was dragged from a relief camp into a nearby jungle where she was gang raped by militants. In Karnataka, seven Christians were arrested and detained on charges of forcible conversion in Thalikare village on September 20 and four churches, three in the city of Bangalore and one in Kodagu district, were ransacked and vandalized by militants.

Pray for an end to this wave of brutal violence. Pray that believers under attack will set Christ apart as Lord and not give in to fear (1 Peter 3:14-17). Pray that those who persecute Christians will come to repentance and faith in Christ.

To learn more about trials facing Christians in India, click here.