Indonesia: Hundreds of Extremists Attack Pastor and Church
Sep 18 2007
Postings >> Indonesia

A Christian pastor is seriously ill in hospital after 'hundreds' of extremists attacked him and his church during a Sunday meeting.

Pastor Jau Dolokseribu and six members of his congregation suffered 'grave wounds' when more than 300 militants raided the Protestant Church of the Christian Synod in Tangerang, about 15 miles from Jakarta.

AsiaNews reports that the extremists struck because the 60-strong congregation 'had not received official permission to build a church'. 7x7 has previously reported (eg: on 10 July 2007) that many house churches find it hard to meet the stringent criteria for licences as set out in 2006's 'houses of worship' legislation. And extremists are increasingly using lack of a licence as a pretext to attack churches.

Most of Pastor Jau's congregation are drawn from the Batak ethnic group. Five days after the attack, on 7 September, Pastor Saut Hasibuan, a leader of the Christian-based 'Peace and Prosperity Party' (Partai Damai Sejahtera), challenged the government to take a firmer stand against attacks on churches. He also asked them to encourage inter-faith dialogue and revise legislation governing church licences.

• Ask God to heal completely Pastor Jau and the six other Christians injured with him.
• Pray that the Indonesian authorities will revise legislation which sets near impossible barriers for house churches seeking a permit.