Release International

Eight house churches in a housing complex in West Java received official letters on the same day ordering them to stop meeting.

Each church in the Rancaekek Kencana complex in Bandung was told that private homes should not be used as worship venues.

The pronouncement followed a meeting on January 12 to which local government officials, police, the local military commander and the leader of a local Muslim forum were invited.

Several of the churches defied the order and reportedly met for worship the following Sunday as usual. All the churches have applied for permits on several occasions since they were set up in 1993 but their applications have been rejected repeatedly. Permits have to be approved by local residents -- which can be a significant hurdle in a Muslim-majority country.

In the case of at least three of the eight Bandung churches, no objections from neighbours had ever been received. One of the eight churches, the Huria Kristen Batak Protestan (HKBP) has 250 members but, according to Compass, the congregation's singing is 'barely audible' from the street.

The pastor of a church in Gradiol Street, Rev Margaret, said local residents had no objections to her congregation -- but were afraid to speak up for them. She told her church on January 15, after the ban was announced: 'God will help us in this difficult situation. Don't stop praying.'

Edin Hendradin, head of the Office of National Unity and Public Protection which ordered the churches to stop meeting, told Compass: 'Please be fair. What has happened in Rancaekek is not church closure: we're just restoring the proper function of private homes.'

• Pray for the members and pastors of the eight Bandung churches which were ordered to close this month. Pray that God's presence with them will be strong as they continue to meet, albeit perhaps in smaller groups.
• Pray that local residents who have no objections to Christian meetings would start to stand up for Christians' right to religious freedom, instead of allowing themselves to be intimidated by the authorities.

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